Government ‘minded to’ intervene in Daily Mail owner’s takeover of i newspaper
The government has told the Daily Mail’s owner that it is “minded to” intervene in its £50 million deal to buy the i newspaper.
The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) said it has written to the Daily Mail and General Trust (DMGT) amid public interest concerns over the deal.
In November, DMGT announced the acquisition of the daily newspaper from rival JPI Media.
Last month, the competition watchdog launched an investigation into the deal to probe any potential regulatory issues.
On Thursday, Nigel Evans, minister for sport, media and creative industries, said the government was likely to intervene but had “not taken a final decision”.
In a written statement, the department said the deal could negatively impact the need for “a sufficient plurality of views in newspapers” in the UK.
The letter, to DMGT and JPI Media, said both parties have until January 13 to respond regarding these concerns.
Culture Secretary Nicky Morgan plans to make her final decision on whether an intervention is needed by the week commencing January 20.
If an intervention notice is issued, industry regulator Ofcom would then assess the public interest concerns of the move alongside the Competition and Markets Authority.
Since the deal was first announced, critics, including Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, said they were concerned that the new owner would push the i’s editorial line to the right – in line with its other publications.
But Lord Rothermere and i editor Oly Duff have both insisted that editorial independence would remain.
The i, was launched in 2010 as a compact sister version of the Independent, but time-poor readers liked the bite-sized news and it quickly overtook the Independent, which eventually closed and became an online-only operation.
According to DMGT, the i sells around 170,000 copies each weekday and 190,000 copies on Saturdays.
In 2018, revenues were £34 million with £11 million in “cash operating income and operating profit”.
