3 things about Alibaba's move into big media
by Sophia Yan @sophia_yan
December 13, 2015: 9:45 PM ET
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| cnn.com |
Chinese tech darling Alibaba announced last week that it is buying the South China Morning Post, the leading English-language daily newspaper in Hong Kong, but offered scant information on the deal.
On Monday, the SCMP Group released financial details in a filing to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.
Here are 3 things we now know about Alibaba's move into big media:
1. Alibaba is paying $266 million for SCMP
Alibaba is buying the SCMP Group for HK$2.06 billion ($266 million), which is a tad higher than the $250 million that Amazon's (AMZN, Tech30) Jeff Bezos paid for the Washington Post in 2013.
In addition to the flagship SCMP newspaper, Alibaba will acquire the company's other media businesses: its weekly magazine, education unit, conferences, and all digital properties including mobile apps and two Chinese websites. The deal also includes a portfolio of magazines published by the company, including HK Magazine, and the local editions of well-known media brands Esquire, Elle, Cosmopolitan and Harper's Bazaar.
Last month, the SCMP said it would begin printing the International New York Times for the mainland China and Hong Kong markets starting in February 2016. But the firm didn't specify Monday if this particular agreement would fall under Alibaba's buy.
The buyer is an investment holding company that is a direct subsidiary of Alibaba Group.
Alibaba (BABA, Tech30) shares tumbled 5.5% on Friday after the deal was announced. The company has lost 15% since its record-breaking debut last year.
The deal remains subject to regulatory approvals.
2. SCMP looks to go more digital
SCMP's board "believes that the future of traditional publishing is an uncertain one and believes that the value of the media business lies in the rich digital media content," according to the exchange filing. "It is likely that a new media operator ... will be able to unlock greater value from the content and brand than a traditional media business such as that operated by the Group.
The SCMP has long struggled financially -- profits have dropped for the past three years, while print circulation has also dipped. Shares of the firm have been halted since February 2013, and the company said there are no immediate plans to resume trading.
The newspaper group printed its first issue on November 6, 1903, and was publicly listed in Hong Kong in 1971. Media tycoon Rupert Murdoch purchased a controlling stake and privatized the firm in 1987. Murdoch relisted the company in 1990 and sold most of his stake to Malaysian billionaire Robert Kuok in 1993.
3. Hands off the property
While SCMP's core business has primarily been in media and publishing, the company is also a major real estate investor in Hong Kong. SCMP Group owns four investment properties, which earned a rental income of about HK$28.7 million ($3.7 million) in 2014, according to the filing.
The company plans to continue with its property investments after selling off its media businesses.
中國科技寵兒阿里巴巴上禮拜宣布買下香港首屈一指的英文日報「南華早報（the South China Morning Post, SCMP）」，但並沒有透露太多訊息。
而星期一SCMP集團在香港證交所發布了重要訊息。
對於阿里巴巴購買媒體業的大動作有3件事我們必須知道：
1. 阿里巴巴付了2.66億元給SNMP
阿里巴巴用20.6億港幣，換算美金為2.66億元買下SCMP集團，稍稍比2013年亞馬遜（AMZN, Tech30）買下華盛頓郵報所花費的2.5億美元高出一些。除了SCMP最主要的報紙，阿里巴巴還獲得了集團其他媒體部門，包括南華週報，教育中心，會議室以及所有數位化產業，行動App及兩個中文網站。這個買賣交易還涵蓋集團所發行的雜誌投資組合，包括香港雜誌及有名出版社的香港版：君子, Elle, 柯夢波丹和時尚芭莎。
上個月，SCMP表示集團將在2016年2月，於香港及中國兩地發行國際紐約時報，不過星期一重訊裡並未提及阿里巴巴是否也買下這個計劃。
阿里巴巴（BABA, Tech30）宣佈消息後，星期五的股價即重挫5.5%，自去年破紀錄後，阿里巴巴已損失15%。
而這場交易還在進行審查中。
2. SCMP期待走向更加數位化
SCMP集團董事在重訊中提到：「我們認為未來傳統發行業無法預測，並相信媒體產業價值是依附在豐富的數位化內容中。嶄新的營運團隊可以在內容及品牌上，創造比以前傳統時代更大的價值，如同以前SCMP所做的一樣。」
SCMP先前面臨長時間的經濟壓力，該集團利潤在過去三年不斷滑落，同時期的印刷量也慘跌。
股票更是在2013年就停止交易，而且並沒有立即性的計劃恢復交易。
1903年11月6日，集團發行了第一版報紙，1971年於香港公開上市。媒體大亨魯柏梅鐸在1987年取得控制權，並使該報紙民營化。梅鐸在1993年出售大多數的股權給馬來西亞鉅富郭鶴年。
3. 放手投資房地產
當SCMP的媒體及發行業成為核心的同時，他們也成為香港投資房地產的大股東。他們投資4處房地產，根據公開網站顯示，2014年獲得租金收入約有2,870萬港幣，相當於370萬美金。
而集團在賣掉旗下媒體業後，預期會繼續投資房地產。
scant (adj.) 一丁點的
tad (n.) 微量
flagship (n.) 旗艦
portfolio (n.) 投資組合
tumbled (v.) 墜落
tycoon (n.) 巨頭
privatize (v.) 使...為私有化
China is buying the world with its plenty of money.
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