Dallas-based American Consolidated Media acquired by Australian firm

by PegNews wire

DALLAS — Macquarie Media Group (MMG) announced today that it has entered into an agreement to acquire 100% of American Consolidated Media, Inc. and 100% of Valley Newspaper Holdings, LP (collectively, ACM), a Dallas-based publisher of 40 local newspapers which serve nine regional communities in Texas and Oklahoma. The acquisition has an Enterprise value of $80 million (US) and is subject to regulatory approval and other customary closing conditions.

MMG Managing Director Alex Harvey said "ACM is a very attractive investment for MMG as it meets our key investment criteria. It provides essential local news and information to the communities in which it operates, some of which are among the fastest growing regions of the US, has strong positions and long established histories in those communities and generates stable cash flows from a large diverse base of local advertisers."

Of ACM's 40 local publications, five are daily newspapers, 19 are weeklies and 16 are "shopper" publications and associated websites.

"ACM founder and Chief Executive Officer Jeremy Halbreich has over thirty years experience managing newspaper businesses, including 12 years as president and/or general manager of the Dallas Morning News," Harvey said.

"The entire ACM management team eagerly looks forward to our new affiliation with MMG as we execute continued growth and expansion of our local community newspaper platform," Jeremy Halbreich said.

One of ACM's clusters of papers is just south of the Dallas / Fort Worth Area. ACM is the company that launched the free tabloid AM Journal Express in 2003.

Source: MMG / staff reports