Revealed: Axel Springer skipped due diligence before £575m Telegraph takeover
Summary
Axel Springer bought the Telegraph newspapers for £575 million without doing the usual thorough check of the company’s value. The Telegraph is shifting from print newspapers, which are making less money, to digital subscriptions, but the new owners face questions about whether they can make back their large investment.Key Facts
- Axel Springer skipped a detailed review (due diligence) before buying the Telegraph for £575 million.
- The deal was completed quickly by Axel Springer’s CEO, Mathias Döpfner, who wanted the purchase badly.
- The Telegraph was previously set for a £500 million sale to another buyer but Axel Springer paid more to secure the deal.
- Print sales, subscriptions, and ads make up 61% of the Telegraph’s revenues but all are declining.
- Digital subscriptions grew by 5% in 2024 and digital revenue increased 18%, but many subscribers pay low or no fees.
- The Telegraph’s average income from print subscribers is much higher than from digital or magazine subscribers.
- The company stopped reporting detailed subscriber data publicly at the end of 2023, making it harder to assess the business.
- The Telegraph aims to increase digital subscribers by 19% in 2025 to more than 1 million digital users.
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