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Member of RAO UES BOD Creates Media Holding
ESN Group of Grigory Berezkin is setting up its own media holding. For this purpose, ESN bought out 80 percent in RZD Partner publishers that releases a magazine of the same name and Strella newspaper. Nowadays, media business soars 30 percent on year here, but financial and industrial blockbusters are investing in it also for reasons of image.
ESN bought out 80 percent in St. Petersburg publishers, RZD Partner, from its founders in January, said Marianna Belousova, who is the PR director at ESN Group. “Top managers retained 20 percent in the publishing house,” Belousova specified.
RZD Partner Magazine General Director Alexander Retyunin confirmed the deal and specified that his company “attracted a strategic investor and counts on developing new business directions.” ESN didn’t disclose the deal budget, but an anonymous source said it was below $1 million.
Emerged in 1990, ESN Group is focused on investments in power engineering and on anti-crisis and strategic management. It owns shares in ENEL ESN Energo (management company for North-West TETs heating power station), Rusenergosbyt, Yar oil-loading station. ESN Group’s CEO Grigory Berezkin is a BOD member at RAO UES of Russia.
The analysts say ESN bought an ambiguous asset. “In today’s condition, it is quite attractive – in view of the agreement with RZD (Russian Railways), which may ensure big audience,” said Ruslan Tagiev, media research director at TNS Gallup Media. Stripped of agreements with RZD, the asset will have “neither the value no the future.”
But in today’s Russia, financial and industrial blockbusters tend to fund media business, the analysts speculate. One the one hand, it widens 30 percent on year in the country, on the other hand, the giants do it for reasons of image.
“Once again, availability of media assets begins to improve the company’s status in the business environment,” said Hachette Filipacchi Shkulev CEO Viktor Shkulev. “Once you own a full-value mega-holding, possessing media assets in addition gives certain charm to you.”
www.kommersant.com
All the Article in Russian as of Oct. 16, 2006
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