Km media group sale ‘Iliffe shares our belief in importance of local media’
Iliffe Media Ltd has acquired the entire shareholding of the KM Media Group Ltd, publisher of the Kent Messenger.
KM publishes nine paid-for and four free newspapers including the Kent Messenger Series, the current Regional Press Awards Newspaper of the Year, and the Kentish Gazette, established in 1717.
The group publishes KentOnline.co.uk, with an audience of 2.4m unique monthly browsers.
In addition to print and online, the group operates the kmfm radio network, reaching 164,000 listeners each week, and will soon be broadcasting on television through a joint initiative with the University of Kent.
Its newspapers are among the UK’s biggest-selling weekly titles with a long established heritage dating back 300 years.
The deal represents the latest stage in the expansion of Iliffe Media, following the launch of the Cambridge Independent in 2016 and the acquisition of 13 titles from Johnston Press earlier this year.
KM Media Group chairman Geraldine Allinson said the deal with Iliffe would allow KM to continue to evolve and bring about much-needed investment to maintain its independence and continue to serve the people of Kent with trusted news and other valued content.
It also enables KM to resolve the long-standing issues surrounding its closed final salary pension scheme.
Geraldine, who will remain fully involved with KM Media Group, said: “The directors and I believe this deal represents the best possible outcome for our staff and customers.
“Although there is some personal sadness for me and my family that our pension liabilities have led us to this position, in Iliffe we have found a publisher which shares our belief in the importance of local media.
“The Iliffe family have extensive experience and heritage in local media, publishing and printing dating back to 1891, and have very similar values and ethos to us at KM. We believe they will be great custodians of our media portfolio here in Kent.”