Australia’s Fairfax has got the green light from its shareholders to merge with television network Nine Entertainment in a massive shake-up of the nation’s media industry.<\/p>\n
Fairfax shareholders gave “overwhelming” support for the multi-billion dollar merger.<\/p>\n
The deal was possible after Australia relaxed its media ownership laws last year.<\/p>\n
The new business will be called Nine, losing the well-known Fairfax name.<\/p>\n
Fairfax chairman Nick Falloon said the change was expected to be implemented on 7 December, subject to court approval.<\/p>\n
The deal wraps in Nine’s television network, one of the nation’s biggest, and Fairfax newspapers including The Sydney Morning Herald, Melbourne’s The Age and The Australian Financial Review.<\/p>\n
It also includes Fairfax’s many radio and digital assets, including news websites in other cities and property listings business Domain.<\/p>\n
“Media consolidation provides significant potential by leveraging increased scale of audiences and marketing inventory to grow,” Mr Falloon said in a statement.<\/p>\n
Until last year’s law changes, proprietors had been prevented from owning newspapers, radio and TV stations in the same city – a rule designed to protect media diversity.<\/p>\n
Fairfax, which was founded in 1841, has struggled financially in recent years due to declining revenues.<\/p>\n