Gannett’s Offer to Acquire Newsquest Is Declared Unconditional
ARLINGTON, Va. – Gannett Co., Inc. announced today that the offer to acquire the entire issued and to-be-issued share capital of Newsquest plc by Gannett U.K. Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary, has been declared unconditional in all respects.
Gannett had received as of 3 p.m. on July 23, 1999, the first closing date of the offer, acceptances under the offer, and/or had acquired through market purchases, a total of 186,735,028 Newsquest shares, representing approximately 95.1% of the issued share capital of Newsquest.
The board of Newsquest has recommended unanimously that Newsquest shareholders accept the offer, as they have done or plan to do with respect to their own beneficial holdings of Newsquest shares. The offer will remain open for acceptance until further notice.
Newsquest is the largest publisher of regional newspapers in England and the third largest in the U.K. It publishes over 180 titles including 11 daily newspapers, with the remainder a mix of paid and free weeklies and niche publications. Newsquest titles include the Northern Echo, the Evening Argus and Berrow’s Worcester Journal, the oldest continuously published newspaper in the world.
Gannett is a nationwide news and information company that publishes 74 daily newspapers, including USA TODAY, and USA WEEKEND, a newspaper magazine. Gannett also operates cable television systems in three states and 21 television stations.