Transcontinental consolidates hold buying 74 Quebec weeklies from Sun Media

Transcontinental Inc. now has permission from the Competition Bureau to acquire 74 weekly newspapers in Quebec from Sun Media. As a condition, the bureau required that -- of the total 154 Transcon and Sun weeklies -- it must attempt to sell 34 for a period of 60 days. 

Once the sale period has expired, Transcontinental Inc. will review its portfolio in order to ensure the sustainability of the weekly press in Quebec, by continuing to offer relevant local information on a multitude of platforms, in all the regions of the province where it is present, the company said in a release. 

"We are pleased with this decision, which allows us to close the transaction and combine the strengths of both companies," said François Olivier, President and Chief Executive Officer of Transcontinental Inc. "We are enthusiastic that we will soon be able to welcome the employees of the Sun Media weekly newspapers in Quebec. Despite having to put some weekly newspapers up for sale, this transaction will add about $20 million to the operating earnings before amortization of Transcontinental Inc. and further advance the local multiplatform offering for businesses and communities."

The intention to buy the Sun papers had been announced in December pending approval by the bureau. 

Transcontinental is the largest printer and the one of the largest consumer magazine publishers in Canada.