Fairfax shareholders approve Nine Entertainment mega-merger
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Joseph O'Halloran
| 19 November 2018

Over a year since the deal was first mooted, shareholders of Fairfax Media have approved the proposal by fellow Australian media giant Nine Entertainment to acquire 100% of its issued capital.

At the scheme meeting set up to discuss the proposal, 81.49% of Fairfax shareholders present, in person or by proxy, voted in favour of the resolution and 88.60% of the votes cast by Fairfax shareholders present at the were in favour of the resolution.

The result will be the formation of one of the country’s largest media groups covering broadcast TV and streaming services among other assets. Fairfax Media holds a 50/50 joint venture with Nine Entertainment in subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) platform Stan which since launching in 2015, has grown to have more than 750,000 active subscribers and has engaged in exclusive content distribution partnerships with local and international content providers.

Commenting on the shareholder vote, Fairfax chairman Nick Falloon said: “Fairfax shareholders have voted overwhelmingly in favour of the proposed Nine merger. Our shareholders clearly see the potential of maintaining their shareholding in Fairfax’s growing businesses while participating in the combination benefits with Nine. We believe the merged businesses will deliver a stronger, digitally-focused media said: organisation with a compelling multi-platform audience reach.”

Added Fairfax chief executive officer Greg Hywood: “Today is a momentous day for Fairfax Media. The company is entering the next phase in its more than century-long development. Our businesses and our journalism are well positioned to continue to be the most compelling voices for the years ahead. The combined group’s increased scale of audiences and marketing platforms will drive value-creation and deliver long-term benefits to shareholders.”

Fairfax will now seek orders from the Australian Supreme Court for approval of the agreement at a hearing scheduled for 27 November 2018. If approved by the Court, Fairfax proposes to lodge the orders of the Court with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission on 28 November and the agreement will become effective on that date. If all goes to plan, the newly merged company is expected to start trading in early December 2019. Earlier in November 2018, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) decided not to oppose the proposed merger.