One year from its launch, Financial Chronicle, the business daily published by the Bombay Stock Exchange-listed Deccan Chronicle Holdings Ltd (DCHL), will launch its New Delhi edition tomorrow. The paper is currently available in Hyderabad, Chennai, Bangalore and Mumbai. DCHL also publishes Deccan Chronicle.
When asked about the performance of Financial Chronicle, DCHL CEO P.K. Iyer said: “FC’s performance has been satisfactory. The paper was envisoned to have a national footprint and Delhi was part of the original plan, and we are launching there tomorrow.” Iyer said the paper currently has a print run of 1.2-1.3 lakh. It had launched with a print run of 70,000 copies.
Financial Chronicle, which started publication on 16 April 2008 as India’s sixth national business daily in English, publishes a 4-page ‘World Business’ section in collaboration with the International Herald Tribune. DCHL also brings out a facsimile edition of IHT in India.
NYT investment in limbo:
It shouldn’t come as a surprise given The New York Times (NYSE: NYT) Co.’s current financial shape, but Iyer sounded pessimistic when asked about the proposed sale of 5% stake in subsidiary Sieger Solutions Ltd to The NYT Co. “We all know that today, acquisition of a stake anywhere is not NYT’s first priority. They have not said no and they have not said yes. We are still waiting to hear from them,” Iyer said.
“The New York Times Company has proposed and is in discussion to acquire a 5 per cent equity stake in Sieger Solutions Ltd, a 100 per cent subsidiary of Deccan Chronicle Holdings,” the company had said in a June 2008 filing to the Bombay Stock Exchange. Commenting for a Reuters story shortly after announcing the proposed stake sale, Iyer had said the company expects revenues of Rs100 crore annually from an outsourcing deal with NYT Co., which would see Sieger Solutions managing all of NYT’s digital properties out of India. “We are going to be running all their internet properties out of India, which is all their websites as well as some of the development activities of their’s connecting to the digital space,” he had told Reuters then.
When asked about this, Iyer said business from NYT had not reached expected levels, but Sieger was still doing a substantial amount of business for NYT. He refused to reveal details. “Whether we have reached 60% of that number or 70%, you can find out when the consolidated balancesheet is out,” Iyer said.
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