Fate of Desmond's London paper to be decided in weeks

by Staff,, Brand Republic 15-Nov-04, 11:00

LONDON – The fate of Richard Desmond's long-planned free London evening newspaper will be decided in weeks, as the Office of Fair Trading prepares to rule on whether the distribution deal between Associated Newspaper's and London Underground is anti-competitive.

If the OFT rules that the deal between Associated and London Underground to distribute London morning freesheet Metro is anti-competitive, Desmond will go ahead with his launch, which would see his title distributed in Tube stations.

It was reported earlier this month that the publication will be called London-i, and could be launched as quickly as early as next year at the latest.

Desmond has trademarked the name London-i and developed a masthead logo.

The investigation into Metro, which was sparked by Desmond, has been under way for about 18 months.

Associated is reported to be ready to strike back at Desmond, if the OFT rules against it, with the launch of an afternoon edition of the Metro.

However, if the long-awaited decision goes against him, Desmond is likely to scrap his plans because he is left with no viable means to distribute a free London evening newspaper.

Desmond is understood to have looked at paying vendors to distribute London-i, but rejected the idea as being too expensive.

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