Lachlan Murdoch in bid for Hollywood Reporter

by Jacquie Bowser, Brand Republic 30-Nov-09, 09:05

LONDON - Lachlan Murdoch, the eldest son of media mogul Rupert Murdoch, is making a joint offer to acquire a group of US-based trade magazines, including Billboard and The Hollywood Reporter, from Nielsen Business Media, according to the Financial Times.

Illyria, Murdoch's investment company, is bidding with Pluribus Capital Management, a new group that includes James Finkelstein, the US publisher of The Hill, Matthew Doull, former publisher of Wired, and George Green, former publisher of Hearst International, according to a source quoted by the FT.

Illyria and Pluribus will invest equal sums and be equally represented on the board, according to the report.

The move follows Lachlan Murdoch's purchase of a 50% stake in the Daily Mail and General Trust's radio network in Australia last week.

Illyria paid £63m for the assets and Murdoch, who sold half of his stake in News Corp for $28m (£17m) to fund the deal, will become chairman of the operation.