RCS MediaGroup

RCS MediaGroup S.p.A.

Type	S.p.A.
Traded as	BIT: RCS
Industry	Media
Founded	1927 as A. Rizzoli & Co. 1952 as Rizzoli Editore 1986 as RCS Editori 1997 as H.d.P 2003 as RCS MediaGroup
Headquarters	via Angelo Rizzoli 8, Milan, Italy
Key people	Angelo Rizzoli (founder) Angelo Provasoli (Chairman) Roland Berger (Deputy Chairman)
Products	Magazines Newspapers Radio Television Advertising New Media
Revenue	€ 1,597.7 million (2012)
Net income	€ (509.3) million (2012)
Website	www.rcsmediagroup.it

RCS MediaGroup S.p.A. (BIT: RCS), (formerly Rizzoli-Corriere della Sera) based in Milan and listed on the Italian Stock Exchange, is an international multimedia publishing group that operates in daily newspapers, magazines and books, radio broadcasting, new media and digital and satellite TV. It is also one of the leading operators in the advertisement sales & distribution markets.

History

Founded in 1927 by entrepreneur Angelo Rizzoli as A. Rizzoli & Co., it started in the press industry by buying out four national magazines, and later entering the publishing industry. Restructured and taken over a number of times, particularly in the 1980s when two of its executives became involved in the collapse of Banco Ambrosiano and the illegal Masonic Lodge Propaganda Due – or P2. Following the 1982 death of Roberto Calvi, the group applied for bankruptcy protection and greatly downsized.^[1]

Operations

RCS MediaGroup's sectors include newspapers, magazines and books, radio broadcasting, the internet and digital and satellite TV; it also has a division which handles advertising sales & distribution markets across all media divisions. In Italy, the group manages large daily newspapers such as Corriere della Sera, publish popular magazines including Il Mondo; and a diverse range of school, university, and business publications.^[1]

In Spain, through Unedisa it publishes leading daily newspaper El Mundo.^[1] It also has representation in Portugal, the United States and China. Already distributing the Italian version, in March 2008, RCS reached agreement with Global Media Publishing to launch a Russian version of its Sport Week magazine and develop a Russian language website sportweek.ru, which will be supplemented with mobile phone services.^[2]

The financial investment division holds interest in the capital of major Italian companies, including Banca Intesa, the internet company Dada, and Pirelli (which holds a complementary cross-holding).^[1]

The company employs 5,558 employees.

Sectors

Quotidiani (Newspapers) Sector

Quotidiani Sector is the publisher of the group's daily newspapers in Italy and in Spain.^[3] The company holds a leadership position in the national daily press in Italy, where it has a 19% market share, and in Spain, with an 18% market share.^[4]

Companies^[4]

• RCS Sport, a company that organizes the most important cycling events in Italy, including the Giro d'Italia and some of the most prestigious Classics, such as the Milan–San Remo, the Giro di Lombardia and the Tirreno–Adriatico, together with other events linked to summer and winter sports. RCS Sport organises the Milan Marathon and manages the sponsorship rights for the Italy National Football Team. Since 2008, it has also been a partner of the Italy national rugby league team, and has entered the motorsport industry with the indoor supercross format, Superiders.^[5]
• Unidad Editorial (96.48%, also present in the periodical sector), the leader in the daily press and in the on-line information sector through El Mundo, Expansión and Marca.

Newspapers^[6]

Periodici (Magazines) Sector

Periodici Sector publishes the group's magazines. In Italy the company has a market share of about 18%, with a portfolio of more than 30 publications.^[7]

Companies^[7]

• Sfera Editore
• Pubblibaby
• RCS Multimedia, a new integrated multimedia system that was launched in late 2008.
  • Digicast, a publisher of digital channels, distributed in Italy through SKY Italia.

Magazines^[8]

RCS Libri

RCS Libri runs the group's activities in the book publishing sector. Its structure comprises four divisions: Libri Italia, RCS Education, RCS Partworks, and Rizzoli USA.^[9]

Publishing houses^[10]

• Rizzoli-Longanesi (50%, in joint venture with Mauri Spagnol Group)

Pubblicità (Advertising) Sector

Pubblicità Sector is the agency for the acquisition of advertising customers for the group's publications. It is the leading company in Italy for the acquisition of advertising for print media, for which it has a market share of 19%.^[11]

Companies^[11]

• Blei, a media centre for the international market.
• IGPDecaux (48%, in joint venture with JCDecaux), the leading operator in Italy for the acquisition of advertisements in the poster, street furnishing and transport markets.
• Unidad Editorial Publicidad
• Novomedia

Other

• m-dis (45%)
• Gruppo Finelco (34,6%), manages three national FM radio stations: Radio 105 Network, Radio Monte Carlo (Italy and Switzerland) and Virgin Radio Italia.
• RAISAT (5%).
• Agenzia Giornalistica RCS, a news agency, which provides news and editorial content on radio, television and regional Italian web sites.

Ownership

On 26 January 2005 shareholders which control 63.527% of ordinary share capital came to a shareholders' agreement freezing, the participants from selling or trading their holdings. On 14 March 2008 the Consob group agreed to extend their agreement for another three years until 2011.^[12] The members and holdings of the Consob group are:^[13]

• Mediobanca – 14.029%
• Fiat (through Fiat Partecipazioni) – 10.291%
• Efiparind BV (Pesenti family) – 7.748%, of which:
  • Franco Tosi – 5.133%
  • Italcementi – 2.332%
• Dorint Holding (Della Valle family) – 5.499%
• Premafin Finanziaria (Ligresti family) – 5.462%
  • Fondiaria-Sai – 2.242%
  • Milano Assicurazioni – 1.706%
  • Sainternational – 1.406%
  • Saifin – 0.094%
  • Siat – 0.007%
  • Sasa – 0.006%
  • Sasa Vita – 0.001%
• Pirelli (Marco Tronchetti Provera) – 5.166%
• Intesa Sanpaolo (Corrado Passera) – 5.065%
  • Intesa Sanpaolo – 5.051%
  • Banco di Napoli – 0.009%
  • Banca IMI – 0.005%
• Assicurazioni Generali – 3.762%
  • Generali Vie – 3.700%
  • INA Assitalia – 0.042%
  • Toro Assicurazioni – 0.019%
  • BSI SA – 0.001%
• Merloni Group (Francesco Merloni, through Merloni Invest) – 2.090%
• Sinpar (Lucchini family) – 2.060%

Other major shareholders outside the Consob group include:

• Benetton Group (through Edizione Holding) – 5.001%
• UBS AG (through UBS Trust) – 5.951%
• Banco Popolare – 5.951%
• Si.To. Financiere (through Partecipazioni Editoriali) – 5.140%
• Giuseppe Rotelli (through Pandette Finanziaria) – 3.949%;

Board of directors

• Honorary chairman: Cesare Romiti
• Chairman: Angelo Provasoli
• Deputy chairman: Roland Berger
• Deputy chairman: Giuseppe Rotelli
• Directors: Umberto Ambrosoli, Andrea Campanini Bonomi, Fulvio Conti, Luca Garavoglia, Piergaetano Marchetti, Paolo Merloni, Carlo Pesenti, Giuseppe Vita, Graziano Molinari

Timeline

The timeline of the company:^[14]

• 1927 – Angelo Rizzoli launches publishing activities at his printing company “A. Rizzoli & C.”
• 1952 – company was renamed “Rizzoli Editore”
• 1974 – company purchased “Editoriale Corriere della Sera S.a.s.”, which publishes the daily newspaper Il Corriere della Sera
• 1976 – company took over management of La Gazzetta dello Sport
• 1984 – Gemina acquired controlling holding of Rizzoli
• 1990 – acquisition of holding in Spanish company Unidad Editorial S.A., the present day holding of which is 96.1%
• 1997 – Rizzoli-Corriere della Sera was separated from Gemina’s other industrial activities, which are transferred to the new HdP company
• 2000 – acquisition of French publishing house Editions Flammarion
• 2001 – creation of Fondazione Corriere della Sera
• 2002 – acquisition of holding in Dada S.p.A., which at present stands at 46.54%
• 2003 – company was renamed RCS MediaGroup
• 2006 – acquisition of first holding in Digicast, which is now a wholly owned subsidiary
• 2007 – acquisition, through Unidad Editorial, of Spanish publishing group Recoletos Grupo de Comunicaciòn
• 2007 – acquisition of 34.6% of Finelco Group
• 2008 – acquisition, through Unidad Editorial, of 100% of VEO Television (already held at 55,4%)
• 2012 – divestiture of Flammarion to Éditions Gallimard
• 2013 – In June 2013, the media group accepted an undisclosed offer from PRS Srl to buy 14 magazines it had put up for sale as part of its restructuring plan.^[15]
• 2014 – In September 2014, RCS MediaGroup in association with Playtech ^[16] launched an online sport betting portal under the brand GazzaBet.^[17]

See also

• Rizzoli Bookstore

References

External links

• RCS MediaGroup – corporate website
• RCS MediaGroup profile at Business Week