The Vivendi media group announced on Tuesday exclusive negotiations between its magazine press subsidiary Prisma Media and the Le Figaro group for the sale of the Gala press title, according to a press release. Vivendi has received “several offers” for the sale of the weekly people, one of the conditions set by the European Commission to authorize it to take control of the Lagardère group, says Vivendi. The French media group, chaired by Yannick Bolloré and Arnaud de Puyfontaine, says it is “confident of being able to finalize this operation by October 2023”. If these negotiations are successful, the Le Figaro group “will have to be approved as a buyer by the European Commission”, said Vivendi.
In an interview with Le Figaro on May 25, Claire Léost, president of Prisma Media, announced that her group should “soon do everything to compensate for the loss in the coming months of the Gala jewel” (paid distribution in France of 127,975 copies in 2022, down 4.7% and 7 million subscribers on TikTok), which so far represented more than 10% of its turnover and “one of the most profitable titles in the press”. The magazine would realize a small forty million euros in turnover. As part of Vivendi’s takeover bid for the Lagardère group (Lagardère travel retail, Hachette, etc.), management had tried for many months, in vain, to convince the European Commission that the weekly title was not positioned on the same people market as Paris Match magazine.
“This forced sale of Gala is a real heartbreak for us and for its 130 people who work for this brand, said the president. We are expecting a very high valuation from this nugget”. She then explained that she had already received for the Gala “about fifteen marks of interest” from French and foreign actors.
By buying Gala, the Le Figaro group will be able to strengthen its position in the women’s press market, where its weekly Madame Figaro – sold in packs at weekends with Le Figaro and Le Figaro Magazine – claims a controlled paid circulation in France of 384,669 copies in 2022, up 1.1%.
