For Clear Channel Outdoor, the process of selling subsidiaries outside the home market has been dragging on for a long time. With the sale of all northern European assets to Germany-based Bauer Media, CCO is parting with 75% of its inventory. 16,659 DooH screens in Northern Europe are changing hands. CCO is left with the small but highly profitable US business and the airport networks.
Pressure on CCO from investors to sell the international business had increased sharply in recent quarters. But the separation from the European subsidiaries dragged on. Italy was taken over by JC Decaux, Switzerland went to TX Media (Goldbach) and France to a private equity investor. In Spain, a purchase agreement with JCDecaux had already been sealed, but the antitrust authorities refused to approve it.
Bauer Media Group acquired the Northern European CCO network in Great Britain, Belgium, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland and Sweden. As part of the transaction 1,400 CCO employees will be moving to the Bauer Media Group.
With 16,600 displays and more than 227,000 billboards and posters, the new Bauer Media Northern Europe portfolio is a relevant force in the market. Bauer plans to sell DooH in combination with its Radio stations portfolio, a similar approach as Global UK, which successfully markets both media genres combined in the UK.
CCO focuses on North America
Clear Channel is now focusing on the American market. Not only does CCO operate its most profitable networks here, but the focus on the USA also enables major tax advantages. CCO’s competitors are already using tax-optimized Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) vehicles for this purpose. REITs pay out 90 percent of their profits to shareholders as dividends and in return do not have to pay any tax on profits.
