ACP buys classified ads titles

By SIMON HENDERY, Media writer

Publishing entrepreneur Barry Colman's Liberty Press Group has sold its stable of classified advertising titles to Australian media giant ACP.

The 15 titles, including Property Press, Motor Buyers' Guide and Motor Press, have total combined weekly circulations of more than 700,000.

A sale price has not been disclosed but Mr Colman said the titles accounted for about a third of Liberty Press' revenue.

Liberty Press retains several business publications and newsletters of which the weekly National Business Review is the flagship.

Kerry Packer's ACP dominates local magazine sales with titles including Woman's Day, the Australian Women's Weekly, and Next.

Its classified titles include Auto Trader, Trade-a-Boat, Motor Cycle Trader, Farm Trader, Deals-on-Wheels and Buy Sell and Exchange.

ACP said it had been on a growth curve in the last 12 months, consolidating its publishing businesses in new Westhaven premises and further developing its classified advertising business with the acquisition of Loot in Hamilton and the launch of a range of web sites.

"The acquisition is part of our strategy to be a major player in the classified market," ACP managing director Bruce Cotterill said.

ACP is a subsidiary of Australian-listed Publishing and Broadcasting, which is 40 per cent owned by the Packer family.

Mr Colman said the approach from ACP had been unsolicited, but was too good to walk away from.

Liberty's first classified title was a real estate tabloid launched in 1978 with a circulation of 8000.