Germany's Bauer Media has agreed to buy Clear Channel Europe-North, a major player in the "Out of Home" media sector, in a deal worth $625m.
Today's deal extends Bauer Media's European coverage and strengthens its core media related businesses, the company said.
Clear Channel Europe gives Bauer Media an additional offering in 12 markets, Ireland, the UK, Belgium, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland and Sweden.
The transaction is expected to close in 2025, after completion of regulatory approvals.
Bauer Media Audio Ireland is the country's largest commercial radio group and it owns Today FM and Newstalk, two SPIN youth stations in Dublin and the South West of Ireland, iRadio across the North East and North West, 98FM in Dublin, Beat in the South East and Red FM in Cork.
It also operates digital sports brand Off The Ball, the aggregated listening platform GoLoud for radio, podcasts and music, audioXi, a digital audio advertising exchange and media sales house Media Central.
Yvonne Bauer, Chair of the Bauer Media Board, said the deal for Clear Channel Europe represents a pivotal step in advancing the group's refocused strategy.
"By enhancing our core media and related businesses while investing in our digital transformation, this move broadens our capabilities and strengthens our position as a major player in the highly competitive media industry," she said.
She said that bringing together the two companies' offerings will enable them to reach 350 million consumers through 200 magazine brands, 150 Audio brands, and 110,000 Out of Home sites across Europe.
"This expands the scope of what we can offer advertisers, in turn giving them the opportunity to amplify the impact and relevance of their campaigns in an increasingly connected and digital world," she added.
Justin Cochrane, CEO of Clear Channel Outdoor UK & Europe, said the company looked forward to joining Bauer Media to build upon the strong foundation that it has established in these European markets as a part of Clear Channel Outdoor.
"The consistent top-line performance of our Europe-North assets year-to-date underscores the growing demand in these markets and the dedication of our teams to executing for our clients and partners," he added.
