Mondadori took over Rcs books for 135 million, winning a series of prestigious brands (Bompiani, among others, while Adelphi should withdraw from the group) and authors (even if Umberto Eco's farewell is obvious). The agreement arrived yesterday after 9 months of negotiations. At this point, the scrutiny of the Antitrust remains to be overcome, which could impose some sales, given that the share of the Fininvest company will rise to 35-40% of the market.
The positive financial effects for Rcs were immediate, forced to sacrifice by the need to raise cash: the group was crushed by 526 million debts (as of 30 June) which must be reduced below the threshold of 440 million by the end of the year in order not to trigger covenants with the banks and make a new capital increase necessary, very unwelcome to the main shareholders, from the Agnelli family to Mediobanca, as well as the Rotelli heirs and Urbano Cairo.
The new center will count on a turnover of around 500 million on a market that, overall, is around 1,2 billion.
