巴菲特收购《奥马哈世界先驱报》扩大传媒集团
新浪财经讯 美国东部时间11月30日(北京时间12月1日)消息，股神巴菲特旗下伯克希尔哈撒韦公司(BRK)周三宣布收购家乡报纸《奥马哈世界先驱报》以此扩大其传媒集团，本次收购包括该报业拥有的另外六家日报和数家周报，预计交易在12月底前完成。
本周三，伯克希尔哈撒韦公司发表声明宣布收购家乡报纸《奥马哈世界先驱报》，这包括该报业旗下跨越内布拉斯加州和西南爱荷华州的六家日报和数家 周报，以及一家名为World Marketing市场直销公司。伯克希尔没有披露交易条款细则，但表示此项收购交易预计在今年12月下旬完成。
对此，巴菲特表示，“《奥马哈世界先驱报》有稳定盈利，是美国经营最好的报纸之一。在收购之后，该报业将继续保持编辑和运营的独立性”。
《奥马哈世界先驱报》在全美报纸排名第49位，是具有最多员工的报业公司，早晚约有200人负责早报和晚报的编辑。其员工持有股份的80%，另 外20%股份由Peter Kiewit 基金会持有。CEO特里克-勒格尔(Terry Kroeger)则表示，“巴菲特的收购要约为公司提供了一个解决长期资金需求的独特机会，并继续保持该报的当地所有权，”这是与公司的准则一致的。
巴菲特对媒体的兴趣由来已久，早在1969年巴菲特即买下奥马哈当地的太阳报公司，这是他投资的第一家报社，并间接获得了1973年的普利策 奖。除此之外，伯克希尔哈撒韦公司是华盛顿邮报(WPO)和纽约《布法罗新闻》的最大股东，并持有《商业资讯》(Business Wire)的股份。
有趣的是，巴菲特曾在2009年的伯克希尔哈撒韦股东大会上质疑，很多报纸正面临“无止境的潜在损失”， 无论任何价格他都不考虑买入其中的“绝大多数”，报业正面临因读者转向互联网而带来的收入损失。
伯克希尔哈撒韦公司2010年收入为1360亿美元，获利130亿美元，这包括保险、公用事业、铁路、房地产、制造业和零售业。分析机构认为， 本次收购对伯克希尔哈撒韦公司的整体表现不会有太大的影响。截至美东时间下午12：40，伯克希尔A股上涨3%至116389美元。(段皎宇 发自美国旧金山)
UPDATE 3-Warren Buffett buys his hometown newspaper
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/11/30/berkshire-newspapers-idUSN1E7AT15220111130Analysis & Opinion
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Wed Nov 30, 2011 4:01pm EST
* Deal expected to close in late December
* Buffett paying $150 mln cash - paper
* World-Herald circulation 135,000 per day
NEW YORK, Nov 30 (Reuters) - Billionaire investor Warren Buffett buys newspapers every day, including his hometown daily, but on Wednesday he dispensed with the single-issue price and bought the whole company instead.
Buffett's conglomerate Berkshire Hathaway said it would buy the Omaha World-Herald Co, owner of the paper of the same name, six other dailies and a series of weekly papers in Nebraska and Iowa.
The World-Herald, which calls itself the last major employee-owned paper in the country, splashed the news across its website, with a picture of the paper's publisher introducing Buffett to the staff. It is 80 percent owned by employees and 20 percent by the Peter Kiewit Foundation.
The paper reported that Buffett would pay $150 million cash, or about $1,109 per subscriber, and assume $50 million in debt.
"I wouldn't do this if I thought this was doomed to some sort of extinction," the paper said Buffett told a gathering of employees. "It is a reasonable investment. There is no question it is affected by the fact that I am extremely bullish on Omaha, Nebraska."
The World-Herald's publisher, Terry Kroeger, told the paper the holding company would have needed a capital infusion at some point in the future, as older shareholders were selling stock back faster than younger reporters were buying it.
The news appears to have stunned the reporters, for whom Buffett was one of the biggest subjects of their business coverage. The paper's designated Buffett reporter even did a weekly online chat about Buffett called "Warren Watch."
"I don't think anyone's going to be covering anything today. Everyone seems to be too busy talking about the Buffett news," World-Herald reporter Roseann Moring said on her Twitter feed in response to a request for coverage of another item.
EMPLOYEES APPROVE
With average daily circulation of just over 135,000, it is one of the larger papers in the country. The World-Herald Co said in a statement that Buffett's ownership would make it easier for the paper to raise money while preserving local control.
One newsroom employee, who spoke under condition of anonymity, said Wednesday's announcement was positive.
"It's obviously good news for the paper because we were facing a pretty heavy load of debt to pay to older stockholders (as they retired).
"This is good news for the employees. I think it is good long-term news for the paper, which is in good shape, but was facing some pretty heavy bills down the road."
The holding company had already made some cuts in 2008 and 2009 to improve its finances, including nearly 100 layoffs. It also sold some smaller Iowa papers last year.
'NEARLY UNENDING LOSSES'
Berkshire is no stranger to the newspaper business. The company bought the Buffalo News in New York in 1977 and has operated it since, though Buffett said in 2009 his owning the paper was not entirely rational.
Buffett was also a long-time board member of the Washington Post Co and a confidante of legendary publisher Katharine Graham.
Buffett has said that U.S. newspapers face years of "nearly unending losses" because they lack a sustainable business model.
Advertising revenue and circulation at many U.S. papers have fallen in the past several years as people turned to the Internet for free news and advertising, forcing some newspapers out of business and some publishers into filing for bankruptcy protection or laying off thousands of employees.
But the 81-year-old "Oracle of Omaha" struck a more moderate tone on Wednesday as he addressed the paper's staff.
"I think newspapers ... have a decent future. It won't be like the past. But there are still a lot of things newspapers can do better than any other media. They not only can be sustained, but are important," he was quoted as saying.
The deal also adds to Buffett's stable of local businesses. Though his focus is usually national or global, he owns a number of large Omaha brands, including the sprawling Nebraska Furniture Mart and the jeweler Borsheim's.
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