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Diversity of Journalisms. Proceedings of ECREA/CICOM Conference, Pamplona, 4-5 July 2011
turnover, which seemed to be a vital and irrefutable argument against selling them
out, as it was the case of Slovakian assets.
Second case – Orkla Media
The Norwegian investor first appeared in Poland in Summer 1990. In cooperation with
the regional department of Solidarity (the biggest trade union and the strongest
opposition) Orkla established a brand new colorful daily. It should be emphasized that
it was something which Norwegians did not do even in their homeland. Although
Orkla came into existence in the year 1654 their interest in the media business
disclosed three centuries later in the mid-eighties. The operations of a subordinated
company, Orkla Media, mostly consisted of cooperation with other firms (e.g.
Egmont), through buying existing newspapers: Dailies and magazines. It is believed
that the assets managed by Orkla Media have never had an indispensible meaning
for the whole company.
When Polish market was opened for foreign investors the Scandinavians assumed
that it was a unique opportunity to widen their media asset. However, establishing a
new title was something unusual in their business strategy. One of the decisive factor
was their relations with Polish oppositionists. Orkla gave cart blanche to build a
newsroom and also free hand and independence in creating the content of the new
daily. In the first issue of “Dziennik Dolnoslaski” the editors announced on the front
page: ‘We believe that our daily will sustain free and independent, even from the
owners’. Too much freedom for inexperienced journalists and management staff was
the possible cause of collapse. One of the politicians managed to become the editorin-chief
and strongly politicized the newspaper, using it as a tool of propaganda. The
daily lost its readers and had to be closed in November 1991.
After that severe failure the Norwegians changed their strategy and followed a wellknown
pattern from their own market. From 1991 to 2004 Orkla Media bought 15
regional newspapers and 51% shares of a nationwide broadsheet. Although the
Scandinavians appeared in Poland three years prior to Passauer Neue Presse they
were not able to take the best regions in terms of readership and sale (which is now
about 275 thousand copies daily). Robert Hersant managed to do it instead and, as it
was mentioned before, sold almost everything out to the Germans. One exception
was done with the broadsheet “Rzeczpospolita” which the Frenchman sold to Orkla in
1996.
Thanks to that fact Passauer took over newspapers in richer regions and Orkla had to
place their investments in other parts of the country. As a result, although the
Norwegians ran more titles than the Germans they would not have the same income
(lower copy sale and revenues from advertisements). The only one position of
advantage that Orkla had was “Rzeczpospolita”. Furthermore, the Scandinavians
were purchasing shares in publishing houses in a small steps mode (Cira, 2000: 11),
very often for several years. For example in Lower Silesia Orkla Media was buying
shares in two titles: In regional daily for nine years and in local daily for eight years.
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