Bertelsmann
Encyclopedia
Bertelsmann AG is a multinational
media
corporation founded in 1835, based in Gütersloh
, Germany. The company operates in 63 countries and employs 102,983 workers (as of December 31, 2009), which makes it the most international media corporation in the world. In 2008 the company reported a €
16.118 billion consolidated revenue and an operating EBIT
of €1.568 billion. Among its some 2000 subdivisions, subsidiaries, and branches are Random House
, RTL Group
, Gruner + Jahr
, Arvato, and BMG Rights Management
.
, a non-profit organisation and political think tank set up by the Mohn
family, which in turn privately owns the remaining 22.6%. Albert Frère
, a Belgian industrialist, owned 25% of Bertelsmann until 2006.
division disbanded in 2011, Bertelsmann currently maintains four corporate divisions:
BMG Rights Management replaced BMG Music Publishing, concentrating on music rights management. The division is currently forthcoming.
Together with its five major divisions Bertelsmann holds assets in more than 200 companies and enterprises worldwide.
Direct Group
was disbanded as a separate corporate entity in June 2011, its businesses subsequently being transferred to the Corporate Investments division in Bertelsmann's Gütersloh corporate headquarters.
, Bertelsmann was the biggest single producer of Nazi propaganda. Owner Heinrich Mohn and his son Reinhard Mohn
were both members of the SS.
At the end of World War II
, the publishing house was closed for some time because of illegal paper-trading. During the Nazi
period, it published books by Nazi authors such as Will Vesper
(who did the commemorative speech at the 1933 book burning
) and Hans Grimm
. In 1947, the company was re-founded by Reinhard Mohn, fifth generation of the Bertelsmann family.
In the 1950s, Bertelsmann expanded with the bookclub Bertelsmann Leserring (Book Club) and entered the music market with the founding of the LP label Ariola Records
in 1958. In 1964 Bertelsmann entered the movie market with the purchase of the Ufa Filmproduktionsgesellschaft. It sold Ufa's cinema chain in the 1970s. In 1969, Bertelsmann bought into the Gruner und Jahr
publishing house (newspapers, magazines) and took majority ownership in 1973.
Since the 1980s, Bertelsmann has expanded internationally: in 1979 it bought the American Arista
label, in 1980 Bantam Books
, in 1986 the label RCA Victor
and the publishing house Doubleday. It has distributed Windham Hill Records
since 1989. In 1992 it acquired 50% of Windham Hill Records and in 1996 it took full control. During this period the activities in the music market were bundled into the label BMG
.
In 1993, Reinhard Mohn
as owner of Bertelsmann moved 68.8% of his Bertelsmann AG stock over to the Bertelsmann Foundation
. As of 2006, the Mohn family still owns 74.9 of Bertelsman's capital, in addition of the Bertelsmann foundation.
From 1995 to 2000 Bertelsmann had a major Internet service provider
(and associated content) joint venture with AOL
that operated throughout Europe.
In 1995 the Ufa Film- und Fernseh-GmbH merged with CLT, Luxembourg. The result was known as RTL Group
, the biggest private radio and TV broadcaster in Europe.
In 1998 Thomas Middelhoff
became CEO of Bertelsmann. He bought the Random House
publishing house and concentrated the group's worldwide book publishing operations under this label.
In 1999, Bertelsmann launched bol.com, the internet book retailer.
In 2000, Bookspan was created as a joint-venture between Time Warner
and Bertelsmann until 2007 when Bertelsmann took over complete ownership.
In February 2001, Groupe Bruxelles Lambert
, headed by Albert Frère
, purchased 25% of Bertelsmann AG. André Desmarais
, President and Chief Executive Officer, Power Corporation of Canada, was named to the board. In July 2002, the CEO Thomas Middelhoff left the company because of disagreements concerning the company's strategy, in particular relating to his plans to float the company's share on the stockmarkets.
In 2002 Bertelsmann admitted that they lied about their involvement with Adolf Hitler
and the Nazi party, which included making profits from slave labour and publishing propaganda. The revelations came to light during their takeover of US book publisher Random House
in 1998; Bertelsmann used a revised account of their Nazi past to smooth the deal.
In 2003, the new CEO Gunter Thielen
expanded the music branch BMG
with the buying of Zomba Records.
In 2004, BMG set up a joint-venture with Sony Music to create Sony BMG, reducing the Big Five of music companies to the Big Four
. BMG Music Publishing, the world's third largest music publisher, remained wholly owned by Bertelsmann at the time, but was sold to Universal Music Publishing in 2006.
Also in 2004, the London Borough of Camden
, England, brought anti-social behaviour order
s (ASBOs) against Sony Music UK
and BMG for alleged fly posting. Illegal fly posting by the two companies is thought to save them £8 million a year in advertising costs in Camden and cost the Borough £250,000 to clean up. Falling to comply with an ASBO can result in a jail sentence of up to 5 years.
In July 2006 Bertelsmann AG purchased back 25% of own company from Groupe Bruxelles Lambert
.
As of September 1, 2007, Bertelsmann agreed to pay music publishers $130 million to settle a copyright infringement lawsuit brought on by its deal with Napster.
On January 1, 2008, Hartmut Ostrowski
became the new Chairman and CEO of Bertelsmann, replacing Gunter Thielen.
On April 23, 2008, the company announced that it planned to publish a one-volume encyclopedia in September using content from the German-language Wikipedia
. The volume is sold since September 15th 2008 and includes abbreviated entries for the 50,000 most commonly used search terms of the prior two years.
On October 1, 2008 Bertelsmann completed the sale of its 50 % stake in Sony BMG to Sony Corporation of America
. Sony has since renamed its now wholly owned music business to Sony Music Entertainment. These two divestitures marked the end of the Bertelsmann Music Group division and the selected assets that Bertelsmann decided to retain from these sell-offs will be the basis of a forthcoming BMG branded division, BMG Rights Management, which will focus on building, managing and marketing artist rights.
On October 3, 2009, Reinhard Mohn died at age 88.
On October 10, 2011, it was announced that Thomas Rabe
will be elevated from CFO to CEO and will succeed Hartmut Ostrowski
as of January 1, 2012
Multinational corporation
A multi national corporation or enterprise , is a corporation or an enterprise that manages production or delivers services in more than one country. It can also be referred to as an international corporation...
media
Mass media
Mass media refers collectively to all media technologies which are intended to reach a large audience via mass communication. Broadcast media transmit their information electronically and comprise of television, film and radio, movies, CDs, DVDs and some other gadgets like cameras or video consoles...
corporation founded in 1835, based in Gütersloh
Gütersloh
Gütersloh is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, in the area of Westphalia and the administrative region of Detmold. Gütersloh is the administrative centre for a district of the same name and has a population of 96,320 people.- Geography :...
, Germany. The company operates in 63 countries and employs 102,983 workers (as of December 31, 2009), which makes it the most international media corporation in the world. In 2008 the company reported a €
Euro
The euro is the official currency of the eurozone: 17 of the 27 member states of the European Union. It is also the currency used by the Institutions of the European Union. The eurozone consists of Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg,...
16.118 billion consolidated revenue and an operating EBIT
Earnings before interest and taxes
In accounting and finance, earnings before interest and taxes is a measure of a firm's profit that excludes interest and income tax expenses. Operating income is the difference between operating revenues and operating expenses...
of €1.568 billion. Among its some 2000 subdivisions, subsidiaries, and branches are Random House
Random House
Random House, Inc. is the largest general-interest trade book publisher in the world. It has been owned since 1998 by the German private media corporation Bertelsmann and has become the umbrella brand for Bertelsmann book publishing. Random House also has a movie production arm, Random House Films,...
, RTL Group
RTL Group
RTL Group is Europe's largest TV, radio and production company, and is majority-owned by German media conglomerate Bertelsmann. It has 45 television and 32 radio stations in 11 countries...
, Gruner + Jahr
Gruner + Jahr
Gruner + Jahr GmbH & Co. KG is the largest European printing and publishing firm. Its headquarters is in Hamburg, Germany.-History:Originally founded on August 1, 1948 as the Henri Nannen publishing house, Gruner + Jahr was created in 1965 from a merger by acquisition, by publishers John Jahr Sr....
, Arvato, and BMG Rights Management
BMG Rights Management
BMG Rights Management is a music rights management company and a joint venture between the international media company Bertelsmann and the global private equity firm KKR...
.
Ownership
Bertelsmann is not publicly listed and is majority owned (77.4%) by the Bertelsmann FoundationBertelsmann Foundation
The Bertelsmann Foundation is the largest private operating non-profit foundation in Germany, created in 1977 by Reinhard Mohn. The Bertelsmann Foundation holds 77.4 percent of Bertelsmann AG....
, a non-profit organisation and political think tank set up by the Mohn
Liz Mohn
Liz Mohn née Beckmann is the widow of Reinhard Mohn, the owner of the media conglomerate Bertelsmann. She serves on the supervisory board of Bertelsmann and on the board of the Bertelsmann Foundation....
family, which in turn privately owns the remaining 22.6%. Albert Frère
Albert Frère
Albert, Baron Frère is a Belgian businessman and the richest man in Belgium....
, a Belgian industrialist, owned 25% of Bertelsmann until 2006.
Businesses
After the Sony BMG joint venture was given up in 2008 and the Direct GroupDirect Group
DirectGroup Bertelsmann is a division of Bertelsmann AG and operates book sales clubs, online shops, bookstore chains and publishers in 12 countries.Its more than 15 million customers have generated sales of €1.245 billion in 2009...
division disbanded in 2011, Bertelsmann currently maintains four corporate divisions:
- RTL GroupRTL GroupRTL Group is Europe's largest TV, radio and production company, and is majority-owned by German media conglomerate Bertelsmann. It has 45 television and 32 radio stations in 11 countries...
, Europe's biggest broadcaster of radio and television, which is also the umbrella division for Bertelsmann's movie and TV production enterprises - Gruner + JahrGruner + JahrGruner + Jahr GmbH & Co. KG is the largest European printing and publishing firm. Its headquarters is in Hamburg, Germany.-History:Originally founded on August 1, 1948 as the Henri Nannen publishing house, Gruner + Jahr was created in 1965 from a merger by acquisition, by publishers John Jahr Sr....
, the biggest magazine publisher in Europe - Random HouseRandom HouseRandom House, Inc. is the largest general-interest trade book publisher in the world. It has been owned since 1998 by the German private media corporation Bertelsmann and has become the umbrella brand for Bertelsmann book publishing. Random House also has a movie production arm, Random House Films,...
, the world's largest trade book publisher - Arvato, an international media and communications service provider
BMG Rights Management replaced BMG Music Publishing, concentrating on music rights management. The division is currently forthcoming.
Together with its five major divisions Bertelsmann holds assets in more than 200 companies and enterprises worldwide.
Direct Group
Direct Group
DirectGroup Bertelsmann is a division of Bertelsmann AG and operates book sales clubs, online shops, bookstore chains and publishers in 12 countries.Its more than 15 million customers have generated sales of €1.245 billion in 2009...
was disbanded as a separate corporate entity in June 2011, its businesses subsequently being transferred to the Corporate Investments division in Bertelsmann's Gütersloh corporate headquarters.
History
The C. Bertelsmann Verlag was founded as a publishing house and print shop in July 1835 by Carl Bertelsmann. At first Bertelsmann concentrated on Christian songs and books. In 1851, led by Carl Bertelsmann's son Heinrich, the company began publishing novels. During the following years Bertelsmann expanded steadily. By 1939 the publishing house employed 401 people. During World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, Bertelsmann was the biggest single producer of Nazi propaganda. Owner Heinrich Mohn and his son Reinhard Mohn
Reinhard Mohn
Reinhard Mohn was a German businessman who turned Bertelsmann, a "provincial, war-shattered German publisher", into the sixth largest media conglomerate in the world.-Early life:...
were both members of the SS.
At the end of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, the publishing house was closed for some time because of illegal paper-trading. During the Nazi
Nazism
Nazism, the common short form name of National Socialism was the ideology and practice of the Nazi Party and of Nazi Germany...
period, it published books by Nazi authors such as Will Vesper
Will Vesper
Will Vesper was a German author and literary critic.- Life :...
(who did the commemorative speech at the 1933 book burning
Book burning
Book burning, biblioclasm or libricide is the practice of destroying, often ceremoniously, books or other written material and media. In modern times, other forms of media, such as phonograph records, video tapes, and CDs have also been ceremoniously burned, torched, or shredded...
) and Hans Grimm
Hans Grimm
Hans Grimm was a German writer.His father, Julius Grimm, was a professor of law who retired early and devoted his time to private historical and literary studies and to political activity as a founder member of the National Liberal party, which he represented in the Prussian parliament, and was a...
. In 1947, the company was re-founded by Reinhard Mohn, fifth generation of the Bertelsmann family.
In the 1950s, Bertelsmann expanded with the bookclub Bertelsmann Leserring (Book Club) and entered the music market with the founding of the LP label Ariola Records
Ariola Records
Ariola Records is a German record label. As of the late 1980s, it was a subsidiary label of BMG which in turn has since become a part of the international media conglomerate Sony Music Entertainment...
in 1958. In 1964 Bertelsmann entered the movie market with the purchase of the Ufa Filmproduktionsgesellschaft. It sold Ufa's cinema chain in the 1970s. In 1969, Bertelsmann bought into the Gruner und Jahr
Gruner + Jahr
Gruner + Jahr GmbH & Co. KG is the largest European printing and publishing firm. Its headquarters is in Hamburg, Germany.-History:Originally founded on August 1, 1948 as the Henri Nannen publishing house, Gruner + Jahr was created in 1965 from a merger by acquisition, by publishers John Jahr Sr....
publishing house (newspapers, magazines) and took majority ownership in 1973.
Since the 1980s, Bertelsmann has expanded internationally: in 1979 it bought the American Arista
Arista Records
Arista was an American record label. It was a wholly owned subsidiary of Sony Music Entertainment and operated under the RCA Music Group. The label was founded in 1974 by Clive Davis, who formerly worked for CBS Records...
label, in 1980 Bantam Books
Bantam Books
Bantam Books is an American publishing house owned entirely by Random House, the German media corporation subsidiary of Bertelsmann; it is an imprint of the Random House Publishing Group. It was formed in 1945 by Walter B. Pitkin, Jr., Sidney B. Kramer, and Ian and Betty Ballantine...
, in 1986 the label RCA Victor
RCA
RCA Corporation, founded as the Radio Corporation of America, was an American electronics company in existence from 1919 to 1986. The RCA trademark is currently owned by the French conglomerate Technicolor SA through RCA Trademark Management S.A., a company owned by Technicolor...
and the publishing house Doubleday. It has distributed Windham Hill Records
Windham Hill Records
Windham Hill Records is a subsidiary of Sony Music Entertainment specializing in Acoustic, New Age and Folk music. Originally founded in 1976 as an Independent record label by guitarist and carpenter William Ackerman and his then-wife Anne Robinson, Windham Hill was a successful and well-respected...
since 1989. In 1992 it acquired 50% of Windham Hill Records and in 1996 it took full control. During this period the activities in the music market were bundled into the label BMG
BMG
Bertelsmann Music Group, , was a division of Bertelsmann before its completion of sale of the majority of its assets to Japan's Sony Corporation of America on October 1, 2008. It was established in 1987 to combine the music label activities of Bertelsmann...
.
In 1993, Reinhard Mohn
Reinhard Mohn
Reinhard Mohn was a German businessman who turned Bertelsmann, a "provincial, war-shattered German publisher", into the sixth largest media conglomerate in the world.-Early life:...
as owner of Bertelsmann moved 68.8% of his Bertelsmann AG stock over to the Bertelsmann Foundation
Bertelsmann Foundation
The Bertelsmann Foundation is the largest private operating non-profit foundation in Germany, created in 1977 by Reinhard Mohn. The Bertelsmann Foundation holds 77.4 percent of Bertelsmann AG....
. As of 2006, the Mohn family still owns 74.9 of Bertelsman's capital, in addition of the Bertelsmann foundation.
From 1995 to 2000 Bertelsmann had a major Internet service provider
Internet service provider
An Internet service provider is a company that provides access to the Internet. Access ISPs directly connect customers to the Internet using copper wires, wireless or fiber-optic connections. Hosting ISPs lease server space for smaller businesses and host other people servers...
(and associated content) joint venture with AOL
AOL
AOL Inc. is an American global Internet services and media company. AOL is headquartered at 770 Broadway in New York. Founded in 1983 as Control Video Corporation, it has franchised its services to companies in several nations around the world or set up international versions of its services...
that operated throughout Europe.
In 1995 the Ufa Film- und Fernseh-GmbH merged with CLT, Luxembourg. The result was known as RTL Group
RTL Group
RTL Group is Europe's largest TV, radio and production company, and is majority-owned by German media conglomerate Bertelsmann. It has 45 television and 32 radio stations in 11 countries...
, the biggest private radio and TV broadcaster in Europe.
In 1998 Thomas Middelhoff
Thomas Middelhoff
Thomas Middelhoff is a German corporate manager. He was on the board of directors of Bertelsmann from 1990–2002, being CEO from 1998...
became CEO of Bertelsmann. He bought the Random House
Random House
Random House, Inc. is the largest general-interest trade book publisher in the world. It has been owned since 1998 by the German private media corporation Bertelsmann and has become the umbrella brand for Bertelsmann book publishing. Random House also has a movie production arm, Random House Films,...
publishing house and concentrated the group's worldwide book publishing operations under this label.
In 1999, Bertelsmann launched bol.com, the internet book retailer.
In 2000, Bookspan was created as a joint-venture between Time Warner
Time Warner
Time Warner is one of the world's largest media companies, headquartered in the Time Warner Center in New York City. Formerly two separate companies, Warner Communications, Inc...
and Bertelsmann until 2007 when Bertelsmann took over complete ownership.
In February 2001, Groupe Bruxelles Lambert
Groupe Bruxelles Lambert
Groupe Bruxelles Lambert is a Belgian industrial holding company. It is one of the ten biggest Belgian companies, and part of the BEL20. It has been listed in Brussels since 1956.Shareholdings as of 31 December 2010 were:...
, headed by Albert Frère
Albert Frère
Albert, Baron Frère is a Belgian businessman and the richest man in Belgium....
, purchased 25% of Bertelsmann AG. André Desmarais
André Desmarais
André Desmarais, OC, OQ is a Canadian businessman, whose hometown is Montreal, Quebec.He is one of two sons of Paul Desmarais, Sr. He is currently the president and co-chief executive officer of his father's founding company the Power Corporation, based in Montreal, Canada...
, President and Chief Executive Officer, Power Corporation of Canada, was named to the board. In July 2002, the CEO Thomas Middelhoff left the company because of disagreements concerning the company's strategy, in particular relating to his plans to float the company's share on the stockmarkets.
In 2002 Bertelsmann admitted that they lied about their involvement with Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
and the Nazi party, which included making profits from slave labour and publishing propaganda. The revelations came to light during their takeover of US book publisher Random House
Random House
Random House, Inc. is the largest general-interest trade book publisher in the world. It has been owned since 1998 by the German private media corporation Bertelsmann and has become the umbrella brand for Bertelsmann book publishing. Random House also has a movie production arm, Random House Films,...
in 1998; Bertelsmann used a revised account of their Nazi past to smooth the deal.
In 2003, the new CEO Gunter Thielen
Gunter Thielen
Gunter Thielen is Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Bertelsmann Foundation.He graduated from RWTH Aachen University, with a PhD, in mechanical engineering and economics...
expanded the music branch BMG
BMG
Bertelsmann Music Group, , was a division of Bertelsmann before its completion of sale of the majority of its assets to Japan's Sony Corporation of America on October 1, 2008. It was established in 1987 to combine the music label activities of Bertelsmann...
with the buying of Zomba Records.
In 2004, BMG set up a joint-venture with Sony Music to create Sony BMG, reducing the Big Five of music companies to the Big Four
World music market
The music industry or music business sells compositions, recordings and performances of music. Among the many individuals and organizations that operate within the industry are the musicians who compose and perform the music; the companies and professionals who create and sell recorded music The...
. BMG Music Publishing, the world's third largest music publisher, remained wholly owned by Bertelsmann at the time, but was sold to Universal Music Publishing in 2006.
Also in 2004, the London Borough of Camden
London Borough of Camden
In 1801, the civil parishes that form the modern borough were already developed and had a total population of 96,795. This continued to rise swiftly throughout the 19th century, as the district became built up; reaching 270,197 in the middle of the century...
, England, brought anti-social behaviour order
Anti-Social Behaviour Order
An Anti-Social Behaviour Order or ASBO is a civil order made against a person who has been shown, on the balance of evidence, to have engaged in anti-social behaviour. The orders, introduced in the United Kingdom by Prime Minister Tony Blair in 1998, were designed to correct minor incidents that...
s (ASBOs) against Sony Music UK
Sony
, commonly referred to as Sony, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan and the world's fifth largest media conglomerate measured by revenues....
and BMG for alleged fly posting. Illegal fly posting by the two companies is thought to save them £8 million a year in advertising costs in Camden and cost the Borough £250,000 to clean up. Falling to comply with an ASBO can result in a jail sentence of up to 5 years.
In July 2006 Bertelsmann AG purchased back 25% of own company from Groupe Bruxelles Lambert
Groupe Bruxelles Lambert
Groupe Bruxelles Lambert is a Belgian industrial holding company. It is one of the ten biggest Belgian companies, and part of the BEL20. It has been listed in Brussels since 1956.Shareholdings as of 31 December 2010 were:...
.
As of September 1, 2007, Bertelsmann agreed to pay music publishers $130 million to settle a copyright infringement lawsuit brought on by its deal with Napster.
On January 1, 2008, Hartmut Ostrowski
Hartmut Ostrowski
Hartmut Ostrowski is CEO of Bertelsmann AG since 1 January 2008, succeeding Gunter Thielen.Ostrowski studied business administration at Bielefeld University and joined Bertelsmann AG in 1982....
became the new Chairman and CEO of Bertelsmann, replacing Gunter Thielen.
On April 23, 2008, the company announced that it planned to publish a one-volume encyclopedia in September using content from the German-language Wikipedia
German Wikipedia
The German Wikipedia is the German-language edition of Wikipedia, a free and mostly publicly editable online encyclopedia.Founded in March 2001, it is the second-oldest and, with over articles, the second-largest edition of Wikipedia, behind the English Wikipedia...
. The volume is sold since September 15th 2008 and includes abbreviated entries for the 50,000 most commonly used search terms of the prior two years.
On October 1, 2008 Bertelsmann completed the sale of its 50 % stake in Sony BMG to Sony Corporation of America
Sony Corporation of America
Sony Corporation of America , based in New York, is the United States subsidiary of Japan's Sony Corporation, headquartered in Tokyo. It is the umbrella company under which all Sony companies operate in the United States....
. Sony has since renamed its now wholly owned music business to Sony Music Entertainment. These two divestitures marked the end of the Bertelsmann Music Group division and the selected assets that Bertelsmann decided to retain from these sell-offs will be the basis of a forthcoming BMG branded division, BMG Rights Management, which will focus on building, managing and marketing artist rights.
On October 3, 2009, Reinhard Mohn died at age 88.
On October 10, 2011, it was announced that Thomas Rabe
Thomas Rabe
Thomas N. Rabe is a German professor for gynaecology and obstetrics at the University Hospital Heidelberg. Further he is author of several scientific publications and reference books.- Biography :...
will be elevated from CFO to CEO and will succeed Hartmut Ostrowski
Hartmut Ostrowski
Hartmut Ostrowski is CEO of Bertelsmann AG since 1 January 2008, succeeding Gunter Thielen.Ostrowski studied business administration at Bielefeld University and joined Bertelsmann AG in 1982....
as of January 1, 2012
See also
- Bertelsmann FoundationBertelsmann FoundationThe Bertelsmann Foundation is the largest private operating non-profit foundation in Germany, created in 1977 by Reinhard Mohn. The Bertelsmann Foundation holds 77.4 percent of Bertelsmann AG....
, a German foundation created by the Bertelsman and Mohn families - List of assets owned by Bertelsmann
- Media concentration