STOCKHOLM, July 1, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Storytel AB
(publ) ("Storytel"), Northern
Europe's leading audiobook and e-book streaming service, is
acquiring a 70 percent majority interest in Iceland's leading book publishing house
Forlagið. The majority seller, Mál og menning Literary Society,
will remain a 30 percent minority owner in Forlagið, which will
operate independently from Storytel Iceland's streaming operations
on the local market. Since previously, Storytel's publishing
business area in the Nordics includes the renowned publishing
houses Norstedts Förlagsgrupp (SWE), People's Press (DEN) and
Gummerus Publishers (FIN).
Forlagið is one of the most respected publishing houses in
Iceland and the Nordics. Founded
in 2007 by Jóhann Páll Valdimarsson, Egill Örn Jóhannsson and Mál
og menning, the last of which has been the controlling owner since
2017, Forlagið has become Iceland's largest publisher and a dynamic and
independent force and voice for Icelandic literature and high
quality authorships. Today, Forlagið's publishing operations
represent a total yearly production of approximately 150 domestic
and translated top titles and a large number of influential and
popular Icelandic authors such as Halldór Laxness, Arnaldur
Indriðason, Guðrún Helgadóttir, Sjón and Steinunn
Sigurðardóttir.
Headquartered in Reykjavik,
Iceland, Forlagið is a strong, driven and inspiring force to
be reckoned with.
"We are excited to welcome Forlagið to the Storytel family and
our publishing business area, which features renowned and respected
Nordic brands like Norstedts Förlagsgrupp, Gummerus Publishers, and
People's Press. It feels fantastic to join forces with the
proficient and skilled publishers at Forlagið, who share our
passion for great authorships and stories", says Jonas Tellander, CEO and founder of
Storytel.
"Iceland has one of the highest
rates of books-per-capita in the world. We are confident that this
deal will increase accessibility to great literature for the
Icelandic consumers, strengthen the Icelandic voice in the world,
and future-proof and amplify both Forlagiðs excellent publishing
and Storytel's long-term commitment to investing in production and
distribution of Icelandic literature and storytelling in a digital
era", says Jonas Tellander.
With Storytel AB holding a majority interest, Forlagið will
continue to operate independently from Storytel Iceland's streaming
operations on the local market and pursue the company's work to
develop new and existing authorships.
"Forlagið represents a century-long tradition of publishing
Iceland's finest and best authors
and literary works. We are now extremely happy to be entering a
cooperation with one of the most dynamic and innovative forces in
the modern publishing industry. This will open up new markets for
the authors of Forlagið and help us take a big step into the future
and closer to the modern reader and listener. This deal will surely
reinforce and future-proof Forlagið's business. It will also cement
our mission to continue publishing the best of Icelandic
literature, to bring this literature to the audience via all means
expected, and open new doors for our authors all over the world",
says Egill Örn Jóhannsson, CEO of Forlagið.
"We believe that the winners in this deal will be the Icelandic
readers, listeners and authors. Given the developments in
international publishing, it is of vital importance to partner with
such a strong publisher and distributor that possesses so much
intellectual property, digital know-how and tech savvy colleagues.
The combination of Storytel and Forlagið is an investment in the
future for Icelandic publishing and will reinforce releases of
literary gems and assure the development of new authorships. Mál og
menning's initiative to use part of the purchase sum to create a
fund to support Icelandic authors and literature further
accentuates this. Mál og menning will also use part of the sum to
strengthen the Icelandic booktrade", says Halldór
Guðmundsson, Chairman of Mál og menning.
Forlagið had a turnover of approximately EUR 8 million in 2019 and an EBITDA of
approximately EUR 460,000. The
parties involved have agreed not to disclose the purchase price
which will not have a substantial impact on the Storytel Group's
finances. The purchase price will be paid in cash. The closing is
subject to approval from the Icelandic Competition
Authority.
FNCA Sweden AB is the company's certified adviser. FNCA can
be reached at info@fnca.se or +46 8 528 00 399.
For more information, please contact:
Storytel AB
Dan Panas,
Head of Communications, Storytel AB
Tel: +46 70 186 52 90
Email: dan.panas@storytel.com
Storytel Iceland
Stefán Hjörleifsson
Country Manager
Storytel Iceland
Tel: +354 896 1800
Email: stefan.hjorleifsson@storytel.com
Mál og menning
Halldór Guðmundsson, Chairman of Mál og menning
Tel: +354 663 0035
Email: halldor.gudmundsson@heima.is
Forlagið
Egill Örn Jóhannsson, CEO of Forlagið.
Tel: +354 575 5600
Email: egill@forlagid.is
About Storytel
Storytel is Northern Europe's
leading audiobook and e-book streaming service and offers unlimited
listening and reading of more than 500 000 titles on a global
scale. Our vision is to make the world a more empathetic place with
great stories to be shared and enjoyed by anyone, anywhere and
anytime. Storytel is a digital platform provider as well as a
comprehensive publishing group. The streaming business area offers
subscriptions for audiobooks and e-books under the Storytel and
Mofibo brands. Storytel's publishing business area is carried out
through the publishing houses Norstedts, Massolit, StorySide,
Printz Publishing, People's Press, Rabén & Sjögren,
B.Wahlströms, Gummerus Kustannus and Norstedts Kartor. Ztory - a
subscribed digital read-all-you-can streaming service for
newspapers and magazines, is part of Storytel since January 2019. Storytel operates in 20 markets
around the globe and is headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden.
About Mál og menning
Mál og menning is a literary society that was founded in 1937.
It has been an active force in Icelandic publishing since then, and
it has published the works of many of Iceland's best known authors. Mál og menning
is the controlling shareholder of Forlagið, Iceland's largest publishing house.
About Forlagið
Forlagið (meaning "the publishing house") is the largest
publishing house in Iceland. The
company was created in 2007 when Mál og menning bought the
publishing arm of Edda and merged with the publishing house JPV.
Mál og menning is the controlling shareholder of Forlagið.
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