Czech Media Invest

What Czech Media Invest does

Czech Media Invest, a.s. (CMI) is a privately held Prague-based media holding company established in 2015 and wholly owned through Energetický a průmyslový holding (EPH), the investment vehicle of entrepreneur Daniel Křetínský. CMI acquires and manages media assets across Central and Western Europe, operating through five core segments: Czech News Center, the leading Czech media house publishing four daily newspapers, over 50 print titles, 25+ websites and 22 applications and reaching approximately 3.7 million readers; Active Radio, a radio broadcaster with five stations in the Czech Republic (1.6 million+ daily listeners) and three stations in Romania (2.1 million+ daily listeners); PNS, the largest press distributor in the Czech Republic supplying approximately 17,000 points of sale from over 450 suppliers; CMI France, which holds the exclusive territorial license for Elle in France along with Marianne, L'Obs, Le Monde Diplomatique and other titles; and adjacent technology assets including Mall.tv (streaming television) and Gjirafa.com / Gjirafa.tech. The company's audience-facing assets serve consumers (readers, listeners, viewers) while its advertising sales and press distribution infrastructure serve enterprise advertisers, agencies, and publishers. CMI does not publicly disclose consolidated financials, but its Lagardère-acquired French magazine publishing assets alone generated approximately €239 million in revenue in 2018, indicating group revenue in the high hundreds of millions of euros range.

CMI's business model rests on advertising sales across print, digital, radio, and television properties, supplemented by transaction fees from press distribution (PNS) and streaming/technology services. The go-to-market is fundamentally sales-led: B2C content distribution directly to consumers through newsstands, subscriptions, and broadcast/streaming, paired with B2B sales of advertising airtime, ad inventory, and distribution logistics to agencies, advertisers, and publishers. CMI's growth has been acquisition-driven rather than organic, with major deals including the 2018 €73 million purchase of Lagardère's radio stations in the Czech Republic, Poland, Slovakia, and Romania (subsequently partially divested), and the 2019 €52 million purchase of Lagardère's French magazine titles. In December 2020, CMI became part of the newly established EP Corporate Group, an umbrella structure consolidating Křetínský's strategic shareholdings across energy (EPH), media (CMI), e-commerce (Mall Group), and other sectors.

Name

Czech Media Invest

Legal name

Czech Media Invest, a.s.

Website

https://czechmediainvest.cz

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

Czech Media Invest (CMI) is a privately held Prague-based media holding company, wholly owned through EPH, that acquires and operates newspapers, magazines, radio stations, press distribution, and streaming platforms across Central and Western Europe, serving consumers, advertisers, and publishers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Media Holding (Publishing and Broadcasting)

NAICS

Newspaper Publishers (51311), Periodical Publishers (51312)

SIC

Newspapers: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2711), Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721), Radio Broadcasting Stations (4832)

akta.pro primary industry

National & General-Interest Newspapers (Print & Digital) (MPAJADAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

News, Politics & Current Affairs Magazines (MPAJAEAO), Radio Media Buying (MPAAABAI)

Keywords

• Media holding company
• Newspaper publishing
• Radio broadcasting
• Press distribution
• Digital media

Headquarters

HQ city

Praha

HQ country

Czechia

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Publishing revenue: Revenue from publishing four daily newspapers, dozens of magazines, and web titles through Czech News Center
2. Radio broadcasting: Revenue from radio stations in Czech Republic and Romania through Active Radio
3. Press distribution: Revenue from distributing press products to 17,000 points of sale through PNS
4. Magazine publishing (France): Revenue from magazine publishing in France including Elle, Marianne, and other titles; generated €239 million in 2018

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Czech Media Invest is a holding company that acquires and manages media assets in Central and Western Europe. Through its subsidiaries it publishes daily newspapers, magazines, and online titles (Czech News Center), operates radio stations in Czech Republic and Romania (Active Radio), runs the largest press distribution network in Czech Republic (PNS), and operates streaming television (Mall.tv) and technology services (Gjirafa). Revenue is generated through advertising sales, press distribution services to retailers, and international magazine publishing including the Elle brand in France.

Product overview

Czech Media Invest (CMI) is a holding company focused on acquisitions and management of media assets in Central and Western Europe. The portfolio comprises five main segments: Czech News Center (CNC) as the leading Czech media house publishing newspapers and magazines; Active Radio operating radio stations across the Czech Republic and Romania; PNS as the largest Czech press distributor; technology operations including Gjirafa; and Mall.tv streaming television. The international media segment includes magazine titles acquired from Lagardère in France. CMI operates through subsidiaries including Czech News Center, Czech Radio Center, and Czech Print Center.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Czech News Center: Leading Czech media house publishing 4 daily newspapers, over 50 print titles, operating 25+ websites and 22 applications
• Active Radio
• PNS
• CMI France
• Mall.tv
• Gjirafa

Products and services

• Czech News Center (CNC) Leading Czech media house publishing four daily newspapers, over 50 print titles, and operating 25+ websites and 22 applications, reaching approximately 3.7 million readers. Offers daily news, magazine reading, and digital news access to Czech consumers, with advertising inventory for B2B media buyers.
• Active Radio Radio broadcasting segment operating 5 stations in the Czech Republic with over 1.6 million daily listeners and 3 stations in Romania with over 2.1 million daily listeners. Sells advertising airtime to enterprises and agencies across both markets.
• PNS (První novinová společnost) Largest press distributor in the Czech market, supplying approximately 17,000 points of sale with press products from more than 450 publishers and suppliers. Wholesale distribution services for retailers.
• Mall.tv Streaming television platform offering online video content, part of the Czech Video Center group within CMI.
• Gjirafa Technology segment consisting of Gjirafa.com streaming/media platform and Gjirafa.tech information technology services.
• CMI France / International Media International magazine publishing segment including participation in French magazine titles such as Marianne, Elle, L'Obs, and Le Monde Diplomatique, with an exclusive territorial license for the Elle brand covering France.

Named customers3 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• SFS VenturesminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 20 February 2019CMI sold its Eurozet Group shares to SFS Ventures, which acquired 60% of the Polish radio company Eurozet. SFS Ventures is a Czech joint venture between Sourcefabric z.u. (founded in Prague in 2010 to support independent journalism through open-source digital newsroom solutions) and Media Development Investment Fund (MDIF).
• Agora S.A.minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 20 February 2019Agora S.A. (Polish partner) acquired 40% of Eurozet as a passive minority investor with an option to buy-out SFS Ventures in the future. Eurozet engages in production and broadcasting of radio programs, sale of advertising time, and brokerage for stations and websites.
• Lagardère GroupcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 15 February 2019CMI acquired most of Lagardère's magazine publishing titles in France, including Elle and its extensions, Version Femina, Art & Décoration, Télé 7 Jours, France Dimanche, Ici Paris and Public for €52 million. CMI received an exclusive territorial license for the Elle brand covering France, while Lagardère retained ownership of the international Elle brand. As part of the deal, 649 employees transferred to CMI.
• Lagardère ActivecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 27 July 2018CMI completed acquisition of radio stations in Czech Republic, Poland, Slovakia and Romania owned by Lagardère Group for €73 million. The acquisition included Frekvence 1, Evropa 2 in Czech Republic, Europa 2 in Slovakia, and leading radio stations in Poland and Romania. This added a new media type based on strong radio brands to CMI's portfolio.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Agora S.A. Polish media company operating Gazeta Wyborcza newspaper, magazines, radio (through Eurozet stake), and outdoor advertising. Comparable as a Central European multi-segment media operator with overlapping print, radio, and distribution businesses.
• Ringier AG: Swiss media company operating newspapers, magazines, TV stations, and digital platforms across Central and Eastern Europe. Comparable as a private (technically foundation-owned) media group with overlapping Central European geographic footprint and similar portfolio of legacy brands being digitized.
• Lagardère Group: French multinational media conglomerate with radio stations and magazine publishing (Elle, Paris Match, Le Journal du Dimanche). Directly comparable as CMI acquired significant Lagardère media assets, and both operate radio + magazine publishing businesses across Europe.
• Axel Springer SE: German-based media and digital classifieds company publishing Bild and Die Welt. Comparable as a major European newspaper and digital media operator with portfolio of consumer-facing media brands, though Axel Springer is significantly larger and more digitally focused.
• Sanoma Oyj: Finnish media group operating newspapers, magazines, and digital media across Northern Europe. Comparable as a multi-country European print and digital publishing house with strong national market positions and portfolio of consumer magazines.

Regional players

• MAFRA (agricultural/print group): Czech media company publishing national newspapers (Mladá fronta DNES, Lidové noviny) and magazines. Directly comparable as a Czech-market competitor with overlapping newspaper publishing portfolio competing head-to-head with Czech News Center.

Broad incumbents

• Bauer Media Group: Privately held German-based media conglomerate operating radio stations, magazines, and digital platforms across Europe. Comparable as a diversified print and broadcast media operator with similar portfolio structure to CMI.
• M6 Group (Groupe M6/RTL): French media company operating the M6 television channel and RTL radio. Comparable as a European broadcasting and media conglomerate with overlapping advertising-based revenue model in the same regional markets as CMI France.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/czechmediainvest

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Subsidiaries8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Czech Media Invest