Viscount Rothermere has broken his silence on his company's disposal of the London Evening Standard. In today's Sunday Times, he is quoted as saying the sale was as difficult as dealing with his parents' death.
His quote in full:
"I am very emotionally attached to the Standard. Along with the death of my parents, [selling] it has been one of the hardest things to live through in my life."
He also pays tribute to the new owner, Alexander Lebedev, who takes over formally in a week's time.
"He is a brave owner to do what he does in Russia, standing up to the government at great personal risk to himself and financial risk to his business. He really believes in democracy."
On the current state of the industry and its possible future, he believes the epitaph for newspapers "has been written way too early", but does not believe greater consolidation is likely.
He does not think the industry has "the capacity" to consolidate, not least because of the regulatory framework and problems with companies still operating final-salary pension schemes.
