Australian-Media.com.au News

• Fairfax Digital acquires The Weather Company

  June 25 2008 10:05am (UTC+8)  -  Article by Kevin

  Fairfax Digital has acquired a 75% stake in The Weather Company - the owner of popular Australian weather site weatherzone.com.au.
  
  The Weather Company's founder Mark Hardy holds the remaining 25% share and is being retained in the role of Managing Director.
  
  The Weather Company provides weather content to organisations in the energy, insurance, telecommunications, retail, rural/ agricultural and media sectors, with clients including Network Ten, ABC, Elders, Ninemsn and AGL. Using data from a range of providers including the Australian Bureau of Meteorology, the company produces bespoke forecasting services for larger clients and repackages weather and related content into simple feeds for smaller clients.
  
  Fairfax Digital says the acquisition "further enhances (its) position as Australia's leading provider of news and weather online".
  
  In addition to providing free content, The Weather Company's weatherzone.com.au site provides detailed information to thousands of subscribers in the agriculture and marine professions, as well as outdoor enthusiasts.
  
  Fairfax Digital CEO Jack Matthews comments, "Fairfax Digital is all about breaking news, and providing current weather information is the ultimate in breaking news".
  
  "Fairfax Digital's news sites and leading agricultural site farmonline.com.au currently provide weather forecasts from weatherzone.com.au and will continue to, as we constantly look to augment the service we provide our viewers and in particular, to rural and regional audiences. Weatherzone.com.au also provides services to a number of other companies throughout Australia and we would expect that to continue".
  
  "This acquisition confirms our position as Australia's most comprehensive news and weather information source", he finishes.
  
  The Weather Company Managing Director Mark Hardy says, "The Weather Company has developed ground breaking long range weather forecasting to suit agricultural, energy, retail and construction industries. Fairfax Digital is the ideal partner to take these services into new sectors".
  
  He continues, "Fairfax Digital‘s experience and deep resources will allow us to further invest in our meteorological services and continue to deliver excellence in the presentation of credible weather content across a broad range of clients and industries".
  
  The Weather Company was founded in 1998 with the goal of providing services to improve the presentation of weather in the Australian media. Full commercial details of the acquisition have not been disclosed.
  
  Australian-Media.com.au

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