Copesa
Encyclopedia
Copesa is one of the more important Chile
an media
conglomerate
. Copesa is controlled by Álvaro Saieh
, a Chilean business man.
circulation, El Mercurio and Copesa exert an unchallenged media duopoly
in Chile. Copesa’s success was largely the work of two prominent members of the Chilean right-wing political and business sector, Álvaro Saieh and Carlos Abumohor. In November 1988, these two investors joined forces with other businesspeople and members of the dictatorship to revamp the indebted conglomerate. Saieh became the largest shareholder
with 33% while Abumohor held 16.6%. A month later, in December 1988, Saileh took control of the political magazine Que Pasa that was incorporated into Copesa.
Copesa published the news daily La Tercera
, which is the second most read newspaper in Chile. In 2002, La Tercera had a 2002 daily circulation of about 210,000. Copesa also published three other periodicals for national distribution: the popular magazine, La Cuarta
; the free daily tabloid, La Hora
; and the newsweekly, Qué Pasa, which offered political analyses of current events. In 2002, Qué Pasa had an approximate circulation of 20 thousand readers. Copesa created websites on the Internet
for its publications. The publisher also had affiliations with smaller-scale print and digital publishers. One such affiliation was with the digital company that produced "RadioZero," a music Internet site for younger audiences.
interest in other areas of the economy. Its financial investments have been largely channelled into the highly profitable private pension fund
s (Associación de Fondos de Pensiones or AFPs) and into real estate
(Pena 1998). In 1992, this media conglomerate entered into a joint venture with the printing and publishing house Ediciones Chiloé. As a result of this agreement, they established Distribución y Servicios Meta, a company that distributes newspapers, magazines and books. Through this structure Copesa is able to print and distribute its own products.
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
an 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...
conglomerate
Conglomerate (company)
A conglomerate is a combination of two or more corporations engaged in entirely different businesses that fall under one corporate structure , usually involving a parent company and several subsidiaries. Often, a conglomerate is a multi-industry company...
. Copesa is controlled by Álvaro Saieh
Álvaro Saieh
Álvaro Saieh Bendeck is a wealthy Chilean businessman of Palestinian ancestry. Since June 18, 1996, he has been First Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors for one of Chile's largest private banking institutions, Corpbanca S.A. He is also the acting Chief Executive Officer for the media...
, a Chilean business man.
Overview
Copesa was launched during the mid-1950s by the wealthy Pico-Cañas family. In the areas of newspaperNewspaper
A newspaper is a scheduled publication containing news of current events, informative articles, diverse features and advertising. It usually is printed on relatively inexpensive, low-grade paper such as newsprint. By 2007, there were 6580 daily newspapers in the world selling 395 million copies a...
circulation, El Mercurio and Copesa exert an unchallenged media duopoly
Duopoly
A true duopoly is a specific type of oligopoly where only two producers exist in one market. In reality, this definition is generally used where only two firms have dominant control over a market...
in Chile. Copesa’s success was largely the work of two prominent members of the Chilean right-wing political and business sector, Álvaro Saieh and Carlos Abumohor. In November 1988, these two investors joined forces with other businesspeople and members of the dictatorship to revamp the indebted conglomerate. Saieh became the largest shareholder
Shareholder
A shareholder or stockholder is an individual or institution that legally owns one or more shares of stock in a public or private corporation. Shareholders own the stock, but not the corporation itself ....
with 33% while Abumohor held 16.6%. A month later, in December 1988, Saileh took control of the political magazine Que Pasa that was incorporated into Copesa.
Copesa published the news daily La Tercera
La Tercera
La Tercera , formerly known as La Tercera de la Hora , is a daily newspaper published in Santiago, Chile and owned by Copesa. It is El Mercurios closest competitor....
, which is the second most read newspaper in Chile. In 2002, La Tercera had a 2002 daily circulation of about 210,000. Copesa also published three other periodicals for national distribution: the popular magazine, La Cuarta
La Cuarta
La Cuarta is a Chilean daily tabloid part of the Copesa group. Both in style and content it is the closest the Chilean press comes to a good old-fashioned British Tabloid.The newspaper is famous for its tone and plebeian style of headlining stories....
; the free daily tabloid, La Hora
La Hora
La Hora is the newspaper with the most regional editions in Ecuador. It specializes in regional news, and runs a total of 12 regional editions. The headquarters of La Hora are located in Quito....
; and the newsweekly, Qué Pasa, which offered political analyses of current events. In 2002, Qué Pasa had an approximate circulation of 20 thousand readers. Copesa created websites on the Internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
for its publications. The publisher also had affiliations with smaller-scale print and digital publishers. One such affiliation was with the digital company that produced "RadioZero," a music Internet site for younger audiences.
Non-media Financial Interests
Copesa has financialFINANCIAL
FINANCIAL is the weekly English-language newspaper with offices in Tbilisi, Georgia and Kiev, Ukraine. Published by Intelligence Group LLC, FINANCIAL is focused on opinion leaders and top business decision-makers; It's about world’s largest companies, investing, careers, and small business. It is...
interest in other areas of the economy. Its financial investments have been largely channelled into the highly profitable private pension fund
Pension fund
A pension fund is any plan, fund, or scheme which provides retirement income.Pension funds are important shareholders of listed and private companies. They are especially important to the stock market where large institutional investors dominate. The largest 300 pension funds collectively hold...
s (Associación de Fondos de Pensiones or AFPs) and into real estate
Real estate
In general use, esp. North American, 'real estate' is taken to mean "Property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals, or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this; an item of real property; buildings or...
(Pena 1998). In 1992, this media conglomerate entered into a joint venture with the printing and publishing house Ediciones Chiloé. As a result of this agreement, they established Distribución y Servicios Meta, a company that distributes newspapers, magazines and books. Through this structure Copesa is able to print and distribute its own products.