Following Dr Lee's responses, SPH CEO Ng Yat Chung said he took umbrage at Ms Chew's question. He said that publications under SPH “never pander to the needs of advertisers”, and suggesting that they do is outrageous, considering how other media outlets “receive substantial funding from various sources”.
“(At) SPH, we always have advertising, but never pander to the needs of advertisers… The fact that you dare to question (the editorial independence) of SPH titles … I don’t believe even where you come from, you concede in doing your job,” Mr Ng said.
SPH CEO's 'umbrage' sees flood of creative memes, merchandise and more online
Since the word was used at a press conference on Thursday (May 6), few would have missed encountering it. It was the top searched term on Google in Singapore that day, with over 200,000 looking it up.
"Umbrage", uttered by Singapore Press Holdings (SPH) chief executive Ng Yat Chung at a press conference on the media company's restructuring, has trended on social media platforms, sparked numerous memes and merchandise, and influenced marketing efforts by popular brands.
Observers say the word is uncommon yet catchy enough to pique curiosity and thus be shared widely, fuelled by a hunger for social currency online.
Brands trendjack SPH CEO's 'umbrage' lashing to CNA reporter
The journalist also followed up with a second question which asked if it was safe to say this move comes after various corporate initiatives to improve the sustainability of the business failed. In response, Ng said he "took umbrage" at the journalist's first question.
"There are reporters here who have received substantial funding from various sources, and I don't believe that you will describe yourself as bowing to the needs of advertisers in doing your job," he said in a rather stern tone. Ng added that SPH has always had advertising and it has never conceded to the needs of advertisers. In fact, it will always continue to provide fair, reliable and credible reporting. "The fact that you dare to question an SPH title for, in your words, conceding to advertisers, I take umbrage at that comment. Because I don't believe that even where you come from, you do not concede to the needs of advertisers," Ng said.
Ng Yat Chung
Ng Yat Chung is a Singaporean senior executive and former Chief of Defence Force of the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF). Upon retirement from the SAF in 2007, Ng was made a senior executive in Temasek Holdings. In 2011, he was appointed by Neptune Orient Lines (NOL) as its Group President and Chief Executive Officer. He has been CEO of Singapore Press Holdings (SPH) since 2017.
Ng received his secondary and pre-university education in Victoria School and Hwa Chong Junior College respectively. Ng was awarded the Singapore Armed Forces Overseas Scholarship in 1980 and graduated in 1983 with a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in engineering from Christ's College, Cambridge. In 1987, he obtained a Master of Arts in mathematics, also from Christ's College. He also holds a Master of Business Administration from Stanford University. He attended the six-week Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School, and graduated with a Master of Military Art and Science from the United States Army Command and General Staff College.
Career:
- Singapore Armed Forces (1979–2007)
- Temasek Holdings (2007–2011)
- Neptune Orient Lines (2011–2017)
- Singapore Press Holdings (2017 – present)
Who is SPH CEO Ng Yat Chung?
Many memes, illustrations and think pieces have since materialised as a result.
For the uninitiated, you might be wondering who Ng Yat Chung is and here are some facts about him:
- He was an SAF scholar
- He has three Master's degrees
- He was the fifth Chief of Defence
- He was a senior executive at Temasek Holdings
- He was the former CEO of Neptune Orient Lines (NOL) prior to his role in SPH
- He has been the Chief Executive Officer/ Executive Director at SPH since Sep. 1, 2017
The elites have run The Straits Times into the ground. What’s next?
Today we heard the news that Singapore Press Holdings (SPH) is spinning off its media unit, including The Straits Times and many other publications, into a non-profit entity. This follows years of consistently poor performance amid digital disruption and other changes to the media industry.
Wiser minds will engage in more thorough post-mortems—has anybody seen Ho Ching’s feed today?—but I wanted to spark a small conversation on the culture of elite governance in Singapore.
“If not for the Jobs Support Scheme (JSS), the loss would have been a deeper S$39.5 million,” Lee Boon Yang, SPH’s chairman, said in reference to the media business’s first-ever lost of S$11.4m, for the financial year which ended Aug 31 2020.
PH’s restructuring: What’s left for shareholders?
On 6 May 2021, as part of the strategic review announced previously, Singapore Press Holding (SPH) will be transferring its media business to a not-for-profit entity amidst the ongoing challenge of falling revenue from its media segment. This is significant news not only for its shareholders but also for Singaporean as these would have an impact on journalism, be it good or bad, going forward. In this article, we will break down what is this deal all about and evaluate the business of SPH without its media entity.
Singapore Press Holdings Ltd is one of Singapore’s news organizations, its core business is in the publication of newspapers, magazines, and books in both print and digital editions. It also owns other digital products, online classifieds, radio stations and outdoor media. These are well-known facts, but did you know SPH has other non-media businesses, which make up close to half of its revenue? These businesses include property investing, integrated development, Purpose-Built Student Accommodation, aged care and many other more. (We will discuss this in greater detail below.)
As part of the restructuring exercise, SPH will be transferring its entire media-related businesses to a newly formed public company limited by guarantee (“CLG”). This will be done in stages:
- SPH will transfer its entire media-related business including relevant subsidiaries, employees, News Centre and Print Centre along with their respective leaseholds, as well as all related intellectual property and information technology assets to a newly incorporated wholly-owned subsidiary, SPH Media Holdings Pte Ltd (“SPH Media”).
- To capitalize SPH Media with initial resources, SPH will provide a one-time injection of funds to it (akin to a “divorce fee”). This includes a cash injection of $80 million, $30 million worth of SPH shares and SPH REIT units (Approximately 23.4m SPH REIT units, valued at S$20m and 6.9m SPH shares, valued at S$10m), as well as SPH’s stakes in four of its digital media investments.
- After meeting various conditions, including completion of restructuring exercise and shareholder approval, SPH will transfer SPH Media to the new CLG* for a nominal sum.
- Post completion, this newly formed CLG will become the sole owner of SPH Media.
Singapore Press to Spin Off Media Into Non-Profit Entity
Conglomerate swung into first full-year loss last year
Singapore Press Holdings Ltd, owner of the country’s flagship daily newspaper, plans to spin off its media business into a non-profit entity after conducting a strategic review of its businesses.
Faced with a steadfast decline in the media business, Singapore Press -- which also invests in properties from shopping malls to student accommodation -- has approached the government with a proposal to put the unit on a sustainable financial footing, it said in a statement on Thursday. The government has indicated its support for the restructure, it said.
“SPH shareholders are not likely to tolerate the continued negative impact that the media business has on the company’s financial prospects,” company chairman Lee Boon Yang said at a briefing. “On the other hand, we cannot allow a functioning, trusted and respected media organisation to be whittled down over time by market pressure and commercial constraints.”
Why SPH Media is going for a new funding model
As digital disruption continues to challenge the news industry worldwide, a fundamental change is needed to ensure it is able to remain financially sound and functionally robust to deliver its critical missions in the long run. The following is the text of remarks by Singapore Press Holdings chairman Lee Boon Yang at a news conference on Thursday (May 6) to announce the restructuring of its media arm.
Since its formation in 1984, Singapore Press Holdings (SPH) with its news titles has served as a timely, trusted and credible source of news and information for Singaporeans and audiences beyond our shores. Today, when information and data are treated as new currency, there is growing recognition that responsible and high-quality journalism plays an important role in every functioning and successful society. Reliable journalism is respected as a public good and increasingly valuable as we cope with information overload and a 24/7 deluge of online falsehoods.
Our publications - The Straits Times, Lianhe Zaobao, Berita Harian, Tamil Murasu and The Business Times - are seen as reliable papers of record. This trust and reputation did not happen by chance. SPH has assiduously nurtured quality journalism and invested resources to develop our media business. These efforts helped us to stay relevant to our audiences as media consumption habits changed dramatically with the swing towards digital access and content.
Media restructuring will let SPH maximise returns
SPH chairman Lee Boon Yang speaking during a press conference on May 6, 2021.ST PHOTO: GAVIN FOO
The plan to restructure Singapore Press Holdings' (SPH) media business into a not-for-profit entity will give the company greater financial flexibility to maximise returns for shareholders, said SPH chairman Lee Boon Yang.
It will also remove uncertainty for shareholders given that losses for SPH's media business are expected to widen amid ongoing challenges faced by the industry.
SPH said on Thursday (May 6) that it intends to transfer the group's entire media-related businesses, including relevant subsidiaries, employees, intellectual property, information technology assets, two properties and stakes in four digital assets, to a newly incorporated wholly owned subsidiary called SPH Media Holdings (SPH Media).
SPH to restructure media business into not-for-profit entity amid falling revenue
Singapore Press Holdings (SPH) will transfer its media business into a not-for-profit entity amid the ongoing challenge of falling advertising revenue, the company announced on Thursday (May 6).
The restructuring exercise involves transferring the entire media-related business of SPH to a newly incorporated wholly owned subsidiary, SPH Media Holdings.
The transfer involves relevant subsidiaries and employees, the News Centre and Print Centre and their respective leaseholds, as well as related intellectual property and information technology assets.
SPH deal aims to improve asset values, ease shareholder pressure off media unit
Singapore Press Holdings (SPH) has proposed a restructuring that is intended to preserve and grow its media business, while allowing shareholders to realise more value from their holdings PHOTO: ST FILE
SINGAPORE Press Holdings (SPH) has proposed a restructuring that is intended to preserve and grow its media business, while allowing shareholders to realise more value from their holdings.
The proposed deal involves a transfer of the media business to a not-for-profit entity, in the form of a company limited by guarantee (CLG). This structure will allow any future profits from the media business to be reinvested into the media operations rather than be distributed to shareholders.
This will free the media business from the "expectations of shareholders for a fair financial return and regular dividends", said Lee Boon Yang, chairman of SPH, on Thursday.
Restructuring SPH's media business is timely, say analysts, but Sias flags concerns
SPH announced that it was restructuring its media business into a not-for-profit entity on May 6, 2021.
The move to restructure Singapore Press Holdings' media business as a not-for-profit entity is timely, said several analysts, though the Securities Investors Association (Singapore) raised some questions about the proposal.
Sias president and chief executive David Gerald asked, for example, why the media business could not be profitable and queried the upfront capitalisation of the proposed new entity.
Explainer: SPH shake-up — what is a ‘company limited by guarantee’ and how does a non-profit journalism model work?
Should Singapore Press Holdings' media business become a company limited by guarantee, it will be able to get funding from private and public sources
Singapore Press Holdings (SPH) on Thursday (May 6) announced that it will be hiving off its media business arm into a not-for-profit entity, while it grapples with ongoing challenges of falling advertising revenue.
With this move, its media business will eventually become a company limited by guarantee. This is expected to come to fruition by October, subject to shareholders’ approval. Restructuring it into a company limited by guarantee, effectively a not-for-profit entity, will allow SPH’s media business to get funding from private and public sources, including extra financial support from the Government.
Later in the day, the Ministry of Communications and Information said that it supports SPH’s proposal and is prepared to provide funding for the not-for-profit entity.
The SPH Journey: A timeline of key events since SGX listing
SPH lists on SGX mainboard in December as the holding company of Times Publishing Bhd, The Straits Times Press (1975) Ltd, Singapore News and Publications Ltd and Singapore Newspaper Services Pte Ltd. FILE PHOTO
SINGAPORE Press Holdings (SPH: T39 -13.97%) has unveiled a proposal to carve its media business out into a non-profit entity. Here are other key corporate events since the group's listing:
- 1984 --- SPH lists on SGX mainboard in December as the holding company of Times Publishing Bhd
- 1996 --- SPH-led group acquires The Promenade for S$270 million and the Paragon by Sogo for S$682 million
- 2000-2004 --- SPH gets licence to operate two free-to-air TV channels, sets up SPH MediaWorks, marking move into broadcasting
- 2007 --- SPH enters property development with Sky@eleven condominium, built on the former Times Industrial Building site.
- November 2009 --- SPH wins tender for The Clementi Mall with a S$542 million bid by a joint venture with NTUC Income and NTUC FairPrice
- 2013 --- SPH Reit lists on SGX with Paragon and The Clementi Mall
- 2016-2017 --- Free sheet My Paper and paid daily The New Paper (TNP) merge to form revamped TNP
- September 2018-2020 --- SPH expands into Purpose-Built Student Accommodation (PBSA), acquiring a UK student accommodation portfolio for £180 million
- 2021 --- Merger of SingEx Holdings and Sphere Exhibits (MICE subsidiaries and Temasek and SPH respectively)
SPH RESTRUCTURING: How to avoid nationalisation by another name?
I have compiled some readings on public funding of media, to help MPs, journalists and other citizens ahead of Monday's Parliament debate, when there will be a ministerial statement on the topic. See https://www.academia.sg/…/special-topic-public-funding-of-…/]
Patrick Daniel, former editor-in-chief, dropped the strongest hint last July: "I'm convinced that newspapers have to find a new ownership model to survive - either be owned by a billionaire or convert to a public trust. I much prefer the latter, and predict ST will go that way and live to celebrate its 200th anniversary." Sure enough, SPH wants to park the Straits Times and its sister media under a new non-profit entity called SPH Media. SPH points out correctly that the foundation/trust ownership model has a distinguished pedigree: notably, the Guardian in Britain is controlled by the Scott Trust.
If SPH and Singapore's media regulators are serious about wanting to build a solid foundation for quality journalism, they must look closely at how such trusts operate. In particular, how they guarantee editorial independence by erecting a firewall between funders and newsrooms.
Full Coverage:
SPH shake-up - what is a 'company limited by guarantee' and how does it work?
SPH to restructure media business into not-for-profit to support quality journalism
SPH to restructure media business into not-for-profit entity amid falling revenue
SPH deal aims to improve asset values, ease shareholder pressure off media unit
Assoc Prof Lim Yee Fen on what SPH's restructuring means for its shareholders
SPH to hive off media business: What is a 'company limited by guarantee'?
Gov supports SPH's restructuring, willing to provide funding for not-for-profit entity
SPH to restructure media business into not-for-profit entity
New SPH media entity could get public and prvate funding
MCI expresses support for SPH's proposed restructuring
The SPH Journey: A timeline of key events since SGX listing
SPH intends to transfer its media business to a not-for-profit
CEO bristles at questions on SPH publication maintaining editorial independence
SPH will need to clarify future plans to secure shareholder approval
SPH staff concerned about editorial independence of non-profit funding model
SPH to structure media business into not-for-profit entity
What next for SPH as it seeks a reboot for its media business?
SPH CEO Ng Yat Chung 'takes umbrage' at reporter's 'editorial integrity' question
SPH restructuring give better financial flexibility, maximise shareholder returns
SPH calls for trading halt
Govt supports SPH plan to hive off media business
Government lends support to SPH's proposed restructuring
SPH restructuring will balance 'conflicting' expectations of public, shareholders
SPH unloads failing media businesses into nonprofit
SPH to restructure media business into not-for-profit entity
SPH shifts media business to not-for-profit entity amidst falling ad revenue
Publisher SPH to transfer troubled media business into not-for-profit entity
Singapore Press plans to spin off media into non-profit entity
Gov prepared to provide funding support to SPH's restructured media entity
SPH to restructure media into not-for-profit entity, focus on quality journalism
SPH to restructure media business into a not-for-profit entity
Asia's leading media to restructure media business into not-for-profit entity
SPH to transfer media business to non-profit following plummeting advertising
SPH may receive direct govt funding after proposed transfer to non-profit entity
Question on editorial independence send SPH CEO into fit
Singapore Press to Spin Off Media Into Non-Profit Entity
