Shareholders OK RHD-Dex

It's official. The RHD-Dex Media merger has been approved by shareholders. Here is the release. The deal, which combines two of the top five U.S. incumbent publishers, is expected to formally close at the end of this month.

Here is a summary of the deal from our Local Media Journal, published shortly after the deal was announced last October:

The acquisition will form the third-largest U.S. directory publisher, with estimated combined adjusted revenues of US$2.69 billion and adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) of roughly US$1.48 billion. The new company will have more than 600 titles, 1,800 sales representatives and distribution of about 73 million directories.

The acquisition will have a significant impact on the U.S. directory industry, even if it does not transform the competitive landscape. Acquiring Dex will offer RHD some additional bargaining power with search engines as it looks for ways to drive more traffic to its online customers. The deal also extends RHD's geographic coverage to 28 states, with incumbent status in 8 of the top 40 U.S. metropolitan markets. Key markets include Chicago, Denver, Las Vegas, Orlando, Phoenix and Seattle.