By G. Sharmila
Juhaidi Yean Abdullah
Berita Publishing Sdn Bhd, one of the oldest publishers in the country, is opting out of the magazine publishing business, a company official says today.
Sources had earlier told KINIBIZ that staff of the company’s various magazines had been laid off and given compensation and that the company was likely closing down for good.
However, Berita Publishing executive director Juhaidi Yean Abdullah told KINIBIZ that the company is not closing down. “We have ceased to publish the magazines,” he said over the phone.
Commenting on the reasons the company is pulling out of the magazine business, Juhaidi said that it is because of a general business downtrend and the imposition of the goods and services tax (GST) on magazines.
He explained that since April, many retailers have not been carrying magazines on their shelves due to upgrading their cashier machines following the GST regulations.
“They (retailers) have been given a grace period up to September-October to upgrade their cashier machines, in the meantime, magazines don’t get sold and have been returned and this is not profitable for us,” he said.
When asked what businesses the company would be involved in in the future, Juhaidi replied that other areas of business they may continue to do include contract publishing and other types of publishing.
“We may venture into other areas of business. We have looked into consultancy, based on the in-house expertise we have,” he said, adding that the company is still mulling pursuing these areas of business.
“The key thing for us now is to ensure the welfare of our staff. Part of our task is ensuring that they get proper benefits and secure jobs,” he said.
A check with the Companies Commission of Malaysia showed that for the financial year ended Dec 31, 2013, Berita Publishing had RM781,357 in losses on the back of RM6.5 million in revenue.
A Kadir Jasin
Founded in 1973, Berita Publishing has in its stable four magazines, namely Malaysian Business, Jelita, Anjung Seri, and Madam Chair. In September 2000, its ownership changed hands from The New Straits Times Press (M) Bhd to become a wholly-owned company of Alaf Positif Sdn Bhd.
Alaf Positif, which is the majority shareholder of Berita Publishing, is an investment holding company controlled by A Kadir Jasin, the editor in-chief of Berita Publishing.
A veteran journalist, he is known for his column “Other Thots” in the Malaysian Business magazine, “Kunta Kinte Original” in Berita Harian, and “A Kadir Jasin Bercerita” in Dewan Masyarakat. He was also formerly group editor of the News Straits Times.
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