Mediahuis Noord, formerly known as NDC Mediagroep, is a Dutch publisher of
newspapers
A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background.
Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as politics, business, sport ...
, magazines, and websites focused on the three northern provinces of the
Netherlands
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, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
:
Drenthe
Drenthe () is a provinces of the Netherlands, province of the Netherlands located in the northeastern part of the country. It is bordered by Overijssel to the south, Friesland to the west, Groningen (province), Groningen to the north, and the G ...
,
Friesland
Friesland (, ; official fry, Fryslân ), historically and traditionally known as Frisia, is a province of the Netherlands located in the country's northern part. It is situated west of Groningen, northwest of Drenthe and Overijssel, north of ...
and
Groningen
Groningen (; gos, Grunn or ) is the capital city and main municipality of Groningen province in the Netherlands. The ''capital of the north'', Groningen is the largest place as well as the economic and cultural centre of the northern part of t ...
. It is owned by
Mediahuis
Mediahuis is a newspaper & magazine publishing, distribution, printing, TV, radio and online media company founded in 2014 with assets in Belgium, the Netherlands, Ireland, Luxembourg and Germany. Mediahuis publishes daily newspaper titles in Belg ...
, a Belgian company. Headquarters are in
Leeuwarden
Leeuwarden (; fy, Ljouwert, longname=yes /; Town Frisian: ''Liwwadden''; Leeuwarder dialect: ''Leewarden'') is a city and municipality in Friesland, Netherlands, with a population of 123,107 (2019). It is the provincial capital and seat of ...
, other offices are in
Groningen
Groningen (; gos, Grunn or ) is the capital city and main municipality of Groningen province in the Netherlands. The ''capital of the north'', Groningen is the largest place as well as the economic and cultural centre of the northern part of t ...
and
Meppel
Meppel (; Drents: ''Möppelt'') is a city and municipality in the Northeastern Netherlands. It constitutes the southwestern part of the province of Drenthe. Meppel is the smallest municipality in Drenthe, with a total area of about 57 km² (22 sq ...
. In addition to three main provinces, NDC publishes and distributes also in the
Kop van Overijssel
The Kop van Overijssel ( English: ''Head of Overijssel'') is a region in the very northwestern part of the Dutch province of Overijssel. It consists of the municipality of Steenwijkerland and matches the historical region of the Land van Voll ...
,
Noordoostpolder
Noordoostpolder (; en, "North-East Polder") is a polder and municipality in the Flevoland province in the central Netherlands. Formerly, it was also called '' Urker Land''. Emmeloord is the administrative center, located in the heart of the Noord ...
, and northern
Flevoland
Flevoland () is the twelfth and youngest province of the Netherlands, established in 1986, when the southern and eastern Flevopolders, together with the Noordoostpolder, were merged into one provincial entity. It is in the centre of the countr ...
.
History
1752–1990: Leeuwarder Courant and Friese Pers
The early history of the Mediahuis Noord starts with the first publication in
Leeuwarden
Leeuwarden (; fy, Ljouwert, longname=yes /; Town Frisian: ''Liwwadden''; Leeuwarder dialect: ''Leewarden'') is a city and municipality in Friesland, Netherlands, with a population of 123,107 (2019). It is the provincial capital and seat of ...
of the ''
Leeuwarder Courant'' by
Abraham Ferwerda
The ''Leeuwarder Courant'' is the oldest daily newspaper in the Netherlands. Founded by Abraham Ferwerda, it first appeared in 1752. The ''Leeuwarder Courant'' was the first paper in the Dutch province Friesland and its capital Leeuwarden. I ...
, on 29 July 1752. After Ferwerda's death, his son-in-law, Doeke Ritske Smeding, took over and led the paper though the
French occupation, during which many Dutch papers were shut down by the occupier. Smeding died in 1814; Pieter Koumans Smeding, his cousin, ran the paper until 1854. His heirs owned the newspaper until 1947.
On 1 January 1955 the publishers the
Leeuwarder Courant of Leeuwarden the
Friese Koerier
The ''Leeuwarder Courant'' is the oldest daily newspaper in the Netherlands. Founded by Abraham Ferwerda, it first appeared in 1752. The ''Leeuwarder Courant'' was the first paper in the Dutch province Friesland and its capital Leeuwarden. It is ...
of
Heerenveen
Heerenveen (, fry, It Hearrenfean ) is a town and municipality in the province of Friesland (Fryslân), in the Northern Netherlands. In 2021, the town had a population of 29,790 (1 January) while the municipality had a population 50,859 (1 July). ...
, founded as De Koerier on 16 April 1945 as a resistance newspaper, merged to form the Friese Pers. On 1 November 1969, the Friese Koerier was merged into the Leeuwarder Courant.
1988–1990: Nieuwsblad van het Noorden and Hazewinkel
On 2 June 1988, Joan Nieuwenhuis began publishing the ''
Nieuwsblad van het Noorden
The ''Nieuwsblad van het Noorden'' (; "Newspaper of the North") is a former regional daily newspaper from the city of Groningen in the Netherlands. It was published from 1888 to 2002, when it was merged with the '' Groninger Dagblad'' and the ...
'' in
Groningen
Groningen (; gos, Grunn or ) is the capital city and main municipality of Groningen province in the Netherlands. The ''capital of the north'', Groningen is the largest place as well as the economic and cultural centre of the northern part of t ...
. Within months of the first publication of the Nieuwsblad, printer Ruurt Hazewinkel took over the publication. His sons continued the operation after him.
In 1977, the Hazewinkel Pers
private limited company
A private limited company is any type of business entity in Privately held company, "private" ownership used in many jurisdictions, in contrast to a Public company, publicly listed company, with some differences from country to country. Examples ...
was founded.
1990–2005: FGDP and Noordelijke Dagblad Combinatie
On 2 January 1990, the Friese Pers, publishers of the Leeuwarder Counrant, merged with Hazewinkel Pers, publishers of the Nieuwsblad van het Noorden, to form the Fries Gronings Drentse Pers (FGDP). FGDP was renamed Noordelijke Dagblad Combinatie (NDC) on 1 July 1994. .
On 3 January 1994, FGDP bought the newspapers of
Wegener in its region, the
Drentse Courant and
Groninger Dagblad. On 2 April 2002 the Groninger Dagblad, Drentse Courant, and Nieuwsblad van het Noorden were merged into the
Dagblad van het Noorden that became the only regional daily of the provinces
Groningen
Groningen (; gos, Grunn or ) is the capital city and main municipality of Groningen province in the Netherlands. The ''capital of the north'', Groningen is the largest place as well as the economic and cultural centre of the northern part of t ...
and
Drenthe
Drenthe () is a provinces of the Netherlands, province of the Netherlands located in the northeastern part of the country. It is bordered by Overijssel to the south, Friesland to the west, Groningen (province), Groningen to the north, and the G ...
. The Leeuwarder Courant continued unchanged in Friesland and was by then the only regional newspaper to have a nonfree competitor in its region, the Christian
Friesch Dagblad.
2005–2021: NDC, VBK and NDC Mediagroep
NDC merged in March 2005 with book publisher
Veen Bosch & Keuning (VBK) to form NDC, VBK. On 1 June 2007, the NDC Mediagroep was established as the subsidiary of NDC, VDK that would handle interests in periodicals, radio, and TV. The interest in radio and TV was brief. In late 2012 the VBK book publication activities were spun off. As a result, the NDC, VBK holder company became obsolete and the NDC Mediagroep took the lead.
On 1 July 2013 the
Friesch Dagblad, a title owned by the Fryslân Boppe Oranjewoud Foundation, was added to the NDC Mediagroep and FB Oranjewoud became the majority (51%) stakeholder in NDC Mediagroep. Other shares were held by
ING Bank
The ING Group ( nl, ING Groep) is a Dutch multinational banking and financial services corporation headquartered in Amsterdam. Its primary businesses are retail banking, direct banking, commercial banking, investment banking, wholesale banki ...
(33%) and foundation Je Maintiendrai (16%). On 19 June 2015, when ING Bank exited NDC Mediagroep, FB increased its holdings to 83%, with Je Maintiendrai owning the other 17%.
In June 2017, NDC Mediagroep purchased Boom Nieuwsmedia in Meppel, the subsidiary of Royal Boom that managed newspapers, magazines and websites.
The purchase enabled NDC Mediagroep to strengthen its position in South Drenthe and South Friesland and in North
Flevoland
Flevoland () is the twelfth and youngest province of the Netherlands, established in 1986, when the southern and eastern Flevopolders, together with the Noordoostpolder, were merged into one provincial entity. It is in the centre of the countr ...
and North
Overijssel.
[ NDC continued to use the name Boom Nieuwsmedia for its publications centered in Meppel until 1 January 2018.][ The ]Kop van Overijssel
The Kop van Overijssel ( English: ''Head of Overijssel'') is a region in the very northwestern part of the Dutch province of Overijssel. It consists of the municipality of Steenwijkerland and matches the historical region of the Land van Voll ...
and the North Flevopolder
The Flevopolder is an island polder forming the bulk of Flevoland, a province of the Netherlands. Created by land reclamation, its northeastern part was drained in 1955 and the remainder—the southwest—in 1968.
Boundaries
Unlike other major ...
were extensions of NDC's reach.
As a consequence of expensive acquisitions and reorganizations and deteriorating income from subscriptions, sales, and advertisements, NDC Mediagroep reported in February 2020 losing 5.2 million euros over 2017 and 4.8 million over 2018. In September 2020, Mediahuis
Mediahuis is a newspaper & magazine publishing, distribution, printing, TV, radio and online media company founded in 2014 with assets in Belgium, the Netherlands, Ireland, Luxembourg and Germany. Mediahuis publishes daily newspaper titles in Belg ...
acquired NDC Mediagroep.
Since 2021: Mediahuis Noord
In late 2021, the company changed its name to Mediahuis Noord. In January 2022, Mediahuis Noord acquired Hoekstra Krantendruk in Emmeloord
Emmeloord is the administrative centre of the municipality of Noordoostpolder, Flevoland, Netherlands. In 2019, it had a population of 26,055.
Overview
At the heart of the Noordoostpolder, where the three main drainage canals Lemstervaart, Ur ...
. By March 2022, the printing facilities and offices in Emmeloord closed. Hoekstra continued as a brand of Mediahuis Noord Grafisch Bedrijf, the print and graphics subsidiary of Mediahuis Noord, located in Leeuwarden.
Publications
Daily newspapers
* Dagblad van het Noorden
* Leeuwarder Courant
* Friesch Dagblad
Weekly newspapers
Drenthe
* Asser Courant
* Coevorden Huis aan Huis
* Emmen Nu
* Gezinsblad
* Hoogeveensche Courant
* Krant van Midden-Drenthe
* Krant van Hoogeveen
* Meppeler Courant
* Nieuwe Meppeler
* Roder Journaal
* Westervelder
* Wolder Courant
* Zuidoosthoeker
Flevoland
* De Noordoostpolder
* FlevoPost Dronten
* FlevoPost Lelystad
Friesland
* Balkster Courant
* Bolswards Nieuwsblad
* Drachtster Courant
* De Feanster
* Franeker Courant
* Heerenveense Courant
* Huis aan Huis Leeuwarden
* Jouster Courant
* Kollumer Courant
* Nieuwe Dockumer Courant
* Nieuw Ooststellingwerver
* Sneeker Nieuwsblad
* Nieuwsblad Noord-Oost Friesland
* Stellingwerf
* De Woudklank
* Zuid-Friesland
Groningen
* Eemsbode
* Groninger Gezinsbode
* Harener Weekblad
* Hoogezand-Sappemeer-krant
* Kanaalstreek
* Noorderkrant
* Streekblad
* Ter Apeler Courant
* Veendammer
* Westerkwartier
Overijssel
* De Staphorster
* Steenwijker Courant
Websites
* Mensenlinq
* TweeNul
References
{{reflist
External links
Official website
Magazine publishing companies of the Netherlands
Newspaper companies of the Netherlands
Companies based in Friesland
Mass media in Drenthe
Mass media in Friesland
Mass media in Groningen (province)
Mass media in Leeuwarden