Alpha Media Group Limited is a locally-owned weekly newspaper group in Northern Ireland which publishes 13 newspapers, website and social media sites, all circulating outside the Belfast area.

The company also owns and operates YourAdsNI, an online classifieds and local advertising platform focused on the Northern Ireland market.

Iconic Media Group Limited is part of the corporate group of Media Concierge Holdings Group Limited.

Iconic does not own any newspaper titles or websites in Ireland, but Media Concierge Holdings Group Limited owns titles in the State through its subsidiary, Formpress Publishing Limited.

The proposed transaction was notified under the Competition Act 2002, as amended, on 24 December 2025.

The National Union of Journalists (NUJ) made a submission to the CCPC which raised concerns about the acquisition’s impact on media diversity.

It also said it had written to the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) to call for a review of the proposed transaction.

The CCPC yesterday said it had “formed the view that the proposed transaction will not substantially lessen competition in any market for goods or services in the State”.

“The Commission will publish the reasons for its determination on its website no later than 60 working days after the date of the determination and after allowing the parties the opportunity to request that confidential information be removed from the published version,” it added.