By Jenniffer B. Austria

PLDT chairman Manuel Pangilinan yesterday said he sees some form of cooperation between BusinessWorld and The Philippine Star once he completes negotiations to buy a majority stake in the national daily.

MediaQuest Holdings Inc., the media subsidiary of the PLDT Beneficial Trust Fund, already owns 30 percent of BusinessWorld. It is now negotiating with the Belmonte family to buy a majority stake in the Philippine Star Group.

In an interview at the sidelines of a Management Association of the Philippines forum, Pangilinan told reporters the acquisition could cost P4 billion depending on the number of shares that MediaQuest would be able to acquire from Star shareholders.

Pangilinan said MediaQuest wanted more than a 50-percent stake.

MediaQuest is reportedly conducting due diligence on The Philippine Star.

Pangilinan said he hoped to complete the deal in the next few months.

If the deal pushed through, Pangilinan said, he would seek cooperation between The Philippine Star and BusinessWorld.

While there would be no merger between the two publications, Pangilinan said, the two newspapers could cooperate in procurement, printing and distribution.

“Maybe BusinessWorld can take advantage of these things with Philippine Star,” Pangilinan said.

BusinessWorld’s editorial offices in Quezon City are a stone’s throw away from the home of Quezon City Mayor Feliciano Belmonte, who controls The Star and has a printing press nearby.

Pangilinan said Mediaquest had no immediate plans to raise its stake in BusinessWorld since the business paper managed to perform well in 2008.

“BusinessWorld is doing well. It managed to make a profit in 2008,” Pangilinan said without giving any figures.

The Philippine Star is controlled by the Belmontes. BusinessWorld was founded by Raul Locsin.

MediaQuest also has interests in various media-related ventures, including a controlling interest in Nation Broadcasting Corp., which operates a network of radio stations, and a minority interest in Central CATV, which owns Sky Cable.