Swiss publishing group Ringier and German publisher Axel Springer will consolidate their Eastern European operations into one company, Newspaper Innovation reported last week.

The companies will combine their operations in Poland, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Serbia, and create a new company to be headquartered in Zurich, according to the IFRA blog, a partner site of SFN.

The operation will include more than 100 print titles, 34 of which are newspapers, according to Newspaper Innovation.

The 50-50 partnership will see Axel Springer contributing to its subsidiaries in Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary, while Ringier's operations in Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Serbia and Hungary will be brought to the group.