Michal Voráček

Michal Voráček (born October 26, 1958 in Prague) is a Czech businessman and entrepreneur, specialising in the field of media and communications.
He founded many of the first Czechoslovak and Czech newspapers in the immediate post-communist period, via the large publishing house Ringier Axel Springer Media AG|Ringier.
Within the world of printed media, he was involved in all the news like the first color newspaper, the first Sunday newspaper or audiotext. Together with Ivo Valenta, he owns the company OUR MEDIA a.s. which controls some regional television stations and the news server :cs:Parlamentní_listy|ParlamentníListy.cz , and in Slovakia he publishes, for example, the daily Pravda. 
== Studies ==
In 1982 Michal Voráček graduated from the University of University of Economics (VŠE) in Prague, foreign trade economics. In 1987, he completed his postgraduate studies at the University of Economics and obtained the degree of CSc. (doctorate).
== Career ==
At the end of 1989, together with Michael Ringier, he founded the first media field joint venture in Czechoslovak Federal Republic between East and West - the business weekly Profit. 
Voráček said in an interview for Tagesanzeiger in 1991, that there were literally wartime conditions at that time. According to him, every newspaper issue was a struggle in all areas - for price, distribution and customers. In 1991, when the state distribution network (PNS) was blocked, it had 600,000 readers, and the number of copies sold (was around) amounted approximately 55,000. Two months after launch Profit had already earned about 1-2 million Swiss francs per year and attained profit. 
After that he founded and remained shareholder of the media company Ringier Axel Springer Media AG|Ringier in Czech Republic and Slovak Republic. After three years of operations, Ringier Axel Springer Media AG|Ringier controlled than a third of the Czech media market.
The Blesk tabloid was launched in 1993 which remains a popular domestic tabloid in the Czech Republic.
During his tenure as CEO Ringier Axel Springer Media AG|Ringier in Czechia (Czech Republic) owned, among others, Blesk, Nedělní Blesk and Blesk Magazine, as well as Lidové noviny, the daily Expres, Týdeník Televize, magazines Týden, Reflex, Chatař a Chalupář, ABC and others. 
After leaving Ringier Axel Springer Media AG|Ringier CR, he retained his involvement in media and communications companies, being an exect printing. such as TV Nova (Czech TV channel)|TV Nova, Prima televize|TV Prima,, PNS (press distribution), Ostrava Printing House, Český mobil (Oskar, Vodafone), Médea, a.s. (media agency), Beseda Holding, and as a director of :cs:AC_Sparta_Praha|AC Sparta :cs:AC_Sparta_Praha|Fotbal, Prague football club.
Now he is the sole owner and shareholder of E-Centrum, a.s. This company was founded in 1991 and since the beginning it has focused on consulting in the field of public relations and marketing, real estate activities (it owns a number of apartment buildings in Prague) and also owns and manages shares in other companies.
In the companies E - Centrum a.s., Region a.s. and Hermes International a.s. he is the only member of the supervisory board.
He is currently one of the shareholders of the media group OUR MEDIA a.s. and OUR MEDIA SR a.s. which runs regional televisions both the Czech and Slovak Republics, as well as the Slovak daily newspaper Pravda.. This group also owns the publishing house Olympia and operates the :cs:Parlamentní_listy|ParlamentníListy.cz server.
He also worked as a consultant in the field of media, marketing and public relations for Czech and global companies such as: Pilsner Urquell, Allianz, PPF (company)|PPF, Philip Morris, Saab, Lagardere and Axel Springer. He is still active in media consulting.
As member of the statutory body (chairman of the board of Directors, executive officer or chairman of the supervisory board) he appeared in a number of other Czech and foreign companies.
== Foundation ==
Inn the late 90’s he also established the Foundation for Renewal and Development for that purpose. In an interview with Leaders magazine he said this foundation is one of the largest private ones in Czech Republic that does not receive state support, both in terms of fund value and the support it provides. He keeps financing this Foundation exclusively from his own resources. 
Category:Czech businesspeople
Category:Czech entrepreneurs
Category: 1958 births