The study, conducted with Grant Thornton and Denton Wilde Sapte, found that 94% of media business owners surveyed believed consolidation within the industry would increase over the coming year.

Daily Mail & General Trust is the latest publisher to buy across sectors with DMG Information's purchase of Genscape, a group that provides online information for the energy industry.

"Businesses are addressing their vulnerability to declines in their print revenue by acquiring event-based, data-rich research and online businesses," said David Ascott, partner at Grant Thornton Corporate Finance.