Across Boundaries: A life in the media in a time of change

By Ton Vosloo

Ton Vosloo’s remarkable career in the media spanned nearly 60 years in South Africa’s history. During this turbulent time, South Africa went through the transition from Afrikaner Nationalist rule to an ANC government. At the helm of the leading press group founded in 1913 to support nascent Afrikaner nationalism, Vosloo’s story is not just one of newspapers and politics but also one of singular business and commercial success as the Naspers Group evolved from a print group to an electronic company with significant investments across the world.

In 1983 Vosloo was appointed managing director of Naspers and set about vigorously transforming the group. On the ideological front, it was a fight to the death with the old Transvaal’s predominantly right-wing Perskor Group for the soul of the Afrikaner. On the commercial front, Vosloo established the pay television network M-Net. In 1992, Vosloo became chairman of Naspers with Koos Bekker succeeding him as CEO. The story of Naspers’ successes in investing in Chinese internet company Tencent and in establishing a footprint in 130 countries is a continuing one, but one begun under Vosloo’s stewardship.

In Across Boundaries, Vosloo gives his account of these momentous times with wry humour and a journalist’s deft pen.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Jonathan Ball
• Release date: Sep 5, 2018
• ISBN: 9781868428892

Ton Vosloo

Ton (Theunissen) Vosloo, gebore Oos-Kapenaar, het op Uitenhage grootgeword en daar gematrikuleer. Hy het sy loopbaan by Oosterlig begin en was in 1970-1971 'n Nieman-genoot by Harvard. Hy was 'n joernalis van 1956 tot 1983, waarvan redakteur van Beeld van 1977 tot 1983, toe hy as besturende direkteur van Naspers aangewys is en David de Villiers in 1984 opgevolg het. Hy was uitvoerende voorsitter van Naspers van 1992 tot 1997. Van 1997 tot Maart 2015 was hy nie-uitvoerende voorsitter van Naspers nadat hy in 1997 op ouderdom 60 uitgetree het as uitvoerende voorsitter. Hy was voorsitter van 'n aantal groepfiliale, soos Media24, die MIH-betaaltelevisiegroep en Naspers se boekuitgewerye. Hy was ook 'n nie-uitvoerende voorsitter van Sanlam, 'n trustee van die Wêreldnatuurfonds (WWF SA) en voorsitter van die Kaapse Filharmonie. Hy is ook 'n oudvoorsitter van die Drukmediavereniging van Suid-Afrika en was 'n lid van die Wêreldvereniging van Koerante. In 1989 het hy die Protea-prys as Suid-Afrika se Bemarker van die Jaar gewen. Hy is die ontvanger van drie eredoktorsgrade. Die Finse regering het aan hom dié land se hoogste burgerlike orde, die Orde van die Wit Roos, toegeken vir sy bydrae tot handel en inisiatiewe vir die bevordering van Afrikaans.