Demirören Holding chairman dies at age 79

Erdoğan Demirören, the chairman of Demirören Holding that recently became one of Turkey's largest media groups with its acquisition of Doğan Media Group, has died at the age of 79 due to multi-organ failure, Turkish media reported Friday.

Demirören has been in intensive care since May 31 after experiencing respiratory failure, the hospital said in a statement.

His funeral will be held Sunday after the noon prayers at the Fatih Mosque in Istanbul.

Demirören took over his father's auto spare parts business in 1956 at the age of 18, before establishing the conglomerate company Demirören Group.

Demirören Group is active in the energy, mining, manufacturing, tourism and real estate sectors. Demirören's older son Yıldırım Demirören is the current President of the Turkish Football Federation (TFF) and was the former chairman of Istanbul giants Beşiktaş.

The group acquired Turkish newspapers Milliyet and Vatan in May 2011, adding Doğan Group's media properties, including Hürriyet daily and TV station Kanal D, to their portfolio in 2018.