THE media group which owns The News Letter and The Derry Journal has been bought over hours after filing for administration.
JPIMedia, a newly formed company, will take over Johnston Press, which had entered administration on Saturday morning as part of a rescue plan aimed at securing its survival.
It said the buyout will ensure staff remain in their jobs.
The News Letter is the oldest English language daily newspaper in the world, first printed in 1737.
The group also owns titles across Britain and several weekly newspapers in Northern Ireland.
Johnston Press, which has a borrowing debt of £220 million due for repayment next June, had put itself up for sale last month, but said none of the offers were high enough.
David King, the new chief executive of JPIMedia, said the sale ensures "that operations can continue as normal, with employees' rights maintained, suppliers paid, and newspapers printed".
The News Letter's deputy editor Ben Lowry wrote on Twitter - prior to the buyout - that the paper was in good health and profitable, adding that it will be the world's oldest daily "for a while yet".
However, the National Union of Journalists (NUJ) expressed concern at the news that the company was entering administration.
Ciarán Ó Maoláin, secretary of the Belfast branch of the NUJ, said: "We're seriously concerned about those of our colleagues who work on the News Letter which is the oldest English language newspaper, continuously published newspaper in the world and those in the Derry Journal and the many local titles that Johnston Press has in Northern Ireland."
