Media Wales, publisher of the Western Mail and other south Wales titles, has confirmed it has tabled a bid to run a Welsh language news website.

The Welsh Assembly Government recently announced that £600,000 of funding will be available for the successful applicant – £200,000 each year for three years.

Four other contenders are believed to have applied to provide the service with yesterday the deadline for funding applications to be submitted to the Welsh Books Council.

This latest move comes on the back of a failed bid to launch Y Byd (The World).

Publisher Dyddiol Cyf was hoping for a grant of £1m just to launch the daily Welsh-language paper - so when the Assembly announced the £600,000 package earlier this year, Y Byd was scrapped.

The company said at the time it was "highly unlikely" that any other company could launch a paper with that size of grant.

When the Welsh Assembly elections were held last May, the Labour-Plaid Cymru coalition was formed under the 'One Wales Pact' which contained a pledge to support a daily newspaper in Welsh.

Y Byd hoped to secure 5,000 subscribers and was due to launch on St David's Day in March with 24 full-time staff based in Machynlleth.

After the project was pulled, editor Aled Price resigned but the company said it planned to pursue other business avenues within the Welsh press.

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