 During 1979, Bell Group made an unsuccessful bid for Ansett Transport Industries but was defeated by Rupert Murdoch and roadfreight group TNT.However, a profit of $11 million was made by Bell for future bids.Bell Group made an unsuccessful bid for "The Times" in 1980, and at the same time launched a new Perth newspaper, the "Western Mail", challenging the Herald & Weekly Times group which owned "The West Australian".