[2] Since 22 June 1955 it has been published on the basis of a contractual agreement between the Bavarian regional government and two newspaper publishing companies, Süddeutscher Verlag and Münchner Zeitungsverlag ("Münchner Merkur") whereby each of the two newspaper companies owns 50% of the Bayerische Staatszeitung.
It reflects the Bavarian political, cultural and economic landscape, provided both by its own editorial staff and by guest contributors.
In addition to this, nowadays in a separate supplement, it serves as an information channel for the different levels of government, publishing official announcements, invitations to tender for government construction contracts and other public notifications.
Bavaria is not the only German state in which the regional government effectively publishes its own official newspaper, equivalent to The London, Edinburgh and Belfast Gazettes in Britain.
Target readership groups include policy makers at all levels, whether in politics and public administration, education, or the economy more generally.