Bloomberg bid wins business magazine
By Robert MacMillan |
October 15, 2009, Thursday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
BLOOMBERG is to buy BusinessWeek magazine from McGraw-Hill Companies as the news and data provider seeks to reach a wider audience than its traditional clients in financial services.
The announcement comes after several rounds of bids by various private equity firms and publishers.
Bloomberg had long been seen as the most likely winner of the auction.
The company, controlled by New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, provided few details on how much it would pay and how many BusinessWeek staff might lose their jobs.
Bloomberg offered between US$2 million and US$5 million, and agreed to assume BusinessWeek's liabilities, including potential severance payments, according to the magazine's Website.
"The fact is, it has been losing a meaningful amount of money and that is reflected in the purchase price," Bloomberg President Daniel Doctoroff said, while declining to confirm or deny any figure.
Bloomberg Chief Content Officer Norman Pearlstine, who will become BusinessWeek's chairman, added: "We're also looking at it as something we're going to be investing in going forward as we build the magazine and get it where it ought to be."
Bloomberg's primary audience is the 300,000 subscribers to its Bloomberg computer terminals.
But it also owns a cable television network that competes with CNBC, a New York radio station and the Bloomberg Markets magazine.
McGraw-Hill put the 80-year-old, money-losing BusinessWeek up for sale in July.
The magazine's ad revenue, like that of other publications, has fallen as more people get free news online and competition has grown.
The announcement comes after several rounds of bids by various private equity firms and publishers.
Bloomberg had long been seen as the most likely winner of the auction.
The company, controlled by New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, provided few details on how much it would pay and how many BusinessWeek staff might lose their jobs.
Bloomberg offered between US$2 million and US$5 million, and agreed to assume BusinessWeek's liabilities, including potential severance payments, according to the magazine's Website.
"The fact is, it has been losing a meaningful amount of money and that is reflected in the purchase price," Bloomberg President Daniel Doctoroff said, while declining to confirm or deny any figure.
Bloomberg Chief Content Officer Norman Pearlstine, who will become BusinessWeek's chairman, added: "We're also looking at it as something we're going to be investing in going forward as we build the magazine and get it where it ought to be."
Bloomberg's primary audience is the 300,000 subscribers to its Bloomberg computer terminals.
But it also owns a cable television network that competes with CNBC, a New York radio station and the Bloomberg Markets magazine.
McGraw-Hill put the 80-year-old, money-losing BusinessWeek up for sale in July.
The magazine's ad revenue, like that of other publications, has fallen as more people get free news online and competition has grown.
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