NEW YORK, Oct. 13, 2009 (Xinhua News Agency) -- Bloomberg L.P., founded in 1981 by New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, said Tuesday it would buy the 80-year-old weekly BusinessWeek magazine from McGraw Hill Cos (NYSE:MHP) , but terms of the deal were not disclosed.
"BusinessWeek helps better serve our customers by reaching into the corporate suite and corridors of power in government, where news that affects markets and business is made by CEOs, CFOs, deal lawyers, bankers and government officials who typically are not terminal customers," said Daniel Doctoroff, president of Bloomberg.
The purchase includes the print magazine and the BusinessWeek. com website, said Bloomberg L.P..
The acquisition will strengthen online, television and mobile products, Bloomberg Chairman Peter Grauer said in a statement. Norman Pearlstine, Bloomberg's chief content officer, will be chairman of BusinessWeek.
BusinessWeek, founded in 1929, has more than 4.7 million readers weekly in some 140 countries and regions, according to its website. McGraw-Hill Cos., the parent company (OOTC:KIDSQ) of the weekly, had been exploring strategic options for the magazine as advertising sales and circulation slumped.
McGraw-Hill said in a separate statement that the sale will enable it to focus on building its other brands.
BusinessWeek is a business magazine first published by McGraw-Hill in 1929. Its primary competitors in the U.S. business magazine category are Fortune and Forbes, which are published bi-weekly.
Like nearly all magazines, BusinessWeek has suffered from a decline in advertising during the late-2000s recession. As of July 2009, McGraw-Hill is reportedly trying to sell BusinessWeek and has hired Evercore Partners (NYSE:EVR) to conduct the sale.
Because of the magazine's liabilities it has been suggested that it may change hands for the nominal price of 1 U.S. dollar to an investor who is willing to incur losses turning the magazine around.
Bloomberg LP is reportedly purchasing the news magazine to tap into its audience of decision makers around the world. Terms of the agreement were not disclosed, but reports say Bloomberg is paying up to 5 million dollars.
The sale announced Tuesday is expected to close by the end of the year. It would end BusinessWeek's 80-year run as part of McGraw-Hill Cos., which also owns the Standard & Poor's credit rating agency.
Bloomberg's plans for the news weekly remain unclear, though BusinessWeek's powerful brand will likely remain in some form.
This is Bloomberg's first acquisition, though it has made deals with print publications to distribute its stories.
Bloomberg L.P. is a closely-held financial software, news and data company. Though it has a presence on the Web, radio and television, Bloomberg primarily transmits financial information through 300,000 proprietary terminals that are a mainstay in investment banks and financial firms worldwide. It also publishes a monthly magazine.
