Meredith to Acquire Four Gruner + Jahr Titles

Posted on May 30, 2005

Meredith Corporation has reached an agreement in principle with Gruner + Jahr to acquire Parents, Child, Fitness and Family Circle magazines for $350 million. As part of the transaction, G + J will have until June 30, 2005, an option to sell the assets of business publications Inc. and Fast Company to Meredith. If Meredith does acquire the business publications, it currently plans to sell these magazines through either a private sale or auction.

"Parents, Child, Fitness and Family Circle are established and well-known consumer magazines that will benefit greatly from Meredith's proven editorial, circulation, sales, database and brand-building expertise," said Meredith Chairman and Chief Executive Officer William T. Kerr. "These titles have significant upside but have underperformed in recent years. We possess the unique skills and resources needed -- particularly in the circulation area -- to help these magazines realize their potential."

With the acquisition Meredith titles will reach more than 135 million adult American women according to Mediamark Research Inc. (MRI), giving it the largest female reach in the magazine industry. Meredith titles will have a combined circulation approaching 30 million, making it the second-largest consumer magazine publisher in the United States, according to data gathered from the Audit Bureau of Circulation (ABC) and BPA Worldwide. Meredith Publishing Group also said its revenues will increase by approximately $300 million to more than $1.2 billion.

Griffin added that Meredith plans to continue operating the titles in New York City, and the company's recent integration of American Baby into its publishing portfolio will facilitate the transition process. The Meredith Publishing Group features 20 subscription magazines including Better Homes and Gardens, Ladies' Home Journal and American Baby and approximately 190 special interest publications.