Ripplewood Holdings Acquiring Reader's Digest

Posted on November 17, 2006

Reuters reports that Ripplewood Holdings is acquiring the Reader's Digest Association. Ripplewood also has interests in Direct Holdings Worldwide and educational publisher WRC Media according to Reuters. See the Hoover's listing for more details abotu Ripplewood Holdings.

Reader's Digest Association Inc., publisher of one of the most widely read U.S. magazines, on Thursday said it had agreed to a $1.6 billion takeover offer from an investor group, sending its share price up sharply.
Buyout firm Ripplewood Holdings leads the investor group, which will pay $17 per share, a premium of nearly 10 percent to Reader's Digest's closing price on Wednesday.
With the deal, Ripplewood adds to its investments in media, where buyout firms see potential to profit from the business upheaval caused by a migration of audiences to the Internet and other outlets.

Reuters says Reader's Digest has struggled to compete with new media and a lack of younger readers. They could use a much more significant and visible online approach. The article did not mention that any layoffs would result from the takeover.