Citing “people familiar with the situation,” the WSJ reported late last week that Apax Partners (which owns a majority stake in Cengage) and Apollo Global Management are “leading contenders” to buy McGraw-Hill Education, both having done “serious due diligence” on the division. Bids on the ongoing auction were due last Thursday though “after McGraw-Hill decides on a preferred bidder, the two sides will have to reach agreement.” That’s all a polite way of confirming that there are only two bidders still interested in the unit, and the offering prices are likely still below what McGraw-Hill said they were looking for. The […]
Finance
Random House and Penguin Make Merger Plan Official
After last week’s official confirmation of talks and a newsmaking weekend overture from News Corp., Bertelsmann and Pearson made their intended partnership official in an early Monday morning announcement that they have agreed to combine their trade book businesses into a single entity known as Penguin Random House. Under the deal, which is “expected to complete in the second half of 2013” but could take some time while awaiting regulatory clearances in multiple territories, Bertelsmann will hold 53 percent of the new company and Pearson will take a 47 percent stake, agreeing to hold those stakes for a minimum of […]
News Corp. Said to Ready “Substantial Cash Offer” to Buy Penguin Outright
On Sunday, two different News Corp. newspapers both come up with unidentified sources for the same story. First the Sunday Times of London wrote that “News Corp. has joined the race for Penguin with a last-minute overture to the directors of Pearson, the media conglomerate that owns the book publisher. Glen Moreno, Pearson’s chairman, will put the approach to directors in the next few days. Rupert Murdoch…is understood to have indicated he will make a substantial cash offer — thought to be about £1 billion [or about 1 times annual sales] — for Penguin, subject to due diligence.” (Actually they […]
Pearson Admits Discussing Penguin-Random House Merger
As most readers know now, fanciful rumor changed to factual possibility on Wednesday morning when Pearson issued a brief statement responding to recent press accounts: “Pearson confirms that it is discussing with Bertelsmann a possible combination of Penguin and Random House. The two companies have not reached agreement and there is no certainty that the discussions will lead to a transaction. A further announcement will be made if and when appropriate.” Penguin Group ceo John Makinson followed the Pearson press release with a short cover note to Penguin employees soon thereafter, attaching the announcement “concerning a potential partnership.” Makinson acknowledged […]
Hackers Steal Credit Card Information From 63 Barnes & Noble Stores
Barnes & Noble revealed Wednesday (after multiple outlets reported the news the previous evening) that hackers gained access to customer credit cards used at 63 store locations in nine states, including at least nine stores in the New York City area. The company said the hackers “planted bugs in tampered PIN pad devices, allowing for the capture of credit card and PIN numbers” in these stores, and the PIN pads have since been removed and will not be reinstalled. Purchases at BN College stores and online through BN.com or the various Nook platforms were not affected. BN learned of the […]
Canada’s D&M Publishers Will Seek Bankruptcy Protection; Looks for Investor or Sale
Independent Canadian publisher D&M–which owns Douglas & McIntrye and Greystone Books–announced Monday evening it intends to file for bankruptcy protection. The company said in a short statement “it has filed a Notice of Intention to make a proposal under the provisions of the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act.” As part of that process, “D&M management will be working with the Bowra Group to locate an investor or purchaser for its assets.” Current ownership purchased a majority interest in D&M in 2007, with former investment banker Mark Scott leading an investor group that included “two of the founders of one of Canada’s largest and […]