Since Mayor Bloomberg was busy preparing for a mayoral debate and a standing agreement with the city’s Conflicts of Interest Board separates his private and political dealings, he wasn't involved when Bloomberg LP purchased BusinessWeek yesterday. But he thought it was a solid move on his media company's part, "I think it’s a great magazine."
The magazine, which was founded in 1929, will be renamed Bloomberg BusinessWeek. The deal's terms weren't disclosed, but BusinessWeek reported that it may be in the $2-5 million range. Plus, Bloomberg LP would assume $31 million of the magazine's debt. Fun fact: "At its peak in 2000, BusinessWeek had a record 6,000 ad pages and operating profits of $100 million. Some analysts at the time valued the magazine at $1 billion."
Bloomberg LP chairman Peter Grauer said, "BusinessWeek will be a powerful addition to our portfolio of leading news and information services...we believe that it will be highly valued by our customers worldwide." And the Mayor doesn't think print is dead, "I’ve always believed that there are two problems with print journalism today. One is lack of advertising, some parts of which will come back, and two, when nobody is buying your magazine or your newspaper, it’s because you’re not writing what people want to read."
