Weekly News Digest

Nielsen Business Media, a part of the Nielsen Co. (www.nielsen.com), has reached an agreement with e5 Global Media Holdings, LLC, a new company formed jointly by Pluribus Capital Management and Guggenheim Partners, for the sale of eight brands in the Media and Entertainment Group, including Adweek, Brandweek, Mediaweek, The Clio Awards, Backstage, Billboard, Film Journal International, and The Hollywood Reporter. e5 Global Media Holdings has also agreed to acquire the Film Expo business, which includes the ShoWest, ShowEast, Cinema Expo International, and CineAsia trade shows. The acquisition, which is subject to normal terms and conditions, is scheduled to close by Dec. 31, 2009.

Nielsen is also closing Editor & Publisher (after 125 years!) and Kirkus Reviews (after 70-plus years), its book review publication, by the end of the year to focus on its core business.

In its statement announcing the sale and closures, the company said, "This move will allow us to strengthen investment in our core businesses those parts of our portfolio that have the greatest potential for growth and ensure our long-term success. We remain committed to building our trade show group and affiliated brands. These assets continue to be a key part of The Nielsen Company's overall portfolio and we strongly believe they are positioned to grow as the economy recovers. In addition, we'll continue to assess the strategic fit of our remaining portfolio of publications."

Source: Nielsen Business Media