Reed Elsevier has placed its Reed Business Information, the publisher of Multichannel News, on the selling block.
Reed Business CEO Gerard van de Aast said Thursday that the Anglo-Dutch company’s decision was made “to move away from advertising-driven revenue models and focus on subscription-based models.”
In addition to MCN, Reed Business Information also houses Broadcasting & Cable, TWICE,Variety and Publishers Weekly, among a slew of other business-to-business titles.
The company said talks have yet to be scheduled with prospective purchasers, nor has a timetable for the divestiture been established. It was unclear at press time, how the sale would transpire.
“The precise method of divestment of RBI will be the subject of review in coming months,” the company said in a statement.
RBI counted $1.76 billion in revenue last year.
In a separate play Thursday, Reed Elsevier said it has bought ChoicePoint, a provider of technology and information-based risk mitigation products in the U.S., for $4.1 billion.
