PRIMEDIA ACQUIRES ABOUT.COM FOR 45 MILLON SHARES OF STOCK.In related news, Primedia (New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of ) has signed an agreement to acquire About.com (New York), an Internet company that offers topic--specific information supplied by "affiliates," for 45.2 million shares of Primedia, or 2.3409 Primedia shares for each share of About.com. The deal was valued at $690 on the day it was completed (Oct. 27; $15.25 per share), but fell to $511 million in value by Oct. 31, when Preimedia's stock declined to $11.31 per share. Established in 1996, About.com completed its IPO (Initial Public Offering) The first time a company offers shares of stock to the public. While not a computer term per se, many founders, employees and insiders of computer companies have found this acronym more exciting than any tech term they ever heard. in March 1999. About operates more than 700 Web sites devoted to a variety of consumer and trade niche markets, including cats, beekeeping beekeeping or apiculture Care and manipulation of honeybees to enable them to produce and store more honey than they need so that the excess can be collected. Beekeeping is one of the oldest forms of animal husbandry. , quilting quilting, form of needlework, almost always created by women, most of them anonymous, in which two layers of fabric on either side of an interlining (batting) are sewn together, usually with a pattern of back or running (quilting) stitches that hold the layers , sports, satellite communications, fiber optics fiber optics, transmission of digitized messages or information by light pulses along hair-thin glass fibers. Each fiber is surrounded by a cladding having a high index of refractance so that the light is internally reflected and travels the length of the fiber , broadband, IPSs, personal finance, and travel. The sites are authored by associates who receive a flat fee for every click through. Primedia Chairman Tom Rogers Thomas Andrew Rogers (February 12, 1892 - March 7, 1936) was a Major League Baseball pitcher from 1917 to 1921 for the St. Louis Browns, Philadelphia Athletics, and New York Yankees. said the deal transforms Primedia into an Internet player. "In one fell swoop, we are marrying Primedia's ... content in more than 700 media niches with About's more than 700 topic-specific Guide Sites and some 10,000 associated experts. Noting that Primedia has a 1600 person sales force and 60,000 advertisers, most of which are not Internet companies, Rogers said that "applying this force to About's niche-based sites," while driving magazine subscribers to the sites, combining other revenues with cost synergies and cutting Primedia's own spending on Internet businesses "yield a high growth formula." About.com currently has 4000 advertisers, 60% of which are dot-coms. The deal is expected to close in the first quarter of 2001, although regulatory approval is not a given. Assuming approval is granted, shareholders of About.com will end up owning about 22% of Primedia. Primedia is majority owned by Kohlberg, Kravis Roberts. |
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