US – Reed Business Information is making redundancies and title closures Stateside as its loss-making magazine portfolio eats into profits posted by parent company Reed Elsevier’s exhibition and events division.
In an email sent to employees on 31 December, RBI CEO John Poulin, pictured, told staff that the company’s failure to sell its print business means that redundancies and closures are now unavoidable.
“We have not been able to sell the business as a whole and this unfortunately will result in title closures and job losses across the business during the first half of the New Year,” he told staff. “I know that this will come as a major disappointment but reflects the impact of the structural changes in our markets, accelerated by the recession.
“This is not the type of news that I would choose to share during the holiday season. However, it is the reality for our business and we must plan our professional lives going forward,” added Poulin.
RBI made revenues of US$737m in the six months to June last year, contributing 15 per cent of the group's total turnover and five per cent of its operating profits. The company is currently negotiating the sale of a number of its titles to several buyers, and announcements are expected in the next few months. It was not clear which titles might be marked for closure or how many jobs are on the line as a result.
RBI has so far sold Broadcasting & Cable, Multichannel News and This Week in Consumer Electronics (TWICE) to Wicks Group-owned NewBay Media, the only deal RBI has pulled off since putting the majority of its trade mags on the block last July.
