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A day after the sale of Time, there was applause for the magazine's best publisher – and a growing anticipation of other Meredith brands on the block.
Meredith Corp announced Sunday that it was selling the legendary news release Billionaire CEO Marc Benioff and his wife Lynne Benioff, an agreement expected to be reached in the next 30 days. In speaking to staff on Monday morning, Time's editor-in-chief Edward Felsenthal called the sale a victory for the magazine.
"[Felsenthal] said it was the best result we could have hoped for, and the best part is that they are just as excited as we are, "said a reporter who attended the meeting.
The reporter said that there was palpable relief among the staff, who applauded Felsenthal at the meeting.
Meredith bought Time magazine and the rest of Time Inc. last year before announcing that he would sell some of the tiles. The company is still looking to sell three other publications: Fortune, Money and Sports Illustrated.
Marc Benioff, Salesforce's CEO, had long been viewed as a potential buyer of Meredith shares, which had suffered from declining advertising revenues and broadcast in the digital age. Benioff had already been launched as a buyer for Fortune.
In the end, he went with Time, the most prestigious of all brands, an approach that invariably invokes comparisons with the Washington Post's acquisition by Jeff Bezos in 2013.
Time no longer holds the public interest as in previous eras, but the magazine is still at the head of the national conversation. Its annual Person of the Year issue remains a year-end discussion topic, and the magazine continually grabs titles with provocative covers.
The journalist who attended the Monday morning meeting said that Felsenthal had told staff that Time's blankets had impressed the Benioffs over the past year.
In an interview with The New York Times, Benioff said he decided to buy Time magazine just two weeks ago. When asked why he had not bought Fortune, as it was said, Benioff said that Time was the best solution for us.
"I really liked the Meredith team and I absolutely wanted to do something with them.This was not clear," Benioff told The Times. "When the time came up as a candidate, we all felt it was ok, it took nine months to understand it."
Now, staff members of publications like Fortune, Money and Sports Illustrated are left to play a waiting game; A spokeswoman for Meredith said Sunday that contracts for these three titles should be announced in a "near future".
Although Benioff was somewhat disappointed to acquire only Time, the news of the deal was greeted with optimism over some of the remaining Meredith titles, according to two staff members who work there.
"It's a result that any of the titles would want," said a newsroom employee at Fortune. "Who does not want a billionaire come to waltz and really take charge of the brand?"
The employee said staff members were also encouraged by the price of $ 190 million, perhaps a sign that the remaining titles could reach a similar figure.
Meredith would have drawn attention to the headlines of dozens of potential buyers; the company reportedly received $ 150 million for Sports Illustrated, the New York Post reported in April. The Post reported at the time that Meredith was hoping to get more than $ 100 million for Time, Fortune and Money.
Whoever turns out to be the buyer, the remaining staff members are only asking for more clarity.
"I think most writers have long believed that a sale would be in our best interest," said a Sports Illustrated editor, adding that the mood was "really very optimistic". "It's not fun to play waiting, but we have worked as usual."
The Fortune employee echoed these feelings.
"I think there has been some relief that there is movement," said the employee about the Time deal. "We are ready to go out here."
Brian Stelter from CNN contributed to this report.
CNNMoney (New York) First published on September 17, 2018: 3:14 pm ET
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