Email News Release: Wiley to Acquire Blackwell Publishing (Holdings)Ltd.

[Liblicense-L Listowner <liblicen@pantheon.yale.edu>]

Date: Fri, 17 Nov 2006 08:52:03 -0500
From: ARBrown@wiley.com
Subject: Email News Release: Wiley to Acquire Blackwell Publishing (Holdings)
    Ltd.

Email News Release
John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Contact:
Susan Spilka
201-748-6147
sspilka@wiley.com

Patrick Handley
+447974982395
phandley@brunswickgroup.com

Wiley to Acquire Blackwell Publishing (Holdings) Ltd.

Hoboken, N.J., and Oxford, U.K., November 17, 2006’’ John Wiley & 
Sons, Inc. (NYSE:JWa) (NYSE:JWb) announced today that it has 
entered into a definitive agreement to acquire the outstanding 
shares of Blackwell Publishing (Holdings) Ltd., one of the 
world’’s foremost academic and professional publishers.  The 
purchase price of £572 million will be financed with a 
combination of debt and cash.  The transaction will be 
implemented through a U.K. Scheme of Arrangement.  Wiley has 
received irrevocable commitments from the principal shareholders 
of Blackwell Publishing to sell their shares to Wiley.  The 
companies anticipate that the transaction will close early in 
2007.

Based in Oxford, Blackwell Publishing's revenue in 2005 was 
approximately £210 million, or $380 million, which is about the 
same as Wiley's global Scientific, Technical and Medical (STM) 
business.  Blackwell’’s publishing programs include journals, 
books and online content in the sciences, technology, medicine, 
the social sciences and humanities.  Blackwell Ltd., the book 
library service and retailing business, is a separate entity and 
is not part of the acquisition.

"The combination of Blackwell Publishing and Wiley, two of the 
world's most respected global publishers, is a rare opportunity 
with highly favorable, long-term strategic implications," said 
William J. Pesce, Wiley's President & Chief Executive Officer. 
"We look forward, with genuine enthusiasm, to collaborating with 
our new colleagues at Blackwell Publishing.  Together, we will 
deliver even greater value than we could as separate entities to 
all stakeholders - our customers, authors, society partners and 
shareholders.  The combined business will publish approximately 
1,250 scholarly peer-reviewed journals and an extensive 
collection of books with global appeal.  This deep reservoir of 
must-have content will be delivered to customers in print and 
electronically, advancing our goal of providing more access to 
more content to more people than ever before in the history of 
the two companies."

Rene Olivieri, CEO of Blackwell Publishing (Holdings) Ltd., 
added, "Combining Blackwell and Wiley, with our complementary 
strengths, presents a unique opportunity to create a global 
publishing business with deep strength in every major academic 
and professional field.  Furthermore, there is outstanding 
cultural compatibility between our two firms that will not only 
smooth a successful transition to a single business, but also 
provide a platform for enhanced capabilities for the publishing 
partners and customers of the combined companies."

Nigel Blackwell, Chairman of Blackwell Publishing (Holdings) 
Ltd., said, "Wiley and Blackwell are two great firms sharing the 
same cultural values, and in particular, a common publishing 
ethic.  Marrying them together makes perfect sense both 
commercially and for the benefit of the global academic and 
professional community."

About Blackwell Publishing

Considered by many people in the industry as among the very best 
at building and maintaining strong relationships with 
professional and scholarly societies, Blackwell Publishing is the 
publisher of approximately 825 journals, nearly evenly 
distributed between STM and the social sciences and humanities, 
as well as about 600 books a year and a backlist of 6,000 titles. 
About 1,000 people are employed worldwide, with operations in 
Europe, the U.S., Australia and Asia.  Blackwell Publishing was 
formed in 2000 as a result of the merger of Blackwell Science 
(founded in 1939) and Blackwell Publishers (founded in 1922).

Blackwell Publishing was advised by JPMorgan Cazenove in relation 
to this transaction.

About Wiley

Founded in 1807, John Wiley & Sons, Inc. provides must-have 
content and services to customers worldwide. Wiley's core 
businesses include scientific, technical and medical journals, 
encyclopedias, books and online products and services; 
professional and consumer books and subscription services; and 
educational materials for undergraduate and graduate students and 
lifelong learners. Wiley has publishing, marketing and 
distribution centers in the U.S., Canada, Europe, Asia and 
Australia. Wiley's European operations are based in Chichester, 
U.K. The Company is listed on the New York Stock Exchange under 
the symbols JWa and JWb. Wiley's Internet site can be accessed at 
http://www.wiley.com.


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