Derk Haank, CEO, Springer Science + Business Media, has confirmed that the company is not for sale. Speaking at the recently held UK Serials Group conference, he did, however, reveal that Springer's private equity owners, Candover and Cinven, were in discussions with a third partner to raise additional funding. Haank nevertheless emphasised that the third party would be in addition to - and not instead of - co-owners Candover and Cinven.
Recent media reports had stated that Candover and Cinven were seeking £2 billion for the publishing group. Had a sale taken place, it would have been one of the biggest transactions in any sector until now this year.
Springer is the world's second largest publisher of STM journals, producing more than 1,700 journals and 5,500 new books every year. In January, the company published its 30,000th e-book. Springer's focus on providing journal subscriptions and associated services to a specialist audience of scientists and researchers means that the company is not heavily dependent on advertising. This is seen to create a relatively secure business model.
Candover and Cinven invested in Springer in 2003. Given Springer's private equity backing, it is hardly surprising that a possible sale is entertained from time to time, media reports have observed. In October 2006, specialist information provider Informa plc was approached by Springer about a possible takeover that would have created a business worth over £4 billion. But negotiations collapsed. A separate bid for Informa also fell through last year.
