Publisher John Wiley & Sons, Inc. has announced that it has retained Allen & Company LLC to explore the sale of a number of consumer print and digital publishing assets in its Professional/Trade business that no longer align with the company's long-term strategies. The assets are in travel (including the well-known Frommer's brand), culinary, general interest, nautical, pets, crafts, Webster's New World, and CliffsNotes.
The planned divestiture follows a strategic review of the company's Professional/Trade business portfolio. The company’s strategic focus will center on those opportunities that meet strong global demand for high-quality information for professionals and lifelong learning enabled by new technology.
In Wiley's fiscal year ending April 30, 2011, the publishing assets offered for sale generated approximately $85 million of revenue. No categories from the Company's global Scientific, Technical, Medical, and Scholarly and Global Education operating units will be included in this planned sale.
