Salesforce founder and co-CEO Marc Benioff and his wife, Lynne Benioff, on Sunday announced plans to purchase Time Magazine from Meredith Corporation for $190 million in cash.
The Benioffs said they were buying the storied newsmagazine personally and the transaction is unrelated to Salesforce.com, where Mr. Benioff serves as chairman, co-CEO and founder. Time claims a combined audience of more than 100 million readers in print and online, including over 50 million digital visitors.
The Benioffs said they would not be involved in the magazine’s day-to-day operations or journalistic decisions, which will continue to be led by the current executive leadership team and editor-in-chief Edward Felsenthal.
“We have deep respect for their organization & honored to be stewards of this iconic brand,” Benioff said in a tweet on Sunday.
The power of Time has always been in its unique storytelling of the people & issues that affect us all & connect us all. A treasure trove of our history & culture. We have deep respect for their organization & honored to be stewards of this iconic brand. https://t.co/TsbcXhO1OU
The tech guru — whose fortune is estimated to be $6.5 billion, according to Forbes — is the latest to invest in a legacy media brand. Amazon founder Jeff Bezos’ purchase of the Washington Post has proved remarkably successful, while former Facebook exec Chris Hughes had a rockier time with his brief ownership of The New Republic.
Meredith, which completed a $2.8 billion all-cash acquisition of Time Inc. earlier this year, said the transaction was subject to regulatory approval and expected to close within 30 days.
In March, just over a month after completing the acquisition, Meredith announced plans to sell the flagship magazine as well as to seek buyers for other longtime Time Inc. titles — Sports Illustrated, Fortune and Money magazines — that do not fit into its more female-skewing portfolio of magazine brands.
28 Emmy Nominee Portraits, From Antonio Banderas to Rachel Brosnahan (Exclusive Photos)
Actress Evan Rachel Wood, "Westworld"
Photographed by Corina Marie for TheWrap
Actor Milo Ventimiglia, "This is Us"
Photographed by Jill Greenberg for TheWrap
Actress Betty Gilpin, "GLOW"
Photographed by Jill Greenberg for TheWrap
Actress Megan Mullally, "Will and Grace"
Photographed by Sarah Dunn for TheWrap
Actress Thandie Newton, "Westworld"
Photographed by Elisabeth Caren for TheWrap
Actor Darren Criss, "The Assassination of Gianni Versace: Crime Story"
