Posted by chicagomedia.org on September 04, 2008 at 10:37:21:
Tribune reduces stake in job site
Gannett Co. has acquired part of Chicago-based Tribune Co.'s stake in CareerBuilder.com for $135 million.
The transaction gives Gannett, which had been Tribune's equal partner, controlling interest in the employment Web site.
With the deal, Gannett picks up an additional 10 percent stake, giving it a 50.8 percent interest in the nation's largest online job site. Tribune Co.'s holding will be reduced to 30.8 percent, while the McClatchy Co. and Microsoft Corp. continue to own 14.4 percent and 4 percent, respectively.
"This transaction offers us an excellent opportunity to monetize some of the value CareerBuilder has built over the years, while enabling us to maintain a significant stake in a great online property," Sam Zell, Tribune's chairman and chief executive, said in a statement Wednesday.
A Tribune Co. spokesman said the media concern, which went private late last year in a heavily leveraged $8.2 billion transaction, intends to apply $80 million in proceeds from the CareerBuilder deal to pay down the $593 million remaining on a major debt obligation due in June.
Affiliation agreements between CareerBuilder and Tribune Co. newspapers, including the Chicago Tribune, will not be affected, the spokesman said.
Craig Dubow, chairman, president and CEO of McLean, Va.-based Gannett, called CareerBuilder "a terrific company, with great growth potential that just keeps delivering more for Gannett and our partners." He said Gannett is committed to the site.
"We ... want the team there to continue to do what they do best: grow the company, bring in revenues and deliver the best customer service in the jobs space," Dubow said in the announcement. "We don't expect any major changes."
Gannett will have three seats on the six-seat CareerBuilder board, with Tribune Co., McClatchy and the site's chief executive each holding one seat.
(ROSENTHAL/trib)