Koch Brothers are backing Meredith bid to buy Time Inc

Charles and David Koch, the billionaire US industrialist brothers, are backing publisher and broadcaster Meredith’s revived bid to purchase Time Inc, according to a person familiar with the matter.

The Kochs have tentatively agreed to support Meredith’s offer with an equity injection of more than $500 million, the person said, confirming an earlier New York Times report. The person asked not to be identified because the matter is private.

An email to the billionaire brothers’ business, Koch Industries, wasn’t immediately answered. A Time representative declined to comment and an email to Meredith outside of business hours wasn’t immediately returned.

A merger could help both magazine publishers team up on ad sales. Like its competitors, Time is struggling to reinvent itself as print advertising dries up and the lion’s share of digital advertising dollars goes to Facebook Inc. and Google. The magazine owner has spent months restructuring its business and replacing senior management, hoping to persuade advertisers to pour money into its titles, which include iconic publications such as Fortune, Sports Illustrated and People.

A deal involving the Kochs would be likely to raise new questions about political influence on the news media, especially a hallowed journalistic outlet like Time magazine, founded in 1923 and originally run by Henry Luce. The billionaire brothers have spent decades building a network of wealthy political donors who pledge money to conservative causes and their advocacy groups.

This would be the third time Meredith has attempted to acquire Time since 2013. The publisher of Better Homes & Gardens, Martha Stewart Living, Shape and Parents was one of a handful of bidders who made competing offers for Time earlier this year, but the deal was scrapped. Meredith had offered as much as $2 billion at the time before lowering its bid, people familiar with the matter said at the time. 

©2017 The New York Times News Service