Hearst acquires rights to Elle and Red magazines from Legardere
US magazine publisher Hearst has acquired the rights to a shelf full of titles from French publisher Legardere, amongst them Elle and Red magazine in the UK.
The £573m cash deal followed three months of negotiation - although it awaits regulatory approval before the deal can be finalised.
Included in the deal are the rights to all digital operations run by the magazines in addition to mobile and tablet apps.
The acquisitions will serve to broaden Hearst’s existing stable of titles, which include Cosmopolitan and Good Housekeeping and give the US publisher greater clout in international markets including the UK, Russia and China.
Elle currently sells 195,000 copies a month in the UK whilst Red managed to flog 225,000 editions at retail.
Magazines advertising enjoyed a turnaround in fortunes last year, with Hearst posting a 9.2% rise in ad revenues at Cosmopolitan, increases were driven by growth in vehicle ads and double digit increases in financial, cosmetics, insurance and property advertisements.