| 
Gannett, Knight Ridder and Tribune
Acquire a 75% Stake in Topix.net
Combination of
Technology, Media Assets and Reach to Power Growth of
Topix.net
CHICAGO, McLEAN, VA. and SAN JOSE, CALIF,
March 23, 2005 -- Topix.net
announced today that Gannett Co., Inc. (NYSE: GCI), Knight-Ridder,
Inc. (NYSE: KRI) and Tribune Company (NYSE: TRB) jointly
have acquired a 75 percent stake in Topix.net. Ownership
is split evenly, with each media company owning 25 percent
and the Topix.net founders retaining a 25 percent stake.
Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
Topix.net continuously monitors breaking
news from over 10,000 online sources and categorizes daily
news content into over 300,000 topics, 24 hours a day.
Topix.net will operate as an editorially independent, stand-alone
company managed by Topix.net’s executive team. Topix.net
will use content and funding from Gannett, Knight Ridder
and Tribune to expand and refine its NewsRank™ technology,
services and operational infrastructure.
"This transaction provides us with the
resources to be the best place to connect to a very wide
range of news on the Web," said Rich Skrenta, CEO and
co-founder of Topix.net. "We all serve the news enthusiast,
so it’s
a natural partnership. Gannett, Knight Ridder and Tribune
generate valuable online content and Topix.net is dedicated
to making that content easily found. By believing in the
potential of our ideas and technology, they have made an
investment in the future, and we’re thrilled to be
a part of it."
Topix.net features links to news and information from more
than 10,000 news sources including newspapers, magazines,
radio, television stations and Web logs. Topix.net distributes
news through its Web site, RSS feeds and email news alerts.
It syndicates its content through partnerships and tens of
thousands of Web sites that host news feeds from Topix.net.
Topix.net uses its NewsRank™ technology
to deliver highly relevant news, using concept, instead
of simple keyword searches. It delivers published news
stories organized by ZIP code, industry and hundreds of
thousands of topics.
"People want the news that’s relevant
to them -- where
they live, the business that they are in, the topics they
care about. Topix.net’s technology will leverage the
media assets and broad reach of our three companies in entirely
new ways," said Jack Williams,senior vice president
diversified business and development at Gannett. "We
are extremely pleased to partner with Topix.net to grow and
develop its service and help audiences find the news they
want online."
Collectively, Gannett, Knight Ridder and Tribune operate
more than 140 newspaper Web sites with nearly 30 million
unique visitors monthly. The companies have partnered together
in other joint ventures such as ShopLocal.com and CareerBuilder.com.
:: :: ::
About Topix.net:
Founded in 2002 with
the specific mission of providing users with the ability
to quickly and easily find targeted news on the Internet,
Topix.net is a news aggregator with unique technology to
find and categorize news into 300,000 topics, from Autos
to ZIP code level local news. Topix.net distributes content
via partnerships with Citysearch, Ask Jeeves, My Yahoo!,
Bloglines, Metro Newspapers, Newsgator, Findory, Wondir,
Infospace, Link Silicon Valley and HelloMetro.com.
Gannett Co., Inc. is a leading
international news and information company that publishes
101 daily newspapers in the USA, including USA TODAY, the
nation’s largest-selling daily newspaper.
The company also owns in excess of 750 non-daily publications
in the USA and USA WEEKEND, a weekly newspaper magazine.
Gannett subsidiary Newsquest is the United Kingdom’s
second largest regional newspaper company. Newsquest publishes
more than 300 titles, including 17 daily newspapers, and
a network of prize-winning Web sites. Gannett also operates
21 television stations in the United States and is an Internet
leader with sites sponsored by its TV stations and newspapers
including USATODAY.com, one of the most popular news sites
on the Web.
Knight Ridder (NYSE: KRI) is the
nation’s second-largest
newspaper publisher, with products in print and online. The
company publishes 31 daily newspapers in 28 U.S. markets,
with a readership of 9.0 million daily and 12.7 million Sunday.
Knight Ridder also has investments in a variety of Internet
and technology companies and two newsprint companies. The
company’s Internet operation, Knight Ridder Digital,
develops and manages the company’s online properties.
It is the founder and operator of Real Cities (www.RealCities.com),
the largest national network of city and regional Web sites
in more than 105 U.S. markets. Knight Ridder and Knight Ridder
Digital are headquartered in San Jose, Calif.
Tribune (NYSE: TRB) is one of
the country’s premier
media companies, operating businesses in broadcasting and
publishing. It reaches more than 80 percent of U.S. households
and is the only media organization with television stations,
newspapers and websites in the nation’s top three markets.
In publishing, Tribune operates 14 leading daily newspapers
including the Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune, Newsday
and Spanish-language Hoy, plus a wide range of targeted publications.
The company’s broadcasting group operates 26 television
stations; Superstation WGN on national cable; WGN-AM in Chicago;
and the Chicago Cubs baseball team. Popular news and information
websites complement Tribune’s print and broadcast properties
and extend the company’s nationwide audience.
|
