Recorded Books Acquired by Private Equity Firm

As you’ll read, Recorded Books owns other companies well-known to the library community including OneClick Digital, and is the distributor of Zinio to libraries.
From the Announcement:

Wasserstein & Co., LP  on behalf of its private equity fund Wasserstein Partners III, has acquired all of the assets of Recorded Books LLC one of the leading worldwide providers of unabridged audiobooks, digital content, and services to the library, school, and retail markets, from Haights Cross Communications a leading K-12 educational and library publisher.
Northwestern Mutual and Lexington Partners are co-investing in the transaction with Wasserstein & Co.
With operations in the U.S., U.K., and Australia, Recorded Books offers more than 13,500 exclusive unabridged audiobooks to the library, school, and retail markets.
In addition, Recorded Books offers libraries more than 100,000 eBooks through its proprietary OneClick Digital platform.
The Company’s U.K. subsidiary, W.F. Howes Ltd., is the leading publisher of audiobooks in the U.K. and a preeminent service provider to libraries in the region.
Michael Struble, Managing Director of Wasserstein & Co., added, “It was a pleasure working with the team at HCC and Berkery, Noyes & Co. to complete this transaction. We’re thrilled to be acquiring a business with great prospects in both the library and retail markets and to partner with the Recorded Books team during this next phase of growth.”

Recorded Books is also the provider of Zinio for Libraries, Indieflix for Libraries, and other databases. 
The company was founded in 1979 by Henry Trentman.
Haights Cross Communications owned the Recorded Books since December 1999. They remain owner of Triumph Learning.
Other Wasserstein Investments Include:

• Penton Media (Trade Publications)

• ALM Media (Legal Ind. Publications)

• Encompass Digital Media (Distribution)

Filed under: Libraries, News, Publishing