Nature magazine publisher to merge with Springer Science

"The publisher of science magazines Nature and Scientific American is merging with private equity-owned peer Springer Science+Business Media, creating a group with 1.5 billion euros ($1.75 billion) in annual sales and 13,000 employees. Germany's Holtzbrinck, which owns Nature publisher Macmillan Science and Education, will combine the majority of its activities with BC Partners' Springer unit, which among other publishes scientific, technical and medical books and journals. Holtzbrinck Publishing Group will hold 53 percent in the joint company, with BC Partners holding the rest, the companies said in a joint statement on Thursday. The private equity group aims to eventually divest its holding in the publishing business entirely, BC Partners Managing Partner Ewald Walgenbach said ..."