Newsweek printed its last ever magazine in December 2012
Newsweek printed its last ever magazine in December 2012 (Photo: Reuters) Reuters

IBT Media, the parent company of IBTimes UK, will buy the 80-year old US current affairs heavyweight Newsweek's online brand and operations for an undisclosed price.

IBT Media will purchase Newsweek, which printed its last ever magazine in December last year, from owner IAC following a 60-day transaction period.

"We believe in the Newsweek brand and look forward to growing it, fully transformed to the digital age," said Etienne Uzac, co-founder and chief executive of IBT Media.

"We respect the brand's long history of delivering high-quality, impactful journalism and believe this aligns well with IBT Media's culture and mission.

"We look forward to working together to create a profitable and successful enterprise."

However, the lucrative acquisition will exclude The Daily Beast, a news website co-founded by Tina Brown in 2008.

A Growing Brand

IBT Media was established in 2006 and is a digital-only news group which publishes International Business Times and UK arm International Business Times UK.

It also publishes Medical Daily, Latin Times and iDigitalTimes as well as delivering content in seven languages in 235 countries.

Newsweek will operate as a wholly owned subsidiary of IBT Media while its newsweek.com web address will be revived in the coming weeks.

Newsweek's first edition of the magazine was published on 17 February 1933 but later transformed into a digital-only publication amid falling ad revenues as audiences moved online.

However, IBT Media plans to build on Newsweek's brand and editorial offering in order to grow the online franchise across the globe.

The company says that Newsweek will continue to serve its subscribers and deliver compelling and thought-provoking news and analysis.

Foreign license agreements to publish Newsweek in international markets will remain in place.

"We are 100% digital with a track record of successfully growing online media properties," said Johnathan Davis, co-founder and chief content officer of IBT Media.

"The Newsweek brand is strong around the world and we believe there is significant potential to leverage that as well as enhance the editorial offering and continue to modernize the operations and approach. We are excited to add Newsweek to our portfolio of growing news brands and to pursuing the great opportunities ahead together."