• by Fern Siegel , December 27, 2019

There has been big news this year on the national magazine M&A front. Recently, there was a notable acquisition in the regional arena.

Palm Beach Media Group, which specializes in local luxury titles, acquired Gulfstream Media in mid-December. Its roster includes Gold Coast, Boca Life, The Palm Beacher, Jupiter, Stuart and Florida Home & Garden magazines, as well as FortLauderdaleDaily.com.

Financial terms were not disclosed.

PBMG, a subsidiary of regional lifestyle publisher Hour Media Group, publishes Palm Beach Illustrated, Naples Illustrated and Florida Design.

Hour Media president John Balardo told Folio: he saw “great synergies” in the transaction, noting his company has a significant presence in the Florida market. He called the acquisition an “ideal complement” to its portfolio.

Staff losses are not expected, however, The Palm Beacher will be merged into Palm Beach Illustrated, and some positions will be eliminated, he said.

Hour Media says it publishes more than 150 magazines, including custom pubs. Its flagship is Hour Detroit. In 2017, it acquired Atlanta, Cincinnati, Orange Coast, and Los Angeles magazines from Emmis Communications. Last year, it added Grand Rapids magazine and Grand Rapids Business Journal.

Other magazine M&A deals this year: Vox Media acquired New York Media, publisher of New York magazine, Bustle Digital bought Nylon, Dotdash bought Brides, Discovery bought Golf Digest, Atlantic Brands bought Sports Illustrated and transferred operations to Maven, PMC purchased full control of Rolling Stone.

Some major titles shuttered, such as Family Circle, MAD and ESPN The Magazine. TEN also plans to eliminate 19 print magazines by 2020.