According to the FT, Time Inc, the publishing company that owns Sports Illustrated, People and Time magazines, has rejected an unsolicited bid worth close to $1.8bn from a consortium backed by Len Blavatnik, the billionaire owner of Warner Music Group, according to people briefed on the offer.
Mr Blavatnik, who controls Access Industries, has joined forces with Edgar Bronfman Jr, the former chief executive of Warner Music, and Ynon Kreiz, who ran Maker Studios until its $500m sale to Walt Disney.
The offer, which was first reported by the New York Post, valued Time Inc at about $18 a share and came as the company and other publishers grapple with a steep downturn in print advertising. Time Inc shares surged almost 18 per cent in morning trading to $16.05, their highest since July.
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