PW: TM Stands by Decision to Sell Mosby, Bender

With the turmoil at Mosby and the consolidation in the legal publishing business that left Bender far behind the leaders, the Reed announcement caused TM executives to believe they could not compete in either the medical or legal market. The collapse of the Reed-WK merger was not enough to change the minds of the TM executives, and in fact may have convinced them more than ever that they should sell Bender and Mosby, since both Reed and WK were likely to be on the lookout for new acquisitions. TM said it expects to have a deal done by summer.

According to TM's 10-k filing, sales at Mosby and Bender rose about 12% in 1997 to approximately $498 million. The company's share of equity from the Shepard's joint venture project it operated with Lexis-Nexis generated $13.1 million, TM reported.