The announcement comes after Highbury revealed on January 26th that it had received an approach that might result in a formal offer for the publisher.
Under the terms of the proposed deal, 10 Future shares are offered for every 83.25 Highbury shares at a share capital of £31.6 million.
Highbury House division Highbury Entertainment is Future’s main rival in the specialist video games magazine publishing sector, and the completion of the deal will see Future increase its share of the market, having last year acquired Dennis Publishing’s games portfolio.
“Highbury is a business that we know well and have followed for some time,” commented Future chief executive Greg Ingham (pictured). “We consider that it represents an opportunity to acquire a significant asset at a fair price.
“Whilst the business has faced some challenges in recent times, we are confident that we can integrate the titles and teams, and improve the financial performance and enhance shareholder value. Our respective businesses are complementary so there is a genuine opportunity to generate important synergies for the combined group.”
Highbury’s key publications include GamesTM, Play and XBM. Staff were informed this morning that the deal could take several months to be completed.
Advertisement
