BETHESDA , MARYLAND – February 9, 2007 -- Cambridge Information Group (CIG) closed today its previously announced transaction with ProQuest Company (NYSE: PQE) and acquired ProQuest Information and Learning. CIG will combine its Bethesda, Maryland-based CSA subsidiary with Ann Arbor, Michigan-based ProQuest Information and Learning to create a new, privately held independent company, ProQuest-CSA.
The transaction, valued at $222 million, was backed by a minority equity investment in ProQuest-CSA from ABRY Partners, LLC. Goldman, Sachs & Co. acted as financial advisor to CIG and ABRY with respect to the acquisition. Morgan Stanley Senior Funding and Goldman, Sachs Credit Partners L.P. arranged the financing for the transaction.
ProQuest-CSA will serve a combined customer base of more than 30,000 institutional customers and their users, providing them with access to high-quality information resources. The company will continue operations in both Ann Arbor and Bethesda.
CIG President Andrew M. Snyder said, "We are excited to welcome the employees and customers of ProQuest Information and Learning. ProQuest-CSA will continue to serve its existing customers and users, and will begin pursuing a combined vision of offering an unparalleled information resource to the community of libraries, researchers, faculty and students."
Marty Kahn will join ProQuest-CSA as the new CEO. Kahn was the former chairman of business and financial information aggregator OneSource Information Services and before that he served as chairman of Ovid Technologies, Inc., an aggregator of medical and scientific databases and full-text journal articles. Serving as president of the new company is Matt Dunie, who previously served as president of CSA.
ABRY Partner Erik Brooks, said, "We are delighted to partner with CIG and support their strategic acquisition of ProQuest Information and Learning. We have extensive experience investing in the information sector and look forward to working with CIG to grow and expand Proquest-CSA's presence in the library market. We are confident that the newly merged company will lead the online information marketplace with a customer-centric focus and an incomparable level of service."
About Cambridge Information Group
Cambridge Information Group (CIG) is a privately owned group of information services companies and educational institutions located around the world. CIG's operating companies include: ProQuest-CSA, R.R. Bowker, RefWorks and the Sotheby's Institute of Art. CIG is also the largest shareholder of Navtech, Inc. (Nasdaq: NAVH.OB).
About CSA
CSA has been an innovator and leader in publishing and distributing quality abstracts and indexes for more than 30 years. A worldwide information company, CSA's products serve as a guide to researchers, faculty, librarians and students enabling discovery and aiding the identification, management and organization of quality information. CSA specializes in publishing and distributing, in print and electronically, more than 100 bibliographic and full-text databases and journals in four primary editorial areas: natural sciences, social sciences, arts & humanities and technology. CSA is headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland and has offices throughout the U.S., Canada, Latin America, Australia, Hong Kong, Japan, Europe and the United Kingdom. Researchers in more than 4,000 institutions worldwide use CSA information resources and CSA's print journals are used in more than 80 countries. For more information about CSA, visit www.csa.com.
About ProQuest Information and Learning
ProQuest Information and Learning is a world leader in collecting, organizing, and publishing information for researchers, faculty and students in libraries and schools. It is widely known for its strength in business and economics, general reference, genealogy, humanities, social sciences and STM content. The company develops premium databases comprising periodicals, newspapers, dissertations, out-of-print books, and other scholarly information from more than 9,000 publishers worldwide. Users access the information through the ProQuest Web-based online information system, Chadwyck-Healey electronic and microform resources, UMI microform and print reference products, eLibrary and SIRS educational resources, and Serials Solutions e-resource access and management solutions. ProQuest Smart Search was named "Best Specialist Search Product" by the International Information Industry Awards in late 2005. For more information about ProQuest Information and Learning, visit www.il.proquest.com.
About ABRY Partners, LLC.
Based in Boston, Massachusetts, ABRY Partners specializes as a financing partner for the media, communications and information industries and enjoys a position as one of the most experienced and successful media-focused private equity investment firms in North America. Since 1989, ABRY has completed over $18 billion of leveraged transactions and other private equity and mezzanine investments, representing investments in more than 450 properties. Extensive and long-standing relationships with many different stakeholders in the media and finance businesses allow ABRY to contribute significant value to operating partners and portfolio companies.
