The competition watchdog has forced Bristol-based magazine publisher Immediate Media to sell three of the titles it acquired eight months ago from rival Future.
Immediate, the UK’s third-largest magazine group with a portfolio that includes Radio Times, Gardeners’ World, Good Food and Top Gear, bought the titles from Bath-based Future as part of a package in a £24m deal. 
But the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) ruled that by adding the three – Your Family Tree, Cross Stitcher and Cross Stitch Collection – to its existing genealogy and needlecraft portfolio Immediate could be in breach of competition rules.
The titles and their digital versions have now been offloaded to London-based Dennis Publishing, which operates 30 brands mainly in the automotive, technology, fitness and current affairs sectors, including AutoExpress, MacUser, Men’s Fitness and Viz.
Dennis, the UK’s sixth-largest magazine publisher, said the acquisition would extend its reach as a specialist publisher and bring a new audience to its existing portfolio. The craft sector continued to demonstrate strong growth in newsstand copy sales, it said, while the genealogy sector, a sub-sector of the history market, continued to be resilient.
Chief executive James Tye said: “Craft and history are two of the areas that are still seeing growth in the UK magazine market. We have a proven track record of acquiring and improving brands in new sectors and this underlines our commitment to continuing growth, both in print and digitally.”
The CMA said it had carefully assessed and consulted publicly on the sale, including the suitability of Dennis as buyer.
“The CMA did not receive any concerns in response to its public consultation. The CMA is satisfied that the undertakings will resolve the competition concerns identified and that Dennis as purchaser will operate the magazines in competition to Immediate Media,” it said.
Immediate, which is backed by Exponent Private Equity, has 850 staff in London and Bristol, and publishes 34 websites and 50 magazines with more than 1m subscribers.
It was formed in 2011 by the merger of BBC Magazines and digital platform company Magicalia. Its titles include CBeebies, olive, BBC History and Homes & Antiques.
Loss-making Future undertook a root-and-branch shake-up of the business last year to drastically lower costs, including the sale of large chunks of its portfolio. Among the other titles Immediate bought from Future were Simply Crochet, The Simple Things, BikeRadar.com and Onyourbike.org.
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