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The Times of London reports that those New York investors control two-thirds of the stock in 13-year-old Time Out New York, and they’ve forced Time Out founder Tony Elliott in London to reluctantly put TONY up for sale, the asking price being $40 million. Time Out New York owns half of four-year-old Time Out Chicago — Joe Mansueto of Morningstar owns the rest — and the New Yorkers want to unload that too.
Elliott launched Time Out in London 40 years ago, and even though the brand has spread to 16 countries, largely through franchises, Elliott’s always felt undercapitalized. In this recent interview he ruminates about changing the business model in London, moving strictly online and offering his content for nothing. But like so many other publishers with the same idea, he sounds seriously doubtful about the ability of advertising to pay the freight.
