Overview
The publishing industry, particularly its niche segments like software and specialized print publishing, is increasingly relevant for M&A activity. This diverse sector spans newspapers, periodicals, books, directories, and software, catering to varied markets ranging from entertainment to professional services. The shift toward digital platforms, combined with demand for personalized and multimedia content, drives innovation and growth in the industry.
M&A opportunities in this sector are often driven by the need to enhance technological capabilities, diversify content portfolios, and expand into underserved geographic markets. Companies are acquiring advanced content distribution technologies, analytics tools, and AI solutions to stay competitive. Regulatory changes, such as those concerning copyright and digital rights management, also incentivize consolidation to achieve compliance at scale. Moreover, the software publishing segment offers high growth potential, with acquisitions focused on SaaS models and industry-specific applications. For M&A professionals, this industry presents opportunities to harness innovation, achieve synergies, and capitalize on the shift to digital-first models.
Sub-Sectors
|
NAICS Code |
Industry Description |
|
511 |
Publishing Industries (except Internet) |
|
5111 |
Newspaper, Periodical, Book, and Directory Publishers |
|
5112 |
Software Publishers |
|
51111 |
Newspaper Publishers |
|
51112 |
Periodical Publishers |
|
51113 |
Book Publishers |
|
51114 |
Directory and Mailing List Publishers |
|
51119 & 511199 |
Other Publishers |
|
511191 |
Greeting Card Publishers |
Historical PE Investments in Publishing Industries (except Internet)
From 2000 to 2006, the publishing industry saw a drop in private equity interest, with acquisitions falling from 6% to below 4% (of total PE deals), due to the rise of digital media. The years 2007 to 2016 marked a period of stabilization, with acquisitions steadily rising as the industry adapted to digital trends, reaching nearly 8% of PE deals. The period from 2017 to 2021 saw the industry peak at around 11%, indicating strong confidence in the industry's ability to adapt.
Market Summary (2001 - 2024)
- 5,148 - Platform investments
- 3,942 - Add-on investments
- 736 - Total unique private equity firms invested
Top 5 Private Equity Firms Invested in Publishing Industries (except Internet)
Measured by the number of deals in Publishing Industries (except Internet).
- Insight Partners (New York, NY)
- Summit Partners (Boston, MA)
- TA Associates (Menlo Park, CA)
- Vista Equity Partners (Austin, TX)
- Thoma Bravo (Chicago, IL)
Geographical Distribution
Sample Private Equity Investments in our Database
September 2023
Battery Ventures announced the formation of CodeSecure (Bethesda, MD).
CodeSecure publishes Shift Left Academy, an educational resource for product software developers.
May 2023
RedBird Capital Partners announced the formation of Hidden Pigeon (Los Angeles, CA).
Hidden Pigeon Company is a multiplatform kids and family content company which leverages Co-Founder Mo Willems’ catalog of children’s books and intellectual property across all entertainment platforms.
January 2022
Battery Ventures made a majority-growth investment in Madcap (San Diego, CA).
Madcap is a provider of single-source, multi-channel content authoring and publishing software for technical documentation, chatbots and AI, learning & development programs.
April 2021
Insight Partners led the Series C funding round for Seeq (Seattle, WA).
Seeq publishes software applications for manufacturing organizations to rapidly find and share data insights.
May 2020
Riverwood Capital completed a strategic investment in Sensor Tower (San Francisco, CA).
Sensor Tower provides enterprise-level data on mobile apps and publishers through our Store Intelligence, Ad Intelligence, Usage Intelligence, and App Intelligence platforms.
How Private Equity Info sources data
As a research database and information services company serving the middle market M&A community for 20 years, Private Equity Info ingests enormous amounts of data surrounding transactions, firms, and executives. In addition, our team engages in many conversations daily across the spectrum of investors, investment bankers, and service providers to the M&A community.
This summary report was put together by analyzing the private equity investments collected by our dedicated research team which follows 127,000 key executives, 16,000 firms and 33,000 funds in the M&A industry, or 34 million total data points. Private equity investors, investment bankers and service providers in the M&A space use Private Equity Info to search, identify and download targeted lists of M&A professionals in order to connect with key executives across thousands of companies, firms and funds.