Macrovision, which bought Gemstar-TV Guide a few months ago for $2.8 billion, announced the sale of one of the pieces it didn’t ever plan to keep – TV Guide Magazine. The buyer is OpenGate Capital, a private equity company. The price was not disclosed, but it was not enough to be considered material to Macrovision and trigger an SEC filing.
OpenGate Capital issued a statement hailing TV Guide as a powerful brand and calling it an “entertainment industry icon.” Just what the new owners plan to do with the magazine is unclear, other than to have TV Guide President Scott Crystal declare that his new employers are “committed to taking TV Guide to the next level in terms of their investment and desire to expand our unique franchise.”
Macrovision made it clear when it bought Gemstar-TV Guide that it was only after the technology assets. The company is said to be still shopping the unit’s two cable networks, TV Guide Channel and TVG, a horseracing channel.
