New Media buys Dolan business newspapers

New Media Investment Group, a publicly traded company, announced Friday that it has acquired the business information operation of Dolan Co., which includes its business newspapers such as Long Island Business News, New Orleans CityBusiness and the Idaho Business Review.

A price was not disclosed.

As a result, New Media becomes the second-largest owner of weekly business newspapers in the country, behind American City Business Journals.

In addition, it sold Friday the Las Vegas Review-Journal and its subsidiary papers, which includes the Las Vegas Business Press.

The Dolan acquisition includes 39 print and online publications in 17 markets across the U.S. Dolan’s audience of over 46,000 paid subscribers includes attorneys, judges, property owners, building contractors, and other business professionals. The business newspapers include the Arizona Capitol Times, the Daily Journal of Commerce in Oregon and Finance & Commerce in Minnesota.

“We are pleased to announce the agreement to acquire the Dolan assets and see a tremendous opportunity to leverage its publications and subscriber base across New Media’s footprint,” said Michael Reed, New Media’s president and CEO, in a statement. “In addition to the valuable content Dolan provides to its readership base, we believe their subscribers, which are predominately service oriented business owners, are the ideal customer for our fast-growing digital services business, Propel Marketing.”

New Media anticipates both Dolan and the other local daily newspaper acquisition will close at the end of 2015 or in early 2016, subject to customary closing conditions.

New Media stock closed Friday at $18.78, down 20 cents, or 1.05 percent.