Profile: The Washington Post Co (WPO.N)

WPO.N on New York Stock Exchange

549.05USD
1 Aug 2013
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The Washington Post Company, incorporated on July 21, 2003, is a diversified education and media company. The Company’s Kaplan subsidiary provides a variety of educational services, both domestically and outside the United States. The Company’s media operations consists of the ownership and operation of cable television systems, newspaper publishing, principally The Washington Post and television broadcasting through the ownership and operation of six television broadcast stations. The Company’s operations in geographic areas outside the United States consist of Kaplan’s non-United States operations. In July 2013, the Company's Kaplan acquired the test prep assets and social learning platform of Grockit, Inc.

The Company divested its interest in Avenue100 Media Solutions Inc., a digital marketing company headquartered in Woburn, Massachusetts, in 2012. The Company sold its interest in the Bowater Mersey Paper Company Limited to the Province of Nova Scotia in 2012. . In March 2013, the Company announced it has completed the sale of The Herald, a daily and Sunday newspaper and its other print and online products to Sound Publishing, Inc.

Education

Kaplan, Inc., a subsidiary of the Company, provides a range of education and related services worldwide for students and professionals. Kaplan conducts its operations through three segments: Kaplan Higher Education, Kaplan Test Preparation and Kaplan International. Kaplan Higher Education (KHE) provides a wide array of certificate, diploma and degree programs on campus and online designed to meet the needs of students seeking to advance their education and career goals. During the year ended December 31, 2012, Kaplan’s United States-based KHE division businesses include Kaplan University and KHE Campuses.

Kaplan University specializes in online education, is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools and holds other programmatic accreditations. Kaplan University’s programs are offered online, while some are offered in a traditional classroom format at 12 campuses in Iowa, Maine, Maryland and Nebraska, and four Kaplan University Learning Centers in four additional states. Kaplan University also includes Concord Law School, a fully online law school. During 2012, Kaplan University had approximately 38,800 students enrolled in online programs and approximately 5,600 students enrolled in its classroom-based programs.

Also residing within Kaplan University is the School of Professional and Continuing Education (PACE). PACE offers a range of education solutions to assist professionals in advancing their careers by obtaining professional licenses, designations and certifications. This includes solutions for insurance, securities, real estate, mortgage and appraisal licensing exams and for advanced designations, such as CFA and CPA exams. PACE serves more than 2,900 business-to-business clients, including more than 70 Fortune 500 companies. In 2012, approximately 510,000 students used PACE's exam preparation offerings. As of December 31, 2012, the KHE Campuses business consists of 59 schools in 17 states, which provides classroom-based instruction to approximately 21,100 students.

Kaplan International operates businesses in Europe and the Asia Pacific region. In Europe, Kaplan operates in the businesses, which are all based in the United Kingdom and Ireland: Kaplan UK, Kaplan International Colleges (KIC) and a set of higher education institutions. The Kaplan United Kingdom business in Europe is a provider of training, test preparation services and degrees for accounting and financial services professionals, including those studying for ACCA, CIMA and ICAEW qualifications. In addition, Kaplan United Kingdom provides legal and professional training, including the operation of a United Kingdom law school in collaboration with Nottingham Trent University’s Nottingham Law School. In 2012, Kaplan United Kingdom provided courses to approximately 66,000 students, of whom 49,000 were dedicated to accounting and financial services coursework.

The KIC business consists of university pathways business and an English-language training business. The university pathways business offers academic preparation programs especially designed for international students who wish to study in English-speaking countries. KIC operates university pathways programs in collaboration with nine U.K. universities. As of December 31, 2012, KIC’s university pathways business was serving approximately 2,700 students. The English-language business (previously operated as Kaplan Aspect) provides English-language training, academic preparation programs and test preparation for English proficiency exams, principally for students wishing to study and travel in English-speaking countries. KIC operates a total of 41 English-language schools, with 19 located in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand and Canada, and 22 located in the United States, where they operate under the name Kaplan International Centers. During 2012, the English-language business served approximately 65,000 students.

Kaplan also operates three higher education institutions in Europe, located in the United Kingdom and Ireland. These institutions are Dublin Business School, Holborn College and Kaplan Open Learning. As of December 31, 2012, these institutions enrolled an aggregate of approximately 6,500 students. In the Asia Pacific region, Kaplan operates businesses in Singapore, Australia, Hong Kong and China. In Singapore, Kaplan operates three business units, Higher Education, Financial and Professional, which serve more than 16,700 students from various countries throughout Asia.

Kaplan Singapore’s Higher Education business provides students with the opportunity to earn bachelor’s and postgraduate degrees in various fields on either a part-time or full-time basis. Kaplan Singapore’s students receive degrees from affiliated educational institutions in Australia, the U.K. and the U.S. In addition, this division offers pre-university and diploma programs. Kaplan Singapore’s Financial business provides preparatory courses for professional qualifications in accountancy and finance, such as the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) and the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA).

In Australia, Kaplan delivers a broad range of financial services education and professional development courses. In 2012, this business provided courses to approximately 17,400 students through classroom programs and to more than 44,800 students through distance-learning programs. In 2012, Kaplan Australia underwent operational restructuring and offers its programs through three business units: English Language and Pathways; Vocational Education; and Higher Education.

The Vocational Education business of Kaplan Australia includes Kaplan Professional Education (KPE), Carrick Education Group and Franklyn Scholar. KPE offers financial services education programs and continuing professional development courses primarily to a business-to-business market, including banks and numerous industry sectors. Approximately 43,000 students are taught through KPE each year. Carrick has traditionally offered English-language programs, vocational training and higher education courses in Australia. Kaplan is evaluating various strategic alternatives with respect to the Carrick business lines. As of December 31, 2012, Carrick was providing services to approximately 1,300 students. Franklyn Scholar offers a wide range of custom-developed programs to business clients. More than 16,000 students are taught through Franklyn Scholar each year.

The higher education business of Kaplan Australia comprises Kaplan Online Higher Education (KOHE) and Kaplan Business School (KBS), which offers diploma, bachelor’s and master’s degree programs. As of December 31, 2012, KBS has opened a new school in Brisbane and operates in four states in Australia teaching approximately 700 students each year. KOHE teaches approximately 1,800 students annually in postgraduate courses primarily in the financial services sector.

In Hong Kong, Kaplan offers a comprehensive array of programs, ranging from language education and standardized test preparation to corporate and financial training and higher education degree courses. During 2012, Kaplan’s Hong Kong business provided courses to more than 15,700 students.

In China, Kaplan provides foundation programs to Chinese students through partnerships with prestigious Chinese universities and high schools. Kaplan China offers foundation programs at 11 campuses and had more than 1,100 students enrolled at the end of 2012. Kaplan China also cooperates with several Chinese universities to provide ACCA training programs to the students. Cable ONE offers broadband Internet access service on virtually all of its cable systems and is the sole Internet service provider on those systems.

Kaplan International also includes the Kaplan Global Solutions business unit, which continues to develop partnerships with colleges, universities and non-profit corporations and foundations. Kaplan Global Solutions, through its Colloquy business, enables its university partners to develop online educational programs by providing an array of research, marketing and design services. Through its Global Pathways programs, Kaplan Global Solutions enables its partner institutions in the Americas to enhance their brand globally and increase international student enrollments by designing and marketing custom programs aimed at student success.

Cable Television Operations

Through its subsidiary Cable One, Inc. (Cable ONE), the Company owns and operates cable television systems that provide video, Internet and voice service to subscribers in 19 midwestern, western and southern states. At the end of 2012, Cable ONE provided cable service to approximately 593,600 video subscribers, representing about 41% of the 1,439,740 homes passed by the systems, had approximately 459,200 subscriptions to high-speed data (HSD) service and 184,500 subscriptions to VoIP (digital voice) service. The video services offered by Cable ONE include certain premium, cable network and local over-the-air channels in high-definition television (HDTV) format. Cable ONE offers voice over Internet Protocol service, which permits users to make voice calls over broadband communications networks, including the Internet.

Newspaper Publishing

The Company’s newspaper publishing operations include results for its flagship newspaper and Internet site, The Washington Post, The Slate Group and a number of additional newspapers and websites. WP Company LLC (WP Company), a subsidiary of the Company, publishes The Washington Post (the Post) and the Internet site, washingtonpost.com. The Post is a morning daily and Sunday newspaper primarily distributed by home delivery in the Washington, DC, metropolitan area, including portions of Maryland and northern Virginia. The Post’s two primary sources of revenue are advertising and subscription fees, which accounted for 61% and 36% of its total revenue in 2012, respectively. Advertising revenue is derived from the sale of display and classified advertisements, as well as the insertion and other distribution of preprinted advertisements.

WP Company provides online advertisers with a wide range of options, including the ability to advertise on select pages or page combinations or to target specific geographic areas and demographic groups. WP Company also provides content on websites specially formatted to be downloaded and displayed on Web-enabled cell phones and other personal digital devices. In addition to offering regular upgrades of general news smart phone applications, WP Company also offers niche smart phone applications focused on sports, entertainment and politics.

WP Company operates The Washington Post News Media Services, which offers a selection of content from the Post and Bloomberg News, plus material from Company-owned Foreign Policy, Slate and The Root. WP Company owns an interest in Classified Ventures, a newspaper industry company that offers online classified advertising databases for cars and apartment rentals. Washingtonpost.com provides links to the Classified Ventures’ national car and apartment rental websites (cars.com and apartments.com). WP Company has about 524 full-time editors, producers, reporters, photographers and videographers on its staff. WP Company draws upon the news reporting facilities of the wire services, maintains a network of correspondents and contract writers in international news centers and maintains reporters in eight local news bureaus.

The Slate Group LLC (The Slate Group) publishes Slate, an online magazine, and additional websites. Slate features articles analyzing news, politics and contemporary culture and adds new material on a daily basis. The Slate Group also publishes Slate V, an online video magazine, and The Root, an online magazine focused on issues of importance to African Americans and others interested in black culture, offering daily news and provocative commentary on politics and culture. The Slate Group owns an interest in E2J2 SAS, a company incorporated in France that produces two French-language news magazine websites at slate.fr and slateafrique.com. The Slate Group provides content, technology and branding support.

The FP Group produces Foreign Policy magazine and the ForeignPolicy.com Website, which cover developments in national security, international politics, global economics and related issues. The site features blogs, news content and specialized channels and newsletters focusing on regions and topics of interest. The FP Group provides insight and analysis into global affairs for government, military, business, media and academic leaders. FP Events also produces a growing range of live programs bringing together government, military, business and investment leaders to discuss important regional and topical developments and their implications.

Express Publications Company, LLC (Express Publications), another subsidiary of the Company, publishes Express, a weekday tabloid newspaper, which is distributed free of charge using hawkers and news boxes near Metro stations and in other locations in Washington, DC, and nearby suburbs with heavy daytime sidewalk traffic. An edition of Express is 48 to 60 pages and contains short news, entertainment and sports stories, as well as both classified and display advertising. Dailycirculation is approximately 180,000 copies.

The Company’s PostNewsweek Media, Inc. (PNM) subsidiary publishes two weekly paid-circulation, three twice-weekly paid-circulation and 14 controlled-circulation weekly community newspapers. This subsidiary’s newspapers are divided into three groups: The Gazette Newspapers, which circulate in Montgomery, Prince George’s and Frederick counties and in parts of Carroll County, MD; Southern Maryland Newspapers, which circulate in southern Prince George’s County and in Charles, St. Mary’s and Calvert counties, MD; and the Fairfax County Times, which circulates in Fairfax County, VA.

The Company owns The Daily Herald Company, publisher of The Herald in Everett, WA, about 30 miles north of Seattle. The Herald is published mornings, seven days a week, and is primarily distributed by home delivery in Snohomish County, WA, and online at HeraldNet.com. The Daily Herald Company also provides commercial printing services and is a regional print site for USA TODAY. The Daily Herald Company publishes La Raza del Noroeste, a weekly Spanish-language newspaper that is distributed in Snohomish, King, Skagit and northern Pierce counties; and Herald Business Journal, a monthly publication focused on Snohomish County business news.

The Company’s Greater Washington Publishing LLC subsidiary publishes several free-circulation advertising periodicals and websites. The periodicals are distributed in the greater Washington, DC, metropolitan area using sidewalk distribution boxes and community racks placed in free outlets targeting renters, new home buyers and seniors. Additionally, The Guide to Retirement Living Sourcebook is distributed via a network of influential providers that includes realtors, social workers, physicians and a variety of other senior-serving professionals. Greater Washington Publishing’s periodicals are Apartment Showcase, which is published monthly and has an average circulation of about 39,000 copies; New Homes Guide, which is published six times a year and has an average circulation of about 34,000 copies; and Guide to Retirement Living Sourcebook, which is published nine times a year and has an average circulation of about 40,000 copies.

El Tiempo Latino LLC publishes El Tiempo Latino, a weekly Spanish-language newspaper that is distributed free of charge in northern Virginia, suburban Maryland and Washington, DC, using sidewalk news boxes and retail locations that provide space for distribution. El Tiempo Latino provides a mix of local, national and international news together with sports and community events coverage and has a current circulation of approximately 50,000 copies. Employees of the newspaper handle advertising sales and prepress production, and content is provided by a combination of wire service copy, contributions from freelance writers and photographers and stories produced by the newspaper’s own editorial staff.

Television Broadcasting

PostNewsweek Stations, Inc. (PNS), a subsidiary of the Company, owns six television stations located in Houston, TX; Detroit, MI; Miami, FL; Orlando, FL; San Antonio, TX; and Jacksonville, FL. Revenue from broadcasting operations is derived primarily from the sale of advertising time to local, regional and national advertisers. In 2012, advertising revenue accounted for 89% of the total for PNS’s operations. PNS station (and each full-power television station nationwide) broadcasts only in digital format. The digital broadcast format allows transmission of HDTV programming, multiple channels of standard-definition television programming (multicasting), subchannels of programming designed for reception by mobile devices (mobile DTV) and subscription video and data services known as ancillary and supplementary services. PNS, along with other broadcasting companies, has been actively pursuing the use of digital spectrum to provide mobile DTV to consumers, in partnership with consumer electronics manufacturers and others.

Other Activities

WaPo Labs is a digital team focusing on experimenting with emerging technologies. In 2012, WaPo Labs launched several projects in partnership with the Company’s media properties: Personal Post, a feature on washingtonpost.com that delivers personalized article recommendations based on a user’s interests and past reading behavior; The Fold, a video news program available on washingtonpost.com, Google TV and Android tablets, and The Root 100, which comprises 100 Android apps aggregating content about the Root 100 honorees, chosen for their impact and influence within the African-American community. In addition to working closely with the Company’s news websites, WaPo Labs oversees Washington Post Social Reader (Social Reader) and Trove. Social Reader is a Facebook-connected Website that delivers news articles based on a user’s interests and what their friends are reading. Social Reader aggregates content from the Post, Slate, Foreign Policy, Express, the Root and more than 90 other content partners to create a social stream of articles.

Social Code LLC (Social Code) is a marketing solutions company helping Fortune 500 brands maximize their marketing efforts on social media platforms. Celtic Healthcare, Inc. (Celtic) is a Medicare-certified provider of home health and hospice services headquartered in Mars, PA. Through its subsidiaries, Celtic is licensed to provide home health and hospice services throughout Pennsylvania and Maryland. These services include skilled nursing, physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy, social work, nutrition, chaplain and aid services. In addition, Celtic provides virtual care services to patients throughout its service territories. Celtic derives 74% of its revenue from Medicare, with the remaining sources of revenue being Medicaid, commercial insurance and private payors.

The Company competes with Edmunds.com, AutoTrader.com, Realtor.com, Zillow.com, Yelp, OpenTable, Google, Monster.com, CareerBuilder.com and Yahoo!.

Company Address

The Washington Post Co

1150 15th Street, NW
WASHINGTON   DC   20071
P: +1202.3346000
F: +1202.3344536

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