Full Description

The Washington Post Company is a diversified education and media company. The Company’s Kaplan, Inc. (Kaplan) subsidiary provides a variety of educational services, both domestically and outside the United States. The Company’s media operations consist of the ownership and operation of cable television systems, newspaper publishing (principally The Washington Post), television broadcasting (through the ownership and operation of six television broadcast stations) and magazine publishing (principally Newsweek). The Company’s operations in geographic areas outside the United States consist primarily of Kaplan’s foreign operations and the publication of the international editions of Newsweek. During the year ended December 31, 2008, these operations accounted for approximately 13% of the Company’s consolidated revenues, and the identifiable assets attributable to foreign operations represented approximately 13% of the Company’s consolidated assets, during 2008.

Education

Kaplan provides a range of educational and training services worldwide for students and professionals. The Company divides Kaplan’s various businesses into three categories: Higher Education; Test Prep and Admissions, and Professional. Kaplan Higher Education provides an array of diploma and degree programs, on campus and online, designed to meet the needs of students seeking to advance their education and their careers.

Kaplan’s United States-based higher education business consists of 71 schools in 20 states that provide classroom-based instruction and one institution that specializes in online education. The schools providing classroom-based instruction offer a variety of diploma, associate’s degree and bachelor’s degree programs, primarily in the fields of healthcare, business, paralegal studies, information technology, criminal justice, and fashion and design. Kaplan University specializes in online education, offering various master’s degree, bachelor’s degree, associate’s degree and certificate programs, principally in the fields of management, criminal justice, paralegal studies, information technology, financial planning, nursing and education. Kaplan’s higher education businesses in Europe are Kaplan International Colleges (KIC), Dublin Business School (DBS), Kaplan Open Learning (KOL) and Holborn College. Kaplan Virtual Education (KVE), which is part of Kaplan’s Higher Education division, is a standalone virtual public school, which offers online high school instruction and online content and curriculum development.

Test Prep and Admissions divides its businesses into six categories: university test prep, professional licensing exam prep, English-language training, K12 services for schools, after-school tutoring and publishing. Test Prep prepares students for a range of admissions examinations, including Scholastic Assessment Test (SAT), American College Test (ACT), Law School Admission Test (LSAT), Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT), Medical College Admission Test (MCAT) and Graduate Record Examination (GRE), that are required for admission to college and graduate schools, including medical, business and law schools. During 2008, these courses were offered at 160 permanent centers located throughout the United States and in Canada, Puerto Rico, Mexico, London and Paris.

The English-language business, which operates under the name Kaplan Aspect, provides English-language training, academic preparation programs and test preparation for English proficiency exams, such as the Test Of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL), principally for students wishing to study and travel in English-speaking countries in North America, Europe or Australia/New Zealand. Kaplan Aspect operates 44 English-language schools located in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and the United States.

Kaplan K12 Learning Services develops and provides a range of programs and services to schools and school districts, including offering reading and math programs to help students who are performing below grade level improve fundamental skills, preparing students for state assessment tests and the SAT and ACT, and providing professional development and assessment services to support teaching and learning. Kaplan’s Score Educational Centers offer individualized tutoring for children from pre-K through 10th grade. Kaplan Publishing publishes a variety of general trade and educational books in subject areas, such as test preparation, business, law, medicine and nursing.

In the United States, Kaplan Professional offers continuing education, compliance training and tracking, certification, licensing, exam preparation and professional development to corporations and to individuals. Kaplan Professional includes Kaplan Financial Education, a provider of continuing education and test preparation courses for financial services and insurance industry professionals; Kaplan Schweser, a provider of test preparation courses for the Chartered Financial Analyst and Financial Risk Manager examinations; Kaplan CPA, which offers test preparation courses for the Certified Public Accounting Examination; Kaplan Professional Schools, a provider of courses for real estate, financial services and home inspection licensing examinations, as well as continuing education in those areas; Kaplan Professional Publishing, which provides printed and online materials that help individuals satisfy state pre-licensing and continuing education requirements, and prepare for state licensing examinations in the real estate, architecture, home inspection, engineering and construction industries, and Kaplan IT, which offers online test preparation courses for technical certifications in the information technology industry, as well as training, software consultancy and related products to a broad range of industries.

Cable Television Operations

During 2008, the Company, through its Cable ONE subsidiary, provided cable service to approximately 699,500 basic video subscribers (representing about 50% of the 1,391,000 homes passed by the systems) and had in force approximately 225,000 subscriptions to digital video service and 372,900 subscriptions to cable modem service. Digital video and cable modem services are both available in markets serving Cable ONE’s subscriber base. The digital video services offered by Cable ONE include certain premium, cable network and local over-the-air channels in high definition television (HDTV). During 2008, Cable ONE also completed introduction of its voice over Internet protocol (VoIP), or digital telephone, service. The Company’s cable systems are located in 19 midwestern, southern and western states and typically serve smaller communities.

Newspaper Publishing

The Company’s newspaper publishing operations include its newspapers, The Washington Post and Washingtonpost.Newsweek Interactive (WPNI), which develops news and information products for electronic distribution. The Washington Post and washingtonpost.com together comprise Washington Post Media. In addition, the Company produces a number of other newspapers and Websites targeted to specific geographic and demographic audiences.

WP Company LLC (WP Company), a subsidiary of the Company, publishes The Washington Post, which is a morning daily and Sunday newspaper primarily distributed by home delivery in the Washington, DC, metropolitan area, including large portions of Maryland and northern Virginia. WP Company also publishes The Washington Post National Weekly Edition, a tabloid that contains selected articles and features from The Washington Post edited for a national audience.

WPNI develops news and information products for electronic distribution. The washingtonpost.com features the editorial text of The Washington Post and most of The Post’s classified advertising, as well as content created by WPNI’s staff, blogs written by Post reporters and others, interactive discussions hosted by Post reporters and outside subject experts, user-posted comments and content obtained from other sources. The washingtonpost.com site also features information about activities, groups and businesses in the Washington, DC, area, including an arts and entertainment section and news sections focusing on politics and on technology businesses and related policy issues. In January 2009, WPNI began doing business as Washington Post Digital for all transactions, business arrangements and other ventures relating to washingtonpost.com. In addition, in 2008, WPNI also produced the Newsweek Website, which contains editorial content from the print edition of Newsweek, as well as daily news updates and analysis, photo galleries, Web guides and other features. Furthermore, in 2008, WPNI produced Budget Travel magazine’s Website, which is found at BudgetTravel.com.

The Slate Group, a division of WPNI, produces Slate, an online magazine, and several additional Websites. Slate features articles analyzing news, politics and contemporary culture and adds new material on a daily basis. In January of 2008, The Slate Group launched The Root, an online magazine focused on issues of importance to African Americans and others interested in black culture. The Root offers daily news and provocative commentary on politics and culture. Additionally, it offers a geneology tool designed to help users trace their family history. In September 2008, The Slate Group launched The Big Money, an online magazine featuring articles on business news, commentary and new material added on a daily basis. In October 2008, WPNI acquired Foreign Policy, a magazine founded and managed by The Carnegie Endowment For International Peace. Foreign Policy is a bi-monthly print magazine and Website that features articles analyzing current events, business and policy news from around the world.

Express Publications Company, LLC (Express Publications), another subsidiary of the Company, publishes a weekday tabloid newspaper named Express, 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. The Company’s Post–Newsweek Media, Inc. subsidiary publishes two weekly paid-circulation, three twice-weekly paid-circulation and 25 controlled-circulation weekly community newspapers. This subsidiary’s newspapers are divided into two groups: The Gazette Newspapers and Southern Maryland Newspapers. The Company owns The Daily Herald Company, publisher of The Herald in Everett, Washington. The Herald is published mornings seven days a week, and is primarily distributed by home delivery in Snohomish County and online at www.Heraldnet.com. The Company’s Greater Washington Publishing, Inc. subsidiary publishes several free-circulation advertising periodicals that have little or no editorial content, and are distributed in the greater Washington, DC, metropolitan area using sidewalk distribution boxes. 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.

Television Broadcasting

Through subsidiaries, the Company owns six very high frequency (VHF) television stations located in Houston, Texas; Detroit, Michigan; Miami, Florida; Orlando, Florida; San Antonio, Texas, and Jacksonville, Florida. The Company’s Jacksonville station, WJXT, operates as an independent station.

Magazine Publishing

Newsweek, Inc. publishes Newsweek, a weekly global news and ideas magazine, and its digital platform, Newsweek.com. Newsweek is published domestically and internationally. The domestic edition of Newsweek includes more than 100 different geographic or demographic editions that carry substantially identical news and feature material, but enable advertisers to direct messages to specific market areas or demographic groups. Newsweek is sold through subscription mail order sales derived from a number of sources, principally direct-mail promotion, as well as online and on newsstands. Internationally, Newsweek is published in a Europe, Middle East and Africa edition; an Asia edition covering Japan, Korea and south Asia, and a Latin America edition, all of which are in the English language. The online version of Newsweek includes material from Newsweek’s print edition, as well as original content.

The Company competes with The Thomson Corporation, Amazon, eBay, Fandango, Weather.com, Google, Yahoo, AutoTrader.com, Autobytel.com, Realtor.com, move.com, Monster.com, CareerBuilder.com, craigslist.com and dcurbanmom.com.