Tribune Publishing Family Of Companies Takes Full Ownership Of MCT Information Services

CHICAGO, May 8, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Tribune Publishing and McClatchy Company announced today that, through one of its subsidiaries, Tribune Publishing  has acquired McClatchy's 50% ownership stake in McClatchy-Tribune Information Services (MCT), the news and information business operated as a joint venture of both companies.

MCT products and services will become part of the offerings of Tribune Content Agency (tribunecontentagency.com), the syndication and licensing business operated by Tribune Publishing since 1918.    

With the addition of the news service's products and services, Tribune Content Agency is uniquely positioned as a premier provider of news, information and content to clients around the globe.

"MCT and Tribune Content Agency are a perfect fit,'' said Jack Griffin, CEO of Tribune Publishing.  "We look forward to extending the excellent service provided by both organizations to expand Tribune Content Agency's best-in-class content business."

MCT clients will continue receiving the same high-quality products and services.  MCT offers content contributed by more than 600 media titles and sources, including Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune, Miami Herald, Dallas Morning News, Philadelphia Inquirer and Kansas City Star.  In December, through an agreement reached with E.W. Scripps Co., MCT took over distribution of Scripps Howard News Service.  McClatchy Company newspapers will continue to contribute to the news service.

"Tribune has been in the content syndication and licensing business for a long time and is best positioned to meet the evolving information needs of MCT's many clients going forward," said Pat Talamantes, President and CEO of McClatchy Company. "While our partnership ends, our relationship continues as we expect to be both a contributor and a customer of Tribune's news services for years to come."

Griffin said:  "Tribune is proud of MCT's success and our partnership with McClatchy. We thank our colleagues at McClatchy and look forward to the contributions of their excellent journalists."

With the addition of MCT to the Tribune Publishing family, the newly expanded Tribune Content Agency will provide content to 1,200 media clients and digital information entities worldwide.  Through the MCT news service, hundreds of stories, photos, graphics and videos are distributed each day for every segment of print and digital media.  MCT SmartContent offers custom-filtered feeds for publishers interested in engaging niche audiences with specific content needs.

SOURCE Tribune Publishing