Time Warner names former exec as CEO of spinoff
NEW YORK Time Warner has named one of its former executives as the new CEO of its magazine spinoff.
The New York company said Monday that Joseph Ripp will serve as CEO of Time Inc. Ripp is currently CEO of business information services company OneSource Information Services. He spent almost 20 years with Time and Time Warner, including serving as Time Warner's chief financial officer.
Ripp will succeed Time CEO Laura Lang, who told Time Warner she didn't want to continue in the position after the spinoff.
Time Warner Inc. announced in March that it was spinning off its magazine unit, which includes Sports Illustrated, People and Time magazine, into a separate, publicly traded company. The spinoff is expected to occur before year's end. This leaves Time Warner to concentrate on its TV networks such as TNT, HBO and CNN, as well as its Warner Bros. studio, which produces movies and TV shows.
Time got its start in 1922 when Henry Luce and Briton Hadden quit their jobs at the Baltimore News and found 70 investors to put up $85,675 to start the magazine, according to a company website. Over the years the company launched titles such as Fortune in 1930, Life in 1936, Sports Illustrated in 1954, and People in 1974. It bought a majority stake in Warner Communications Inc. in 1989 and the rest of it a year later.
Ripp will take on his post as Time CEO in September.
Shares of Time Warner added 64 cents to $62.41 in midday trading.