Pearson to Buy Educational Publisher

British media group Pearson said Friday that it will buy News Corp.’s HarperCollins Educational Publishing Inc. for $580 million in cash, making it the fourth-largest U.S. publisher of educational books.

Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp. is selling the business to concentrate on its global television, newspaper and new-media businesses, analysts said. The purchase augments London-based Pearson’s position in the $5-billion U.S. education book market, which is expected to grow by about 4.3% a year.

Pearson, which owns U.S. publisher Addison Wesley, said the acquisition will give it 11% of the U.S. school market and 13% of the U.S. college market. The leading educational publisher is Viacom Inc.’s Simon & Schuster, followed by McGraw-Hill Cos. and Scholastic Corp., according to Simba Information Inc.

The American depositary receipts of Australia-based News Corp. were down 37.5 cents at $21.25 on the New York Stock Exchange.

HarperCollins Educational consists of ScottForesman, an Illinois-based textbook publisher, and HarperCollins College, a New York-based publisher of college texts, each with a market share of more than 6%, Pearson said.

The combined operations had revenue of $346.8 million for the fiscal year ended June 30, Simba said.

News Corp. also owns Fox Television network; newspapers, including the Sunday Times of London; and has been pressing into online services, most recently in a venture with MCI Communications Corp.

Pearson owns newspapers, including the Financial Times; Economist magazine; and television stations.