E.W. Scripps to Buy Shopzilla

Media company E.W. Scripps Co. on Monday said that it was spending $525 million in cash to acquire Los Angeles-based Shopzilla.com, the latest deal on Wall Street to capitalize on the growing specialized Internet search business.

The deal calls for shareholders of closely held Shopzilla to get the amount of its net working capital at the time of the closing -- estimated at $35 million.

The acquisition gives newspaper publisher Scripps a website that organizes information on more than 30 million products sold by 55,000 retailers.

Scripps owns the Cincinnati Post and the Ventura County Star, as well as TV stations and cable networks.

Scripps said it expected the acquisition, which must clear regulatory approval, to be completed during the third quarter and to generate $30 million to $33 million in segment profit on revenue of $130 million to $140 million this year.

The news was released after regular trading. Shares of Scripps were unchanged in after-hours trading after falling 14 cents to $51.13.

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Associated Press and Bloomberg News were used in compiling this report.