Google is buying Frommer's from publisher John Wiley & Sons to attract more advertising dollars tied to online-travel bookings and local-business information. Financial terms were not disclosed in Monday's announcement, but
according to the Wall Street Journal Google will pay around $25 million for Frommer's. The deal follows Google’s acquisition of Zagat restaurant review service in September, which incorporated Zagat data into the local-business listings of Google+, alongside crowd-sourced reviews from individual customers. Frommer’s content on hotels and destinations around the world would be added to the Zagat listings and enhance Google's search and map features. Google has said it will keep Frommer's publishing operation intact, but would not comment on any possible phase-out of printed travel guides. Frommer's began in 1957 with the publication of Arthur Frommer's
Europe on $5 a Day and currently publishes over 300 guidebooks and the Frommers.com website. Wiley, based in Hoboken, New Jersey, is selling off a number of consumer print and digital publishing assets that no longer fit with its long-term focus on professionals and education. 'Wiley will reinvest resources from this sale to meet the strong global demand for high-quality information in education, research and professional practice, enabled through technology,' said a Wiley spokesperson, adding that the sale will not affect Wiley's Australian business.
Bookseller+Publisher reported Wiley's announcement of the sale of its publishing assets in March.