Boston Ventures News

New Track Media LLC Acquires Quilting Publisher Fons & Porter

Marianne Fons and Liz Porter will remain active in the magazine and will continue to host the company’s television series carried on most PBS stations.

Cincinnati, OH, October 10, 2006 – New Track Media LLC, the consumer enthusiast publishing platform formed earlier this year by Boston Ventures and Stephen J. Kent, announced today that it has completed the acquisition of Fons & Porter, a leading publisher of quilting periodicals and the producer of the Fons & Porter television program carried on most PBS stations across the country. The core of the
business, Fons & Porter’s Love of Quilting, is the country’s largest magazine for quilting enthusiasts. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Marianne Fons and Liz Porter will continue to be involved with the company under its new ownership, and publisher Dean Pieters will serve as a consultant during the transition. Continuing employment has been offered to all Fons & Porter employees, and there are no plans to move the business. “We feel very strongly that the success of this business going forward will rely on preserving the culture that has been so successfully developed by Marianne, Liz and Dean,” commented Kent, “and consequently we are pleased that they will be working with us, that we will be working with the entire team in Winterset, and we’ll all be working without any relocation of the business.”

Based in Winterset, Iowa, the Fons & Porter business grew out of the quilting magazine that had been started in 1999 by Oxmoor House with Fons and Porter serving as the founding editors. They had previously co-authored several books on quilting, including the most prominent title in the subject area, the Quilter’s Complete Guide, and had launched a successful television program on quilting. In 2001, they invited Pieters, a former Meredith executive, to join them in acquiring the magazine from Oxmoor House
and the team subsequently re-launched it as Fons & Porter’s Love of Quilting. Since that time, the magazine has enjoyed tremendous growth and now leads the category with circulation of more than 275,000.

“We are all enthusiastic about the opportunities for our team as they become a part of New Track Media,” said Pieters. “These are the right people to take our business to the next level because they have the talent and the resources, including a commitment to serving our readers with the best quality product.” Fons said, “for Liz and for me, spreading the love of quilts and quilting has been our lives and it is tremendously gratifying to have found New Track Media, where we know we have kindred spirits and
share the sincere desire to continue to build the Fons & Porter brand.” Porter added, “it was clear to us that New Track Media would be a perfect fit for us—we’re pleased that we found each other.”

Fons & Porter’s Love of Quilting logo:

About New Track Media
New Track Media was formed less than a year ago by Stephen J. Kent and Boston Ventures for the purpose of building up a premier consumer enthusiast publishing platform in a range of special interest subject areas. In February the company completed its first acquisition, Sky Publishing, the leading publisher of astronomy periodicals and books, headquartered in Cambridge. In addition to properties in science-related fields like astronomy and soft crafts like quilting, New Track is exploring a range of properties in other areas. New Track operates from offices in Cincinnati (Ohio) and Cambridge (Massachusetts).

About Boston Ventures
Boston Ventures Management, Inc. (www.bostonventures.com), is a private equity firm that has been an active investor and financial partner to management teams in the media, entertainment, publishing and information and communications sectors since 1983, earning the firm a franchise position in the private equity community. Boston Ventures' general partners and principals are accomplished and experienced
professionals who have a diverse and complementary range of skills, and a broad network of domestic and international relationships. Since its inception, Boston Ventures has invested approximately $2.2 billion in its target industries. The existing Boston Ventures Fund VI Partnership has attracted leading U.S. institutions and individuals from 16 countries.