Demand for Tax and Accounting Information Drove Business Publishing Gains in 2006, Says Simba Information's Global Legal & Business Publishing 2007-2008 Report

STAMFORD, CT -- (MARKET WIRE) -- March 28, 2007 -- Business publishers expected faster growth in 2006 and they got it largely on the strength of increased demand for tax and accounting products, according to the newly released Global Legal & Business Publishing 2007-2008, the latest strategic market report from Simba Information, a leading media industry forecast and analysis firm.

Business publishing grew slowly in the years after the 2001 recession, but had its biggest rebound in 2006. The market grew 6.7% to $4.9 billion. Consolidation at the top of the accounting market, combined with increased regulatory complexity triggered by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, have increased workloads across the industry and driven up demand for an array of tax products and workflow tools.

Market performance has traditionally been tied to U.S. sales of business publishing products. North American sales make up more than half of the global market. But, in 2006, sales in the U.K., continental Europe and Asia improved and, with steady growth in the U.S., contributed to an excellent year overall.

The combined global markets for legal and business publishing grew total sales 7% to $14.2 billion in 2006. Legal publishing continues to be the largest segment in the overall professional publishing market, which in addition to legal and business includes scientific/technical and medical information, with revenue of $9.3 billion in 2006, up 7.1% from $8.7 billion in 2005. Simba forecasts sales in the legal and business markets combined will grow 5.5% to $15 billion in 2007.

The newly released Simba report provides an overview and financial outlook for the global legal and business publishing markets based on specific research and analysis of the leading competitors in the markets and market performance in six content delivery categories. This research was conducted in conjunction with a larger study of the overall market for professional publishing, including scientific, technical and medical publishing, the results of which will be published in the associated reports Global STM Publishing 2007-2008 and Global Professional Publishing 2007-2008 due out later this year.

The report also includes detailed profiles of leading publishers in the legal and business segments, such as Reed Elsevier, Thomson and Wolters Kluwer. Additional information can be found at www.simbanet.com.

Simba Information, an R.R. Bowker company, is widely recognized as the leading authority for market intelligence in the media and publishing industry. Simba's extensive information network delivers top quality, independent perspective on the people, events and alliances shaping the media and information industry. Simba publishes newsletters and research reports that provide key decision makers at more than 15,000 client companies around the globe with timely news, analysis, exclusive statistics and proprietary industry forecasts. For more information, please visit www.simbanet.com, call 1-888-BOWKER2 (1-888-269-5372), or e-mail marketing@bowker.com.

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