The company was founded byChris Anderson as Future Publishing inSomerton, Somerset, England, with the sole magazineAmstrad Action in 1985.[2] An early innovation was the inclusion of free software on magazine covers.[2] It acquired GP Publications and established what would becomeFuture US in 1994.[3]
Anderson sold the company toPearson plc for £52.7m in 1994, but bought it back in 1998, for £142 million.[2] The company wasfloated on theLondon Stock Exchange in 1999.[4] Anderson left the company in 2001.[5]
In 2004, the company was accused of corruption when it published positive reviews for the video gameDriver 3 in two of its owned magazines,Xbox World andPSM2.[6]
The chief executive and finance director both resigned at short notice after a profit warning in October 2011. It was noted that a re-structuring would be necessary as the company moved to a digital model.[9]
Future announced it would cut 55 jobs from its UK operation as part of a restructuring to adapt "more effectively to the company's rapid transition to a primarily digital business model."[10] The company announced in March 2014 that it would close all of its U.S.-based print publications and shift U.S. print support functions such as consumer marketing, production and editorial leadership for Future's international print brands to the UK.[11] Later in 2014, Future sold its sport and craft titles toImmediate Media, and its auto titles to Kelsey Media.[12]
In April 2014,Zillah Byng-Thorne (then finance director) was appointed chief executive to replace Mark Wood, who had been in the position since 2011.[11]
In 2018, Future made further major acquisitions. It bought theWhat Hi-Fi?,FourFourTwo,Practical Caravan, andPractical Motorhome brands fromHaymarket; and it acquiredNewBay Media, publisher of numerous broadcast, professional-video, and systems-integration trade titles, as well as several consumer music magazines.[13] This acquisition returned most of the U.S. consumer music magazines to Future, with the exception ofRevolver which had been sold to Project M Group in 2017.[14]
It bought thePurch Group for $132m by September 2018,[15][16] and in February 2019 bought Mobile Nations including the titlesAndroid Central,iMore,Windows Central andThrifter for $115 million.[17][18] Future also acquiredProcycling andCyclingnews.com fromImmediate Media.[19] In July 2019 the company bought SmartBrief, a digital media publisher, for an initial sum of $45 million.[20]
In November 2019, the company boughtBarcroft Studios for £23.5 million in a combination of cash and shares.[21] It renamed it Future Studios and announced the launch of "Future Originals", an anthology gaming series, a "factual" series focusing on the paranormal, and a newtrue-crime show, in partnership withMarie Claire.[22]
In April 2020, it acquiredTI Media with 41 brands for £140 million.[23] In November, it agreed to a £594m takeover of GoCo plc, known for itsGocompare.com price-comparison website.[24] In August 2021, it acquiredDennis Publishing and its 12 magazines, for £300 million.[25]
The company was criticised in February 2022 for the size of the remuneration package being offered to Zillah Byng-Thorne, the chief executive. It was noted that she could receive £40 million if the company performed well.[26]
Byng-Thorne resigned with effect from 3 April 2023 and was replaced as chief executive byJon Steinberg.[27]
In April 2023, the company sold its shooting magazines includingShooting Times andSporting Gun to Fieldsports Press.[28]
In August 2024, the company announced that its American trade papersBroadcasting & Cable andMultichannel News[29] would be closing after more than 90 years, with the main titleBroadcasting having been first published in 1931 and the merged titleMultichannel News dating from 1980.[30] In October 2024, the company closed a number of consumer titles in the United Kingdom, includingPlay,All About Space,Total 911, and3D World, with the monthly movie magazineTotal Film[31][32] ceasing publication after 27 years.[33]
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£788.2 million (2024)[1]
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