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Martin's in the money - Money saving expert nets £87m

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A campaigning personal finance journalist is set to scoop £87 million after clinching a deal to sell his popular website today. Martin Lewis said he had agreed to sell MoneySavingExpert.com, the site he founded almost a decade ago after leaving the BBC, to MoneySupermarket, the price…£ £87m
Disclaimer : Everything I write on this forum is my opinion. I try to be an even-handed poster and accept that you at times may not agree with these opinions or how I choose to express them, this is not my problem. The Disabled : If years cannot be added to their lives, at least life can be added to their years - Alf Morris - ℜ
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Comments

  • snoopy89
    snoopy89 Posts: 320 Forumite
    he always was good with his money. good on him, hes also giveing 10mill away. decent lad:beer::T
  • mynameistallulah
    mynameistallulah Posts: 2,238 Forumite
    So what has he ever done for disability rights? Genuine question, because I can't think of anything.
  • Ellejmorgan
    Ellejmorgan Posts: 1,487 Forumite
    I suppose though people don't usually consider disability until they encounter it...

    He's a good bloke giving some away..i'm pleased for him..have met him he's very friendly....
    I always take the moral high ground, it's lovely up here...
  • Takeaway_Addict
    Takeaway_Addict Posts: 6,538 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts
    So what has he ever done for disability rights? Genuine question, because I can't think of anything.

    Apart from having a sub board on this forum where people can talk to each other and inform them of their rights etc...


    but yes, what has the [STRIKE]Romans[/STRIKE] Man ever done for disability rights :D
    Don't trust a forum for advice. Get proper paid advice. Any advice given should always be checked
  • Jemma-T
    Jemma-T Posts: 1,546 Forumite
    martinlewismoneysaving0.jpg
    Money to be made off MSE? Pigs might fly?

    A working link http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2012/jun/01/martin-lewis-sells-moneysavingexpert?newsfeed=true

    That TheTimes site is unreadable thanks to all the crap code.

    Not sure how anyone thinks they'll make their money back (if at all) in a reasonable time and I just hope they didn't get the money off UK banks.

    I block all adverts so good luck to the new owners.
    Personal finance journalist Martin Lewis has sold his MoneySavingExpert website to the price comparison company MoneySupermarket in a deal which will net him up to £87m.

    Lewis set up the site, which offers money saving tips and advice, reader forums and calculators, in 2003 and it now has around 5 million subscribers to its weekly email. According to Google Analytics, it attracted around 39 million unique visitors and 277m page impressions in the year ending 31 October 2011. It reported revenues of £15.7m for the same period.

    Lewis, who is well-known as a media pundit on money matters, will receive £60m upfront in a mixture of cash and shares and a further £27m if he meets targets over the next three years, while he remains at the website as its editor-in-chief. He has said he will give £10m to charity, with £1m going to Citizens Advice.

    The site, which employs 42 people, was now "far bigger than the man who founded it" and it was the right time to sell, Lewis said.
    "This is great news for MoneySavingExpert.com and its users, ensuring, with or without me, the site will be around for many years to come, maintaining our ethos of 'cutting your costs and fighting your corner'."
    Peter Plumb, chief executive officer of MoneySupermarket, said the website shared a common goal of helping customers save money.
    "We'll help MoneySavingExpert.com reach a wider audience and MoneySavingExpert.com will broaden the range of advice and tools we offer, encouraging even more people to take action, tap into the benefits of the internet to find a better deal and make the most of their money."

    Plumb said his company was committed to maintaining MSE's independent reputation, a point addressed by Lewis in a blogpost to readers.

    "MSE and MoneySupermarket will operate as completely separate entities as part of the bigger group. Think of it like the fact Radio 4 and Radio 5 are both part of the BBC but with their own separate editorial stance," he wrote.

    He added that he had approached MoneySupermarket rather that "touting the site around" because "I know and trust it and it's not owned by any product providers. I wanted a company that understands what we do – and it's proved that by signing up to the Editorial Code which ensures our content can proudly remain editorially independent and free from commercial considerations" .

    Some users seemed unconvinced that MSE would not be affected by the sale. On the site's forums sablade described it as a sellout, adding: "To start with we will see no difference but drip by drip moneysupermarket will suffocate this site and strip it of all its ways to turn the public's free advice into pure profit."

    Fen_boy asked: "Are the regular and extremely helpful forum users getting a dividend then? That's where most of the value lies in this site. You're all being sold to line Martin's pockets otherwise."

    Some, however, were supportive. Aliasojo accused fellow readers of "acting like a dumped spouse", adding: "I live on this site and I hate change but I don't particularly think this is a bad thing. It's us users that has [sic] made this site what it is (sorry Martin but without us the site would never have grown) and I can't see that a new company would shell out £87m just to come in and make sweeping changes to a working model and risk alienating its user base."

    The sale is expected to be completed in the autumn.

    © 2012 Guardian News and Media Limited
  • - best of luck to him, he didn't have to give away any money - but he did
    - power of editor-ship, while Martins core management team control it is all that counts
    - it will inevitably change with the 'earn out' targets - we wait and see
    - we also wait to see who controls what after 36 months
    - best of luck to him

    However .. .. just one criticism - he could have used some of the dosh to set up an an anti Andy&Flo team .. .. a group charged exclusively to deal with that one eejit !

    - best of luck to him
    Disclaimer : Everything I write on this forum is my opinion. I try to be an even-handed poster and accept that you at times may not agree with these opinions or how I choose to express them, this is not my problem. The Disabled : If years cannot be added to their lives, at least life can be added to their years - Alf Morris - ℜ
  • mynameistallulah
    mynameistallulah Posts: 2,238 Forumite
    Apart from having a sub board on this forum where people can talk to each other and inform them of their rights etc...


    but yes, what has the [STRIKE]Romans[/STRIKE] Man ever done for disability rights :D

    So he did nothing, contributors such as Richie, Cpt.Scarlet et al are the ones that gives the information, and would no doubt do so whether MSE existed or not.
  • soolin
    soolin Posts: 74,119 Ambassador
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Photogenic Name Dropper
    So he did nothing, contributors such as Richie, Cpt.Scarlet et al are the ones that gives the information, and would no doubt do so whether MSE existed or not.

    How would you have found each other though without this forum? It is the site that enables people from all different backgrounds to discuss things.
    I’m a Forum Ambassador and I support the Forum Team on the eBay, Auctions, Car Boot & Jumble Sales, Boost Your Income, Praise, Vents & Warnings, Overseas Holidays & Travel Planning , UK Holidays, Days Out & Entertainments boards. If you need any help on these boards, do let me know.. Please note that Ambassadors are not moderators. Any posts you spot in breach of the Forum Rules should be reported via the report button, or by emailing forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com.All views are my own and not the official line of MoneySavingExpert.
  • over many years of using t`internet i have used many different forums,i found this one 4 years ago after the main one i was using descended into chaos,sadly i can see people drifting away from mse,and the minute i get any spam from money supermarket or the site is deluged with ads i`ll be off
  • paddedjohn
    paddedjohn Posts: 7,512 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture
    So what has he ever done for disability rights? Genuine question, because I can't think of anything.


    What have you done for disability rights? genuine question. Last time i looked this was a money saving site not a political forum.
    Be Alert..........Britain needs lerts.
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