The New York Times reports that Alexander Lebedev, a Russian billionaire who was once a K.G.B. agent stationed in London, struck a long-awaited deal to buy The Independent newspaper, little more than a year after he acquired another of Britain’s respected major papers, The Evening Standard of London.
In a sign of the parlous times for publishers, The Independent’s owner had to pay to cut it loose, agreeing to contribute £9.25 million (about $13.7 million), to its operation over 10 months. In announcing the deal, the owner, Independent News and Media, an Irish company that has papers in several countries, disclosed that The Independent lost £12.4 million (about $18.4 million) in 2009.
A statement released by the Lebedev family cast the purchase as a move that would “safeguard the future of the business.”
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