Riverdeep Agrees to Buy Houghton Mifflin

The Riverdeep Group of < ?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" />Ireland has agreed to acquire Boston-based publisher Houghton Mifflin Co. for approximately $3.4 billion. Alchemy Partners and MSD Capital backed a 2003 management buyout of Riverdeep, while Bain Capital, Thomas H. Lee Partners and The Blackstone Group bought Houghton Mifflin from Vivendi for around $1.68 billion in 2002. www.riverdeep.net www.hmco.com< ?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />