Westport’s Richard J. Harrington will step down as president and chief executive officer of Stamford-based Thomson Corp. following today’s agreement on terms for a merger of Thomson Corp. with Reuters Group PLC.
Richard J. Harrington: his company once owned Westport News. Thomson Corp. photo
‘‘For Thomson, it is a defining moment in our journey to become the information provider of choice for the world’s business and professional markets,’’ said Harrington, 60, following announcement of agreement of the mega deal involving two of the world’s leaders in the information business. He will step down when the merger is completed.
The cash and stock transaction values Reuters at $17.2 billion. Holders of each Reuters share will be paid $6.99 in cash and 0.16 Thomson-Reuters PLC shares.
Thomson would control about 70 percent of the shares in the new company, Thomson-Reuters PLC. The combine will be headed by Tom Glocer, 47, who is now chief executive of Reuters.
Since his appointment as CEO in October 1997, Harrington has led the transformation of Thomson from a diverse holding company into a focused provider of integrated information solutions.
He has held a number of key leadership positions during his Thomson career, including president and CEO of Thomson Newspapers, whose holdings at one time included the Connecticut Post and the Westport News.
Thomson sold the Post and its other Connecticut holdings to Denver-based Media News Group in 2000.
In addition to serving on Thomson’s board of directors, Harrington serves on the boards of directors of Xerox Corp. and the Norwalk Community College Foundation, and is a member of the board of trustees for The Connecticut Center for Science & Exploration.
