Ziff-Davis to Sell Unit

Ziff-Davis Inc. agreed to sell its publishing division, the largest U.S. producer of computer magazines, to closely held investment firm Willis Stein & Partners for $780 million, the largest in a series of asset sales aimed at reducing debt. PC Week and PC Magazine are among the 80 magazines being sold. Once the sale closes, New York-based Ziff-Davis, a unit of Japan’s Softbank Corp., will be left with its trade show division, the producer of Comdex technology shows. It also owns ZDNet, a publicly traded online unit, and the Internet-based learning service SmartPlanet.com. Ziff-Davis shares fell $1.38 to close at $17.06 on the New York Stock Exchange.