Sanoma Hearst Romania s.r.l published the first issue of the Romanian edition of National Geographic Magazine on 13 May. It was the 23nd local-language edition of the popular magazine. National Geographic will bring its global adventures to readers in Romania. Published in English since 1888, the magazine has a total circulation of around 9.5 million and is read in each country of the world.
Sanoma Hearst Romania s.r.l. is a joint venture of Sanoma Magazines International B.V. (65%) and Hearst's HMI International Holdings Inc. (35%) It is part of Sanoma Magazines B.V, the magazine division of SanomaWSOY. Sanoma Magazines B.V. is the fifth largest publisher of consumer magazines in Europe and publishes approximately 220 titles in Belgium, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Finland, Hungary, the Netherlands, Romania and Slovakia. In 2002 Sanoma Magazines' net sales totaled € 1 billion and it employs approx. 4.800 people.