Media Briefs: Evening Standard Being Sold To Russians, O’Reilly Media Cuts 30

UK Newspaper The London Evening Standard is set to change hands after facing financial issues related to a decline in circulation and advertising. The paper is believed to be losing £10 million a year.

The buyer of the paper though may come as a surprise: ex-KGB officer and Russian oligarch Alexander Lebedev. According to the Times of London, he will pay just £1 pound ($1.49) for the paper.

The paper was founded in 1827 and has a circulation of 263,000 copies as of October 2006.

On the other side of the pond, well known tech book publisher O’Reilly Media has cut 30 jobs, or 13.5% of its 222 person workforce.

According to reports, the Digital Media branch of O’Reilly was restructured into one publishing division along with the company’s Missing Manual group, O’Reilly Technology Exchange and its Head First series.