Sound Publishing, Inc. — the owner of the South Whidbey Record and the Whidbey News-Times — announced today that Black Press, Ltd. has reached an agreement to buy the Peninsula Daily News, Sequim This Week and its related web sites from by Horvitz Newspapers.

Sound Publishing is a division of Black Press, based in Victoria, British Columbia.

Today’s announcement was made personally to Peninsula Daily News employees by Peter Horvitz, president of Horvitz Newspapers, and Mark Warner of Black Press.

The Peninsula Daily News will be operated by Sound Publishing, which has 46 publications and a combined circulation of 732,700 in the Pacific Northwest. Sound’s publications are also found in Kitsap, Skagit, Snohomish and Pierce counties, the San Juan Islands, Vashon Island, communities in east and south King County, and Portland, Ore. Sound’s corporate office is based in Poulsbo and it has a printing facility in Everett.

Privately-held Black Press, Ltd. owns about 150 publications, including three daily newspapers, the Akron (Ohio) Beacon Journal, the (Honolulu) Star Advertiser and the Advocate (Red Deer, Alberta). The other publications are in suburban or rural markets throughout the Canadian provinces of Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and B.C.

“We have purchased other titles from Horvitz Newspapers in the past and look forward to adding the Peninsula Daily News and its related titles to our Sound group,” said David Black, president of Black Press. “As publishers of other titles in the area, this acquisition is a natural extension to our marketplace footprint. We are pleased to be doing business in Clallam and Jefferson counties.”

The family-owned Horvitz Newspapers, based in Bellevue, purchased the Peninsula Daily News from Persis Corporation in 1994.

“Our family has enjoyed owning the Peninsula Daily News for 17 years, and we’re very proud of its employees and their commitment to serving the news and information needs of the Clallam and Jefferson County communities and the quality journalism they provide,” Horvitz said. “We’re delighted that Black Press has chosen to add the Peninsula Daily News and Sequim This Week to its family of Pacific Northwest publications.”