RUMOR: New York Times Near Sale Of About.com To Answers.com

The New York Times is nearing a sale of About.com to Answers.com according to AllThingsD.  The New York Times has been looking to sell off About.com for some time now.  About.com is known for publishing high-volume and low-cost content.  Answers.com is reportedly paying $270 million to acquire About.com according to AllThingsD sources.  The letter-of-intent has already been signed.

Private equity companies Summit Partners and TA Associates are currently working on lining up the financing.  The New York Times acquired About.com for $410 million in 2005.  The Times took a $195 million goodwill write-down on About.com last month.  About.com’s traffic relies largely on Google.

The deal has not been finalized and all talks could still be halted.