Guide Note

Hubert Burda is publisher and Chairman of the Board of Hubert Burda Media, a multi-billion dollar publishing empire which is responsible for such magazines as Germany's Focus, Bunte, and Freundin.

Fast Facts

1. Born: February 9, 1940
2. Birthplace: Heidelberg, Germany
3. Company: Hubert Burda Media
4. Alma-mater: Ludwig Maximilians University of Munich
5. Net Worth (2007): $4.3 billion
6. Occupation: Chief Executive Officer, Hubert Burda Media
7. Residence: Munich, Germany
8. Spouse: Maria Fürtwangler

• 1898: Printing facility that would become Burda Media founded by Hubert's grandfather Franz Burda
• 1986: Becomes CEO of Burda Media after death of father, Franz Burda II
• 1991: Marries actress Maria Fürtwangler
• 1994: Burda Media acquired Aenne Burda publishing house, world's largest fashion publisher
• 2001: Establishes Felix Burda Foundation dedicated to funding research and prevention of colon cancer
• 2007: Named #194 on Forbes's "World's Billionaires" list

Burda is the third generation to run the publishing giant that is today Hubert Burda Media. His grandfather, Franz Burda, began publishing out of a printing facility in Offenburg, Germany in 1898, and his son, Franz Burda II took the reins of the company in the 1940s along with his wife, Aenne Burda. Hubert Burda began working for the company in the 1960s after graduating with a doctorate in art history from Ludwig Maximilians University of Munich. After his father died in 1986, Hubert became the head of a massive publishing empire. In the 1990s, Burda steered the company into interactive and electronic media, and the company has seen fantastic growth ever since. Burda is also a generous philanthropist and philosopher, supporting Steven Spielberg's Shoah Foundation, the Academy for the Third Millennium, a think-tank devoted to analyzing future trends, and the Felix Burda Foundation, a colon cancer research charity begun after the death of his son from the disease.