Magazine publisher Encanta Media has been sold to online publisher Magicalia for £2.72 million to integrate the business into the online and print specialist community publisher.

Magicalia purchased Encanta - which publishes nine specialist-interest magazines - from buyout fund Endless. It bought the company in January, this year, when Highbury House Communications went into administration.

The initial integration of the businesses will be focused on launching community websites for Encanta's woodworking, modelling, patchwork and gardening magazines on Magicalia's online platform.

Jeremy Tapp, joint managing director of Magicalia, told Journalism.co.uk that the company was using technological expertise gained through publishing online magazines to push into the traditional print sector and create cross-platform brands.

He added: "The Encanta deal is only the first step of our role out of several magazine groups.

"We should end up with just over 20 cross-media publications. Plus anymore magazine groups that we buy along the way."

Peter Harkness, currently chairman of Encanta, will become executive chairman of Magicalia. Other senior employees at Encanta will take up roles with the cross-platform publisher.