John Wiley & Sons (WLY) 10-Q 11 Mar 15 2015 Q3 Quarterly report Financial data

Document_and_Entity_Informatio

Document and Entity Information	9 Months Ended
	Jan. 31, 2015	Feb. 28, 2015
Entity Information [Line Items]
Entity Registrant Name	WILEY JOHN & SONS, INC.
Entity Central Index Key	107140
Current Fiscal Year End Date	-26
Entity Well-known Seasoned Issuer	Yes
Entity Voluntary Filers	No
Entity Current Reporting Status	Yes
Entity Filer Category	Large Accelerated Filer
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2015
Document Fiscal Period Focus	Q3
Document Type	10-Q
Amendment Flag	FALSE
Document Period End Date	31-Jan-15
Common Stock Class A [Member]
Entity Information [Line Items]
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		49,236,530
Common Stock Class B [Member]
Entity Information [Line Items]
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		9,482,004

CONDENSED_CONSOLIDATED_STATEME

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF FINANCIAL POSITION - UNAUDITED (USD $)	Jan. 31, 2015	Apr. 30, 2014	Jan. 31, 2014
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified
Current Assets
Cash and cash equivalents	$260,215	$486,377	$315,985
Accounts receivable	220,311	149,733	205,796
Inventories	65,027	75,495	79,168
Prepaid and other	68,369	78,057	60,540
Total Current Assets	613,922	789,662	661,489
Product Development Assets	71,124	82,940	89,142
Technology, Property & Equipment	187,643	188,718	181,092
Intangible Assets	933,299	984,661	961,931
Goodwill	964,818	903,665	856,707
Income Tax Deposit	60,133	64,037	61,086
Other Assets	63,069	63,682	61,799
Total Assets	2,894,008	3,077,365	2,873,246
Current Liabilities
Short-term debt	100,000	0	0
Accounts and royalties payable	202,173	142,534	205,154
Deferred revenue	307,783	385,654	279,681
Accrued employment costs	79,063	118,503	88,514
Accrued income taxes	9,450	13,324	6,802
Accrued pension liability	4,567	4,671	4,386
Other accrued liabilities	61,025	64,901	48,017
Total Current Liabilities	764,061	729,587	632,554
Long-Term Debt	588,111	700,100	634,000
Accrued Pension Liability	144,818	164,634	195,037
Deferred Income Tax Liabilities	222,922	222,482	199,660
Other Long-Term Liabilities	89,016	78,314	76,005
Shareholders' Equity
Class A & Class B Common Stock	83,190	83,190	83,190
Additional paid-in-capital	351,715	327,588	321,484
Retained earnings	1,567,544	1,489,069	1,467,949
Accumulated other comprehensive loss	-343,255	-190,291	-229,677
Treasury stock	-574,114	-527,308	-506,956
Total Shareholders' Equity	1,085,080	1,182,248	1,135,990
Total Liabilities & Shareholders' Equity	$2,894,008	$3,077,365	$2,873,246

CONDENSED_CONSOLIDATED_STATEME1

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF INCOME - UNAUDITED (USD $)	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
In Thousands, except Per Share data, unless otherwise specified	Jan. 31, 2015	Jan. 31, 2014	Jan. 31, 2015	Jan. 31, 2014
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF INCOME - UNAUDITED [Abstract]
Revenue	$465,905	$457,933	$1,380,794	$1,318,106
Costs and Expenses
Cost of sales	124,245	130,563	382,839	380,706
Operating and administrative expenses	250,479	238,569	755,541	713,090
Restructuring charges	24,034	4,256	23,879	27,327
Impairment charges	0	0	0	4,786
Amortization of intangibles	13,105	11,165	38,859	33,066
Total Costs and Expenses	411,863	384,553	1,201,118	1,158,975
Operating Income	54,042	73,380	179,676	159,131
Interest Expense	-4,365	-3,485	-13,015	-10,348
Foreign Exchange Transaction Gain	2,783	29	2,828	329
Interest Income and Other	800	466	2,218	2,095
Income Before Taxes	53,260	70,390	171,707	151,207
Provision For Income Taxes	10,712	17,901	41,736	26,588
Net Income	$42,548	$52,489	$129,971	$124,619
Earnings Per Share
Diluted (in dollars per share)	$0.72	$0.88	$2.18	$2.10
Basic (in dollars per share)	$0.73	$0.89	$2.21	$2.13
Average Shares
Diluted (in shares)	59,343	59,713	59,632	59,388
Basic (in shares)	58,517	58,734	58,813	58,569
Class A Common [Member]
Cash Dividends Per Share
Common stock (in dollars per share)	$0.29	$0.25	$0.87	$0.75
Class B Common [Member]
Cash Dividends Per Share
Common stock (in dollars per share)	$0.29	$0.25	$0.87	$0.75

CONDENSED_CONSOLIDATED_STATEME2

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF COMPREHENSIVE (LOSS) INCOME - UNAUDITED (USD $)	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Jan. 31, 2015	Jan. 31, 2014	Jan. 31, 2015	Jan. 31, 2014
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOME - UNAUDITED [Abstract]
Net Income	$42,548	$52,489	$129,971	$124,619
Other Comprehensive (Loss) Income:
Foreign currency translation adjustment	-99,306	4,351	-166,094	45,488
Unamortized retirement costs, net of tax provision of $2,293, $670 $4,559 and $1,551, respectively	6,450	1,477	13,000	3,176
Unrealized gain (loss) on interest rate swaps, net of tax provision (benefit) of $55, $(39), $56 and $159, respectively	91	-42	130	291
Total Other Comprehensive (Loss) Income	-92,765	5,786	-152,964	48,955
Comprehensive (Loss) Income	($50,217)	$58,275	($22,993)	$173,574

CONDENSED_CONSOLIDATED_STATEME3

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF COMPREHENSIVE (LOSS) INCOME - UNAUDITED (Parenthetical) (USD $)	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Jan. 31, 2015	Jan. 31, 2014	Jan. 31, 2015	Jan. 31, 2014
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOME - UNAUDITED [Abstract]
Unamortized retirement costs, tax provision	$2,293	$670	$4,559	$1,551
Unrealized gain/(loss) on interest rate swaps, tax provision (benefit)	$55	($39)	$56	$159

CONDENSED_CONSOLIDATED_STATEME4

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOW - UNAUDITED (USD $)	9 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Jan. 31, 2015	Jan. 31, 2014
Operating Activities
Net income	$129,971	$124,619
Adjustments to reconcile net income to cash used for operating activities:
Amortization of intangibles	38,859	33,066
Amortization of composition costs	30,695	33,940
Depreciation of technology, property and equipment	46,225	43,596
Restructuring and impairment charges	23,879	32,113
Restructuring payments	-25,473	-20,136
Deferred tax benefits on U.K. rate changes	0	-10,634
Stock-based compensation expense	11,778	10,995
Excess tax (benefit) charge from stock-based compensation	-2,487	2,880
Royalty advances	-77,265	-83,237
Earned royalty advances	77,755	77,663
Other non-cash charges	30,407	37,766
Change in deferred revenue	-62,822	-91,174
Income tax deposit	-6,814	-10,433
Net change in operating assets and liabilities, excluding acquisitions	-60,557	-27,227
Cash Provided by Operating Activities	154,151	153,797
Investing Activities
Composition spending	-26,872	-30,460
Additions to technology, property and equipment	-47,293	-38,733
Acquisitions, net of cash acquired	-172,661	-5,150
Escrowed proceeds from sale of consumer publishing programs	1,100	0
Cash Used for Investing Activities	-245,726	-74,343
Financing Activities
Repayment of long-term debt	-550,083	-486,600
Borrowings of long-term debt	435,700	447,600
Borrowings of short-term debt	100,000	0
Change in book overdrafts	-8,742	-21,859
Cash dividends	-51,491	-44,182
Purchase of treasury stock	-61,981	-38,533
Proceeds from exercise of stock options and other	24,492	48,540
Excess tax benefit (charge) from stock-based compensation	2,487	-2,880
Cash Used for Financing Activities	-109,618	-97,914
Effects of Exchange Rate Changes on Cash and Cash Equivalents	-24,969	305
Cash and Cash Equivalents
Decrease for the Period	-226,162	-18,155
Balance at Beginning of Period	486,377	334,140
Balance at End of Period	260,215	315,985
Cash Paid During the Period for:
Interest	11,267	9,331
Income taxes, net	$35,061	$52,046

Basis_of_Presentation

Basis of Presentation	9 Months Ended
	Jan. 31, 2015
Basis of Presentation [Abstract]
Basis of Presentation	1	Basis of Presentation
	In the opinion of management, the accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements contain all adjustments, consisting only of normal recurring adjustments, necessary to present fairly the financial condition, results of operations, comprehensive (loss) income and cash flows for the periods presented. Operating results for the interim period are not necessarily indicative of the results expected for the full year. For the Company’s recent international acquisition CrossKnowledge Group, Ltd. (“CrossKnowledge”), results reflect five and nine months of operations for the quarter and year-to-date periods ending January 31, 2015, respectively. Previously reported results were on a two-month lag, as disclosed, to facilitate accurate reporting. With the five months reported, CrossKnowledge is now current on a year-to-date basis. These financial statements should be read in conjunction with the most recent audited financial statements included in the Company’s Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended April 30, 2014.
	The preparation of the Company’s financial statements in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and reported amounts of revenue and expenses during the reporting period. Actual results could differ from those estimates. Certain prior year amounts have been reclassified to conform to the current year’s presentation.

Recent_Accounting_Standards

Recent Accounting Standards	9 Months Ended
	Jan. 31, 2015
Recent Accounting Standards [Abstract]
Recent Accounting Standards	2	Recent Accounting Standards
	In May 2014, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued ASU 2014-09 "Revenue From Contracts With Customers" (Topic 606) (“ASU 2014-09”), and the International Accounting Standards Board (“IASB”) published its equivalent standard, International Financial Reporting Standard (“IFRS”) 15, “Revenue from Contracts with Customers”. The standard will require companies to review contract arrangements with customers and ensure all separate performance obligations are properly recognized in compliance with the new guidance. The standard is effective for the Company on May 1, 2017 with early adoption prohibited. The standard allows for either “full retrospective” adoption, meaning the standard is applied to all periods presented or “cumulative effect” adoption, meaning the standard is applied only to the most current period presented in the financial statements. The Company is currently assessing whether the adoption of the guidance will have an impact on its consolidated financial statements.

ShareBased_Compensation

Share-Based Compensation	9 Months Ended
	Jan. 31, 2015
Share-Based Compensation [Abstract]
Share-Based Compensation	3	Share-Based Compensation
	The Company has share-based compensation plans under which employees may be granted options to purchase shares of Company common stock at the fair market value at the time of grant.  In addition to stock options, the Company grants performance-based stock awards and other restricted stock awards to certain management level employees. The Company recognizes the grant date fair value of share-based compensation in net income on a straight-line basis over the requisite service period. The measurement of performance for performance-based stock awards is based on actual financial results for targets established three years in advance. For both the three months ended January 31, 2015 and 2014, the Company recognized share-based compensation expense, on a pre-tax basis, of $3.7 million. For the nine months ended January 31, 2015 and 2014, the Company recognized share-based compensation expense, on a pre-tax basis, of $11.8 million and $11.0 million, respectively.
	The following table provides share-based compensation data for awards granted by the Company:
			For the Nine Months
			Ended January 31,
			2015			2014
	Restricted Stock:
	Awards granted (in thousands)			306			375
	Weighted average fair value of grant		$	59.63		$	40.75
	Stock Options:
	Awards granted (in thousands)			188			322
	Weighted average fair value of grant		$	16.97		$	10.12
	The weighted average Black-Scholes fair value assumptions for stock option grants are as follows:
			For the Nine Months
			Ended January 31,
			2015			2014
	Expected life of options (years)			7.2			7.4
	Risk-free interest rate			2.2	%		2.1	%
	Expected volatility			30.9	%		30.5	%
	Expected dividend yield			1.9	%		2.5	%
	Fair value of common stock on grant date		$	59.7		$	39.53

Accumulated_Other_Comprehensiv

Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss	9 Months Ended
	Jan. 31, 2015
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss [Abstract]
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss	4.     Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss
	Changes in Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss by component, net of tax, for the three and nine months ended January 31, 2015 were as follows (in thousands):
		Foreign			Unamortized			Interest
		Currency			Retirement			Rate
		Translation			Costs			Swaps			Total
	Balance at October 31, 2014	$	(133,452	)	$	(116,475	)	$	(563	)	$	(250,490	)
	Other comprehensive (loss) income before reclassifications		(99,306	)		4,998			(215	)		(94,523	)
	Amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive loss		-			1,452			306			1,758
	Total other comprehensive (loss) income		(99,306	)		6,450			91			(92,765	)
	Balance at January 31, 2015	$	(232,758	)	$	(110,025	)	$	(472	)	$	(343,255	)
		Foreign			Unamortized			Interest
		Currency			Retirement			Rate
		Translation			Costs			Swaps			Total
	Balance at April 30, 2014	$	(66,664	)	$	(123,025	)	$	(602	)	$	(190,291	)
	Other comprehensive (loss) income before reclassifications		(166,094	)		8,439			(638	)		(158,293	)
	Amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive loss		-			4,561			768			5,329
	Total other comprehensive (loss) income		(166,094	)		13,000			130			(152,964	)
	Balance at January 31, 2015	$	(232,758	)	$	(110,025	)	$	(472	)	$	(343,255	)
		Foreign			Unamortized			Interest
		Currency			Retirement			Rate
		Translation			Costs			Swaps			Total
	Balance at October 31, 2013	$	(93,402	)	$	(141,425	)	$	(636	)	$	(235,463	)
	Other comprehensive income (loss) before reclassifications		4,351			(1,134	)		(128	)		3,089
	Amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive loss		-			2,611			86			2,697
	Total other comprehensive income (loss)		4,351			1,477			(42	)		5,786
	Balance at January 31, 2014	$	(89,051	)	$	(139,948	)	$	(678	)	$	(229,677	)
		Foreign			Unamortized			Interest
		Currency			Retirement			Rate
		Translation			Costs			Swaps			Total
	Balance at April 30, 2013	$	(134,539	)	$	(143,124	)	$	(969	)	$	(278,632	)
	Other comprehensive income (loss) before reclassifications		45,488			(4,528	)		(157	)		40,803
	Amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive loss		-			7,704			448			8,152
	Total other comprehensive income		45,488			3,176			291			48,955
	Balance at January 31, 2014	$	(89,051	)	$	(139,948	)	$	(678	)	$	(229,677	)
	During the three months ended January 31, 2015 and 2014, pre-tax actuarial losses included in Unamortized Retirement Costs of approximately $2.1 million and $3.7 million, respectively, were amortized from Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss and recognized as pension expense in Operating and Administrative Expenses in the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income. During the nine months ended January 31, 2015 and 2014, pre-tax actuarial losses of approximately $6.0 million and $10.9 million, respectively, were amortized.

Reconciliation_of_Weighted_Ave

Reconciliation of Weighted Average Shares Outstanding and Share Repurchases	9 Months Ended
	Jan. 31, 2015
Reconciliation of Weighted Average Shares Outstanding [Abstract]
Reconciliation of Weighted Average Shares Outstanding	5.     Reconciliation of Weighted Average Shares Outstanding and Share Repurchases
	A reconciliation of the shares used in the computation of earnings per share follows (in thousands):
		For the Three Months						For the Nine Months
		Ended January 31,						Ended January 31,
		2015			2014			2015			2014
	Weighted average shares outstanding		58,773			59,040			59,061			58,857
	Less: Unearned restricted shares		(256	)		(306	)		(248	)		(288	)
	Shares used for basic earnings per share		58,517			58,734			58,813			58,569
	Dilutive effect of stock options and other stock awards		826			979			819			819
	Shares used for diluted earnings per share		59,343			59,713			59,632			59,388
	Since their inclusion in the calculation of diluted earnings per share would have been anti-dilutive, options to purchase 178,144  shares of Class A Common Stock have been excluded for both the three and nine months ended January 31, 2015. There were no anti-dilutive options excluded for the three months ended January 31, 2014 and 715,952 shares were excluded for the nine months ended January 31, 2014.
	During the three and nine months ended January 31, 2015, the Company repurchased 350,000 shares of common stock at an average price of $58.42 and 1,082,502 shares of common stock at an average price of $47.56, respectively.

Acquisitions

Acquisitions	9 Months Ended
	Jan. 31, 2015
Acquisitions [Abstract]
Acquisitions	6.     Acquisitions:
	CrossKnowledge:
	On May 1, 2014, the Company acquired CrossKnowledge Group Limited (“CrossKnowledge”) for approximately $166 million in cash, net of cash acquired. CrossKnowledge is a learning solutions provider focused on leadership and managerial skills development that offers subscription-based, digital learning solutions for global corporations, universities, and small and medium-sized enterprises. CrossKnowledge’s solutions include managerial and leadership skills assessments, courses, certifications, content and executive training programs that are delivered on a cloud-based platform providing over 17,000 learning objects in 17 languages. CrossKnowledge serves over five million end-users in 80 countries. CrossKnowledge reported approximately $37 million of revenue and approximately $5 million of operating income in its fiscal year ended June 30, 2013.
	CrossKnowledge results reflect five and nine months of operations for the quarter and year-to-date periods ended January 31, 2015, respectively. Previously reported results were on a two-month lag, as disclosed, to facilitate accurate reporting. With the five months reported, CrossKnowledge is now current on a year-to-date basis. For the quarter and year-to-date periods ending January 31, 2015, CrossKnowledge’s revenue included in Wiley’s results was $16.2 million and $31.5 million, respectively, and CrossKnowledge’s operating loss included in Wiley’s results was $2.8 million and $3.6 million, respectively. The $166 million purchase price was allocated to identifiable long-lived intangible assets ($63.0 million), mainly customer relationships and content; technology ($6.3 million); long-term deferred tax liabilities ($21.5 million); negative working capital ($4.3 million); and goodwill ($122.5 million). The fair value of intangible assets and technology acquired was based on management’s assessment performed with the assistance of a third party valuation consultant. Goodwill represents the excess of the purchase price over the fair value of net assets acquired and comprises the estimated value of CrossKnowledge’s workforce, unidentifiable intangible assets and the fair value of expected synergies. None of the goodwill is deductible for tax purposes. The identifiable long-lived intangible assets are primarily amortized over a weighted average estimated useful life of approximately 15 years. The acquisition was funded through the use of the Company’s existing credit facility and available cash balances. The Company expects to finalize its purchase accounting for CrossKnowledge by April 30, 2015.
	Profiles International:
	On April 1, 2014, the Company acquired all of the stock of Profiles International (“Profiles”) for approximately $47.5 million in cash, net of cash acquired.  Profiles provides pre-employment assessment and selection tools that enable employers to optimize candidate selections and develop the full potential of their employees. Solutions include pre-hire assessments, including those designed to measure and match personality, knowledge, skills, managerial fit, loyalty, and values; and post-hire assessments, focused on measuring sales and managerial effectiveness, employee performance and career potential. Founded in 1991 and based in Waco, Texas, Profiles has served more than 40,000 enterprise clients and millions of end users in over 120 countries, with assessments available in 32 languages. Profiles reported approximately $27 million of revenue and approximately $5 million of operating income in its fiscal year ended December 31, 2013. The $47.5 million purchase price was allocated to identifiable long-lived intangible assets ($22.9 million), mainly customer relationships and assessment content; technology ($2.7 million); long-term deferred tax liabilities ($9.4 million); a credit to short-term deferred tax assets ($1.9 million); negative working capital ($6.7 million) and goodwill ($39.9 million). The fair value of intangible assets and technology acquired was based on management’s assessment performed with the assistance of a third party valuation consultant. Goodwill represents the excess of the purchase price over the fair value of net assets acquired and comprises the estimated value of Profile’s workforce, unidentifiable intangible assets and the fair value of expected synergies. None of the goodwill is deductible for tax purposes. The Company expects to finalize its purchase accounting for Profiles by April 30, 2015. Profiles contributed $5.8 million and $17.2 million to the Company’s revenue for the three and nine months ended January 31, 2015, respectively.
	Unaudited proforma financial information has not been presented since the effects of the acquisitions were not material.

Restructuring_Programs

Restructuring Programs	9 Months Ended
	Jan. 31, 2015
Restructuring Programs [Abstract]
Restructuring Programs	7.     Restructuring Programs
	Restructuring and Reinvestment Program:
	In fiscal year 2013, the Company initiated a program (the “Restructuring and Reinvestment Program”) to restructure and realign its cost base with current and anticipated future market conditions.  The Company is targeting a majority of the cost savings achieved to improve margins and earnings, while the remainder will be reinvested in high growth digital business opportunities.
	The following tables summarize the pre-tax restructuring charges related to this program, which are reflected in Restructuring Charges in the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income (in thousands):
													Cumulative
													Program
		For the Three Months					For the Nine Months						Charges
		Ended January 31,					Ended January 31,						to Date
		2015		2014			2015			2014
	Charges (Credits) by Segment:
	Research	$	4,507	$	(782	)	$	4,322		$	4,590		$	14,992
	Professional Development		3,588		(833	)		3,833			4,834			21,977
	Education		1,033		117			1,084			375			3,092
	Shared Services		14,906		5,754			14,640			17,528			50,992
	Total Restructuring Charges	$	24,034	$	4,256		$	23,879		$	27,327		$	91,053
	Charges (Credits) by Activity:
	Severance	$	11,962	$	(270	)	$	12,605		$	14,661		$	58,271
	Process reengineering consulting		446		2,588			301			8,199			11,475
	Other activities		11,626		1,938			10,973			4,467			21,307
	Total Restructuring Charges	$	24,034	$	4,256		$	23,879		$	27,327		$	91,053
	The credits reflected above within the three month period of fiscal year 2014 reflect true-ups to the previously estimated accrued restructuring charges. Other Activities mainly reflect leased facility consolidations and other contract termination costs.
	The following table summarizes the activity for the Restructuring and Reinvestment Program liability for the nine months ended January 31, 2015 (in thousands):
										Foreign
		April 30,								Translation &			January 31,
		2014		Charges			Payments			Reclassifications			2015
	Severance	$	29,255	$	12,605		$	(21,460	)	$	(695	)	$	19,705
	Process reengineering consulting		722		301			(1,024	)		46			45
	Other activities		4,995		10,973			(2,989	)		388			13,367
	Total	$	34,972	$	23,879		$	(25,473	)	$	(261	)	$	33,117
	The restructuring liability for accrued Severance costs is reflected in Accrued Employment Costs in the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Financial Position while the Process reengineering consulting costs are reflected in Other Accrued Liabilities. Approximately $0.1 million and $13.3 million of the Other Activities are reflected in Other Accrued Liabilities and Other Long-Term Liabilities, respectively.

Impairment_Charges

Impairment Charges	9 Months Ended
	Jan. 31, 2015
Impairment Charges [Abstract]
Impairment Charges	8.     Impairment Charges
	In the second quarter of fiscal year 2014, the Company terminated a multi-year software development program for an internal operations application due to a change in the Company’s longer-term enterprise systems plans. As a result, the Company recorded an asset impairment charge for previously capitalized software costs related to the program of $4.8 million.

Segment_Information

Segment Information	9 Months Ended
	Jan. 31, 2015
Segment Information [Abstract]
Segment Information	9.     Segment Information
	The Company is a global provider of knowledge and knowledge-enabled services that improve outcomes in areas of research, professional practice and education. Through the Research segment, the Company provides digital and print scientific, technical, medical and scholarly journals, reference works, books, database services and advertising. The Professional Development segment provides digital and print books, online assessment and training services, and test prep and certification. In Education, the Company provides print and digital content, and education solutions including online program management services for higher education institutions and course management tools for instructors and students. The Company takes full advantage of its content from all three core businesses in developing and cross-marketing products to its diverse customer base of researchers, professionals, students, and educators. The use of technology enables the Company to make its content efficiently more accessible to its customers around the world. The Company’s operations are primarily located in the North America, Europe, Asia, and Australia.
	As part of Wiley’s restructuring and reorganization program, during the first quarter of fiscal year 2015, the Company consolidated certain decentralized business functions (Content Management, Vendor Procurement Services, Marketing Services, etc.) into Shared Service and Administrative functions. These newly centralized service groups are part of the Company’s plan to reduce costs through efficiencies gained from standardized technology and centralized management. The costs of these functions were previously reported as direct operating expenses in each business segment but will now be reported within the shared service functions. Prior year amounts have been restated to reflect the same reporting methodology. The Company uses occupied square footage of space; number of employees; units shipped; specific identification/activity-based; gross profit; revenue and number of invoices to allocate shared service costs to each business segment.
	Segment information is as follows (in thousands):
		For the Three Months						For the Nine Months
		Ended January 31,						Ended January 31,
		2015			2014			2015			2014
	RESEARCH
	Revenue	$	246,454		$	248,797		$	766,149		$	747,532
	Direct Contribution to Profit	$	108,727		$	111,318		$	344,155		$	334,179
	Allocated Shared Services and Administrative Costs:
	Distribution and Operation Services		(10,722	)		(11,406	)		(34,141	)		(34,801	)
	Technology and Content Management		(24,254	)		(24,888	)		(75,440	)		(75,969	)
	Occupancy and Other		(5,752	)		(5,791	)		(17,971	)		(18,763	)
	Contribution to Profit	$	67,999		$	69,233		$	216,603		$	204,646
	PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
	Revenue	$	108,587		$	94,201		$	306,581		$	270,832
	Direct Contribution to Profit	$	35,214		$	38,886		$	104,354		$	100,075
	Allocated Shared Services and Administrative Costs:
	Distribution and Operation Services		(7,401	)		(9,634	)		(23,671	)		(28,790	)
	Technology and Content Management		(12,550	)		(11,834	)		(35,347	)		(37,872	)
	Occupancy and Other		(5,956	)		(4,139	)		(18,706	)		(13,900	)
	Contribution to Profit	$	9,307		$	13,279		$	26,630		$	19,513
	EDUCATION
	Revenue	$	110,864		$	114,935		$	308,064		$	299,742
	Direct Contribution to Profit	$	46,415		$	48,411		$	114,721		$	113,041
	Allocated Shared Services and Administrative Costs:
	Distribution and Operation Services		(3,341	)		(4,098	)		(9,886	)		(11,987	)
	Technology and Content Management		(12,815	)		(11,935	)		(39,630	)		(34,979	)
	Occupancy and Other		(3,678	)		(2,527	)		(10,448	)		(8,573	)
	Contribution to Profit	$	26,581		$	29,851		$	54,757		$	57,502
	Total Contribution to Profit	$	103,887		$	112,363		$	297,990		$	281,661
	Unallocated Shared Services and Administrative Costs		(49,845	)		(38,983	)		(118,314	)		(122,530	)
	Operating Income	$	54,042		$	73,380		$	179,676		$	159,131
	The following table reflects total Shared Services and Administrative costs by function, which are allocated to business segments based on the methodologies described above:
		For the Three Months						For the Nine Months
		Ended January 31,						Ended January 31,
	Total Shared Services and Administrative Costs:	2015			2014			2015			2014
	Distribution & Operation Services	$	21,205		$	25,227		$	67,324		$	75,743
	Technology & Content Management		59,329			58,375			181,160			178,082
	Finance		13,629			13,312			40,181			39,554
	Other Administration		27,245			22,567			80,249			72,471
	Restructuring Charges (see Note 7)		14,906			5,754			14,640			22,314
	Total	$	136,314		$	125,235		$	383,554		$	388,164
	In the first quarter of fiscal year 2015, the Company modified its segment product/service revenue categories to reflect recent changes to the business, including acquisitions and restructuring. All prior periods have been revised to reflect the new categorization as follows:
		For the Three Months						For the Nine Months
		Ended January 31,						Ended January 31,
	Total Revenue by Product/Service:	2015			2014			2015			2014
	Research Communications	$	187,654		$	185,775		$	598,175		$	566,399
	Books and Custom Print Products		171,131			196,468			513,237			546,860
	Education Services (Deltak)		22,974			19,144			58,908			50,395
	Talent Solutions		29,086			6,484			72,702			21,625
	Course Workflow Solutions (WileyPlus)		20,841			18,575			40,552			35,587
	Other		34,219			31,487			97,220			97,240
	Total	$	465,905		$	457,933		$	1,380,794		$	1,318,106

Inventories

Inventories	9 Months Ended
	Jan. 31, 2015
Inventories [Abstract]
Inventories	10	Inventories
	Inventories were as follows (in thousands):
			As of January 31,						As of April 30,
			2015			2014			2014
	Finished goods		$	48,212		$	62,460		$	62,071
	Work-in-process			6,884			6,875			6,041
	Paper, cloth and other			5,485			7,088			5,476
			$	60,581		$	76,423		$	73,588
	Inventory value of estimated sales returns			9,538			8,797			6,774
	LIFO reserve			(5,092	)		(6,052	)		(4,867	)
	Total inventories		$	65,027		$	79,168		$	75,495

Intangible_Assets

Intangible Assets	9 Months Ended
	Jan. 31, 2015
Intangible Assets [Abstract]
Intangible Assets	11	Intangible Assets
	Intangible assets consisted of the following (in thousands):
			As of January 31,				As of April 30,
			2015		2014		2014
	Intangible assets with indefinite lives:
	Brands and trademarks		$	151,933	$	162,179	$	164,202
	Content and publishing rights			87,280		105,701		106,898
			$	239,213	$	267,880	$	271,100
	Net intangible assets with determinable lives:
	Content and publishing rights		$	490,478	$	529,197	$	535,827
	Customer relationships			185,291		150,649		162,295
	Brands and trademarks			17,572		13,400		14,716
	Covenants not to compete			745		805		723
			$	694,086	$	694,051	$	713,561
	Total		$	933,299	$	961,931	$	984,661
	In the third quarter of fiscal year 2015, the Company completed its annual impairment review of Goodwill and indefinite-lived intangible assets. No impairments were identified.

Income_Taxes

Income Taxes	9 Months Ended
	Jan. 31, 2015
Income Taxes [Abstract]
Income Taxes	12.   Income Taxes
	The effective tax rate for the nine months ended  January 31, 2015 was 24.3% compared to 17.6% in the prior year. During the first quarter of fiscal year 2014, the Company recorded non-cash deferred tax benefits of $10.6 million ($0.18 per share), principally associated with new tax legislation enacted in the United Kingdom (“U.K.”) that reduced the U.K. statutory income tax rates by 3%. The benefits reflect the measurement of all applicable U.K. deferred tax balances to the new income tax rates of 21% effective April 1, 2014 and 20% effective April 1, 2015. Excluding the impact of the deferred tax benefit described above, the Company’s effective tax rate decreased from 24.6% to 24.3% principally due to a lower proportion of income from high tax jurisdictions in the current year and lower U.K. income tax rates partially offset by  lower net tax reserve releases of $2.0 million.
	Payments Related to Tax Audit in Germany
	In fiscal year 2003, the Company merged several of its German subsidiaries into a new operating entity which enabled the Company to increase (“step-up”) the tax deductible net asset basis of the merged subsidiaries to fair market value. The expected tax benefits to be derived from the step-up are approximately 50 million euros claimed as amortization over 15 years beginning in fiscal year 2003.
	In May 2012, as part of its routine tax audit process, the German tax authorities filed a challenge to the Company’s tax position with respect to the amortization of certain stepped-up assets. The Company filed an appeal with the local finance court in September 2014.  Under German tax law, the Company must pay all contested taxes and the related interest to have the right to defend its position. As a result, the Company made deposits of 5 million and 8 million euros in the first nine months of fiscal years 2015 and 2014, respectively, related to amortization claimed on certain “stepped-up” assets. The Company has made all required payments to date with total deposits paid of 48 million euros through January 31, 2015. The Company expects that it will be required to deposit additional amounts up to 10 million euros plus interest for tax returns to be filed in future periods until the issue is resolved.
	In October 2014, the Company received an unfavorable decision from the local finance court and is in the process of appealing the court decision. The Company’s management and its advisors continue to believe that the Compnay is “more likely than not” to successfully defend that the tax treatment was proper and in accordance with German tax regulations, as such the Company has not recorded any charges related to the loss of the step-up benefit. The Company filed its appeal in January 2015. Resolution of the appeal is expected to take 18 to 24 months. If the Company is ultimately successful, as expected, the tax deposits will be returned with 6% simple interest, based on current German legislation. As of January 31, 2015, the USD equivalent of the deposit and accrued interest was $60.1 million, which is recorded as Income Tax Deposits on the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Financial Position. The Company records the accrued interest at 6% within the Provision for Income Taxes in the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income.

Retirement_Plans

Retirement Plans	9 Months Ended
	Jan. 31, 2015
Retirement Plans [Abstract]
Retirement Plans	13	Retirement Plans
	The components of net pension expense for the company’s global defined benefit plans were as follows (in thousands):
			For the Three Months						For the Nine Months
			Ended January 31,						Ended January 31,
			2015			2014			2015			2014
	Service Cost		$	1,516		$	2,042		$	4,657		$	6,004
	Interest Cost			8,039			7,509			23,228			22,173
	Expected Return on Plan Assets			(9,683	)		(9,176	)		(27,660	)		(27,064	)
	Net Amortization of Prior Service Cost			22			32			77			93
	Recognized Net Actuarial Loss			2,075			3,610			5,855			10,669
	Net Pension Expense		$	1,969		$	4,017		$	6,157		$	11,875
	As disclosed in the Company’s fiscal year 2013 Form 10-K, in March 2013 the Company’s Board of Directors approved plan amendments that froze the U.S. Employees’ Retirement Plan, Supplemental Benefit Plan, and Supplemental Executive Retirement Plan, defined benefit plans effective June 30, 2013. As a result of freezing the U.S. defined benefit plans, the Company changed the amortization period from the average expected future service period of active plan participants to the average expected life of plan participants. Employer defined benefit pension plan contributions were $3.1 million and $9.0 million for the three months ended January 31, 2015 and 2014, respectively, and $8.1 million and $14.5 million for the nine months ended January 31, 2015 and 2014, respectively. Contributions for employer defined contribution plans were approximately $3.2 million and $6.1 million for the three months ended January 31, 2015 and 2014 respectively, and $12.1 million and $10.8 million for the nine months ended January 31, 2015 and 2014, respectively.
	The Company’s Board of Directors approved plan amendments that will freeze the Retirement Plan for the Employees of John Wiley & Sons, Canada, which will be effective on December 31, 2015.  Under the amendments, no new employees will be permitted to enter this plan and no additional benefits for current participants for future services will be accrued after December 31, 2015.  The Company recorded a one-time pension plan net credit of $0.6 million in the third quarter of fiscal year 2015 as a result of the plan amendments.

Debt_and_Available_Credit_Faci

Debt and Available Credit Facilities	9 Months Ended
	Jan. 31, 2015
Debt and Available Credit Facilities [Abstract]
Debt and Available Credit Facilities	14.   Debt and Available Credit Facilities
	On December 22, 2014, the Company entered into a new $50 million 30-day U.S. dollar revolving credit facility with Santander Bank, N.A. which is equally ranked with the Company’s existing agreement with Bank of America - Merrill Lynch and The Royal Bank of Scotland plc. and TD Bank, N.A. The facility was fully drawn as of December 22, 2014. The borrowing rate is LIBOR plus a margin of 1.0%. The proceeds of the new revolving credit facility were used to pay a portion of the Company’s existing revolving credit facilities and meet seasonal operating cash requirements.
	On October 31, 2014, the Company entered into a new U.S. dollar facility with TD Bank, N.A. which is equally ranked with the Company’s existing agreement with Bank of America - Merrill Lynch and The Royal Bank of Scotland plc. and Santander Bank. The new agreement consists of a $50 million 364-day revolving credit facility. The facility was fully drawn as of October 31, 2014. The borrowing rate is LIBOR plus an applicable margin ranging from 0.80% to 1.40%, and a facility fee will be due on any undrawn amounts ranging from 0.125% to 0.30%, both depending on the Company consolidated leverage ratio, as defined. The credit agreement contains certain restrictive covenants related to the Company’s consolidated leverage ratio and interest coverage ratio, which the Company was in compliance with as of January 31, 2015. The proceeds of the new revolving credit facility were used to pay a portion of the Company’s existing revolving credit facility and meet seasonal operating cash requirements.

Derivative_Instruments_and_Hed

Derivative Instruments and Hedging Activities	9 Months Ended
	Jan. 31, 2015
Derivative Instruments and Hedging Activities [Abstract]
Derivative Instruments and Hedging Activities	15	Derivative Instruments and Hedging Activities
	The Company, from time-to-time, enters into forward exchange and interest rate swap contracts as a hedge against foreign currency asset and liability commitments, changes in interest rates and anticipated transaction exposures, including intercompany purchases. All derivatives are recognized as assets or liabilities and measured at fair value.  Derivatives that are not determined to be effective hedges are adjusted to fair value with a corresponding adjustment to earnings.  The Company does not use financial instruments for trading or speculative purposes.
	Interest Rate Contracts:
	The Company had $688.0 million of variable rate loans outstanding at January 31, 2015, which approximated fair value. As of January 31, 2015 and 2014, the interest rate swap agreements maintained by the Company were designated as fully effective cash flow hedges as defined under Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) 815 “Derivatives and Hedging”.  As a result, there was no impact on the Company’s Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income for changes in the fair value of the interest rate swaps. Under ASC 815, fully effective derivative instruments that are designated as cash flow hedges have changes in their fair value recorded initially within Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss in the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Financial Position. As interest expense is recognized based on the variable rate loan agreements, the corresponding deferred gain or loss on the interest rate swaps is reclassified from Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss to Interest Expense in the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income. It is management’s intention that the notional amount of interest rate swaps be less than the variable rate loans outstanding during the life of the derivatives.
	On August 15, 2014, the Company entered into an interest rate swap agreement which fixed a portion of the variable interest due on its variable rate loans outstanding. Under the terms of the agreement, the Company pays a fixed rate of 0.65% and receives a variable rate of interest based on one-month LIBOR (as defined) from the counterparty which is reset every month for a two-year period ending August 15, 2016. As of January 31, 2015, the notional amount of the interest rate swap was $150.0 million.
	On January 15, 2014, the Company entered into an interest rate swap agreement which fixed a portion of the variable interest due on its variable rate loans outstanding. Under the terms of the agreement, the Company pays a fixed rate of 0.47% and receives a variable rate of interest based on one-month LIBOR (as defined) from the counterparty which is reset every month for a two-year period ending January 15, 2016. As of January 31, 2015, the notional amount of the interest rate swap was $150.0 million.
	On March 30, 2012, the Company entered into an interest rate swap agreement which fixed a portion of the variable interest due on its variable rate loans outstanding. Under the terms of the agreement, the Company pays a fixed rate of 0.645% and receives a variable rate of interest based on one-month LIBOR (as defined) from the counterparty which is reset every month for a three-year period ending March 31, 2015. As of January 31, 2015, the notional amount of the interest rate swap was $150.0 million.
	The Company records the fair value of its interest rate swaps on a recurring basis using Level 2 inputs of quoted prices for similar assets or liabilities in active markets. The fair value of the interest rate swaps as of January 31, 2015 and 2014 and April 30, 2014 was a deferred loss of $0.8 million, $1.1 million, and $1.0 million, respectively. Based on the maturity dates of the contracts, approximately $0.4 million and $0.7 million of the deferred losses as of January 31, 2015 and April 30, 2014 were recorded in Other Accrued Liabilities, with the remaining deferred losses in each period of $0.4 million and $0.3 million recorded in Other Long-Term Liabilities, respectively. The entire $1.1 million deferred loss as of January 31, 2014 was recorded in Other Long-Term Liabilities. The pre-tax losses that were reclassified from Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss into Interest Expense for the three months ended January 31, 2015 and 2014 were $0.5 million and $0.3 million, respectively. The pre-tax losses that were reclassified from Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss into Interest Expense for the nine months ended January 31, 2015 and 2014 were $1.3 million and $0.9 million, respectively.
	Foreign Currency Contracts:
	The Company may enter into forward exchange contracts to manage the Company’s exposure on certain foreign currency denominated assets and liabilities. The forward exchange contracts are marked to market through Foreign Exchange Transaction Gains (Losses) in the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income, and carried at their fair value in the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Financial Position. Foreign currency denominated assets and liabilities are remeasured at spot rates in effect on the balance sheet date, with the effects of changes in spot rates reported in Foreign Exchange Transaction Gains (Losses). As of January 31, 2015, the Company maintained two open forward contracts with notional amounts of 75 million euros and 103 million pounds sterling to hedge certain intercompany loans. As of January 31, 2014, the total notional amounts of the open forward contracts were 73 million pounds sterling. The Company did not maintain any open forward contracts as of April 30, 2014. During the first nine months of fiscal years 2015 and 2014, the Company did not designate any forward contracts as hedges under current accounting standards as the benefits of doing so were not material due to the short-term nature of the contracts. The fair value changes in the forward exchange contracts substantially mitigated the changes in the value of the applicable foreign currency denominated assets and liabilities.
	As of January 31, 2015 and 2014, the fair values of the open forward exchange contracts were losses of approximately $8.8 million and $0.3 million, respectively, and recorded within Other Accrued Liabilities, in the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Financial Position. The fair values were measured on a recurring basis using Level 2 inputs. For the three and nine months ended January 31, 2015, losses recognized on the forward contracts were $4.6 million, $8.8 million, respectively. For the three and nine months ended January 31, 2014, losses recognized on the forward contracts were $0.3 million and $0.4 million, respectively.

Corporate_Headquarters_Lease_R

Corporate Headquarters Lease Renewal	9 Months Ended
	Jan. 31, 2015
Corporate Headquarters Lease Renewal [Abstract]
Corporate Headquarters Lease Renewal	16	Corporate Headquarters Lease Renewal
	During the first quarter of fiscal year 2015, the Company renewed the lease for its corporate headquarters in Hoboken, New Jersey. The lease renewal is an operating lease which commences on July 1, 2017 and extends the current lease through March 31, 2033.  As a result of the renewal, the Company’s total future minimum payments under the new lease will be $223.0 million, with annual minimum payments of $14.4 million in fiscal years 2018 through 2022.

Recent_Accounting_Standards_Po

Recent Accounting Standards (Policies)	9 Months Ended
	Jan. 31, 2015
Recent Accounting Standards [Abstract]
Recent Accounting Standards	In May 2014, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued ASU 2014-09 "Revenue From Contracts With Customers" (Topic 606) (“ASU 2014-09”), and the International Accounting Standards Board (“IASB”) published its equivalent standard, International Financial Reporting Standard (“IFRS”) 15, “Revenue from Contracts with Customers”. The standard will require companies to review contract arrangements with customers and ensure all separate performance obligations are properly recognized in compliance with the new guidance. The standard is effective for the Company on May 1, 2017 with early adoption prohibited. The standard allows for either “full retrospective” adoption, meaning the standard is applied to all periods presented or “cumulative effect” adoption, meaning the standard is applied only to the most current period presented in the financial statements. The Company is currently assessing whether the adoption of the guidance will have an impact on its consolidated financial statements.

ShareBased_Compensation_Tables

Share-Based Compensation (Tables)	9 Months Ended
	Jan. 31, 2015
Share-Based Compensation [Abstract]
Schedule of share-based compensation data for awards granted	The following table provides share-based compensation data for awards granted by the Company:
		For the Nine Months
		Ended January 31,
		2015			2014
	Restricted Stock:
	Awards granted (in thousands)		306			375
	Weighted average fair value of grant	$	59.63		$	40.75
	Stock Options:
	Awards granted (in thousands)		188			322
	Weighted average fair value of grant	$	16.97		$	10.12
Weighted-average black-scholes fair value assumptions by stock option grants	The weighted average Black-Scholes fair value assumptions for stock option grants are as follows:
		For the Nine Months
		Ended January 31,
		2015			2014
	Expected life of options (years)		7.2			7.4
	Risk-free interest rate		2.2	%		2.1	%
	Expected volatility		30.9	%		30.5	%
	Expected dividend yield		1.9	%		2.5	%
	Fair value of common stock on grant date	$	59.7		$	39.53

Accumulated_Other_Comprehensiv1

Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss (Tables)	9 Months Ended
	Jan. 31, 2015
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss [Abstract]
Changes in accumulated other comprehensive loss by component, net of tax	Changes in Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss by component, net of tax, for the three and nine months ended January 31, 2015 were as follows (in thousands):
		Foreign			Unamortized			Interest
		Currency			Retirement			Rate
		Translation			Costs			Swaps			Total
	Balance at October 31, 2014	$	(133,452	)	$	(116,475	)	$	(563	)	$	(250,490	)
	Other comprehensive (loss) income before reclassifications		(99,306	)		4,998			(215	)		(94,523	)
	Amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive loss		-			1,452			306			1,758
	Total other comprehensive (loss) income		(99,306	)		6,450			91			(92,765	)
	Balance at January 31, 2015	$	(232,758	)	$	(110,025	)	$	(472	)	$	(343,255	)
		Foreign			Unamortized			Interest
		Currency			Retirement			Rate
		Translation			Costs			Swaps			Total
	Balance at April 30, 2014	$	(66,664	)	$	(123,025	)	$	(602	)	$	(190,291	)
	Other comprehensive (loss) income before reclassifications		(166,094	)		8,439			(638	)		(158,293	)
	Amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive loss		-			4,561			768			5,329
	Total other comprehensive (loss) income		(166,094	)		13,000			130			(152,964	)
	Balance at January 31, 2015	$	(232,758	)	$	(110,025	)	$	(472	)	$	(343,255	)
		Foreign			Unamortized			Interest
		Currency			Retirement			Rate
		Translation			Costs			Swaps			Total
	Balance at October 31, 2013	$	(93,402	)	$	(141,425	)	$	(636	)	$	(235,463	)
	Other comprehensive income (loss) before reclassifications		4,351			(1,134	)		(128	)		3,089
	Amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive loss		-			2,611			86			2,697
	Total other comprehensive income (loss)		4,351			1,477			(42	)		5,786
	Balance at January 31, 2014	$	(89,051	)	$	(139,948	)	$	(678	)	$	(229,677	)
		Foreign			Unamortized			Interest
		Currency			Retirement			Rate
		Translation			Costs			Swaps			Total
	Balance at April 30, 2013	$	(134,539	)	$	(143,124	)	$	(969	)	$	(278,632	)
	Other comprehensive income (loss) before reclassifications		45,488			(4,528	)		(157	)		40,803
	Amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive loss		-			7,704			448			8,152
	Total other comprehensive income		45,488			3,176			291			48,955
	Balance at January 31, 2014	$	(89,051	)	$	(139,948	)	$	(678	)	$	(229,677	)

Reconciliation_of_Weighted_Ave1

Reconciliation of Weighted Average Shares Outstanding and Share Repurchases (Tables)	9 Months Ended
	Jan. 31, 2015
Reconciliation of Weighted Average Shares Outstanding [Abstract]
Reconciliation of shares used in computation of earnings per share	A reconciliation of the shares used in the computation of earnings per share follows (in thousands):
		For the Three Months						For the Nine Months
		Ended January 31,						Ended January 31,
		2015			2014			2015			2014
	Weighted average shares outstanding		58,773			59,040			59,061			58,857
	Less: Unearned restricted shares		(256	)		(306	)		(248	)		(288	)
	Shares used for basic earnings per share		58,517			58,734			58,813			58,569
	Dilutive effect of stock options and other stock awards		826			979			819			819
	Shares used for diluted earnings per share		59,343			59,713			59,632			59,388

Restructuring_Programs_Tables

Restructuring Programs (Tables)	9 Months Ended
	Jan. 31, 2015
Restructuring Programs [Abstract]
Pre-tax restructuring charges	The following tables summarize the pre-tax restructuring charges related to this program, which are reflected in Restructuring Charges in the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income (in thousands):
													Cumulative
													Program
		For the Three Months					For the Nine Months						Charges
		Ended January 31,					Ended January 31,						to Date
		2015		2014			2015			2014
	Charges (Credits) by Segment:
	Research	$	4,507	$	(782	)	$	4,322		$	4,590		$	14,992
	Professional Development		3,588		(833	)		3,833			4,834			21,977
	Education		1,033		117			1,084			375			3,092
	Shared Services		14,906		5,754			14,640			17,528			50,992
	Total Restructuring Charges	$	24,034	$	4,256		$	23,879		$	27,327		$	91,053
	Charges (Credits) by Activity:
	Severance	$	11,962	$	(270	)	$	12,605		$	14,661		$	58,271
	Process reengineering consulting		446		2,588			301			8,199			11,475
	Other activities		11,626		1,938			10,973			4,467			21,307
	Total Restructuring Charges	$	24,034	$	4,256		$	23,879		$	27,327		$	91,053
Activity for restructuring and reinvestment program liability	The following table summarizes the activity for the Restructuring and Reinvestment Program liability for the nine months ended January 31, 2015 (in thousands):
										Foreign
		April 30,								Translation &			January 31,
		2014		Charges			Payments			Reclassifications			2015
	Severance	$	29,255	$	12,605		$	(21,460	)	$	(695	)	$	19,705
	Process reengineering consulting		722		301			(1,024	)		46			45
	Other activities		4,995		10,973			(2,989	)		388			13,367
	Total	$	34,972	$	23,879		$	(25,473	)	$	(261	)	$	33,117

Segment_Information_Tables

Segment Information (Tables)	9 Months Ended
	Jan. 31, 2015
Segment Information [Abstract]
Segment information	Segment information is as follows (in thousands):
		For the Three Months						For the Nine Months
		Ended January 31,						Ended January 31,
		2015			2014			2015			2014
	RESEARCH
	Revenue	$	246,454		$	248,797		$	766,149		$	747,532
	Direct Contribution to Profit	$	108,727		$	111,318		$	344,155		$	334,179
	Allocated Shared Services and Administrative Costs:
	Distribution and Operation Services		(10,722	)		(11,406	)		(34,141	)		(34,801	)
	Technology and Content Management		(24,254	)		(24,888	)		(75,440	)		(75,969	)
	Occupancy and Other		(5,752	)		(5,791	)		(17,971	)		(18,763	)
	Contribution to Profit	$	67,999		$	69,233		$	216,603		$	204,646
	PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
	Revenue	$	108,587		$	94,201		$	306,581		$	270,832
	Direct Contribution to Profit	$	35,214		$	38,886		$	104,354		$	100,075
	Allocated Shared Services and Administrative Costs:
	Distribution and Operation Services		(7,401	)		(9,634	)		(23,671	)		(28,790	)
	Technology and Content Management		(12,550	)		(11,834	)		(35,347	)		(37,872	)
	Occupancy and Other		(5,956	)		(4,139	)		(18,706	)		(13,900	)
	Contribution to Profit	$	9,307		$	13,279		$	26,630		$	19,513
	EDUCATION
	Revenue	$	110,864		$	114,935		$	308,064		$	299,742
	Direct Contribution to Profit	$	46,415		$	48,411		$	114,721		$	113,041
	Allocated Shared Services and Administrative Costs:
	Distribution and Operation Services		(3,341	)		(4,098	)		(9,886	)		(11,987	)
	Technology and Content Management		(12,815	)		(11,935	)		(39,630	)		(34,979	)
	Occupancy and Other		(3,678	)		(2,527	)		(10,448	)		(8,573	)
	Contribution to Profit	$	26,581		$	29,851		$	54,757		$	57,502
	Total Contribution to Profit	$	103,887		$	112,363		$	297,990		$	281,661
	Unallocated Shared Services and Administrative Costs		(49,845	)		(38,983	)		(118,314	)		(122,530	)
	Operating Income	$	54,042		$	73,380		$	179,676		$	159,131
	The following table reflects total Shared Services and Administrative costs by function, which are allocated to business segments based on the methodologies described above:
		For the Three Months						For the Nine Months
		Ended January 31,						Ended January 31,
	Total Shared Services and Administrative Costs:	2015			2014			2015			2014
	Distribution & Operation Services	$	21,205		$	25,227		$	67,324		$	75,743
	Technology & Content Management		59,329			58,375			181,160			178,082
	Finance		13,629			13,312			40,181			39,554
	Other Administration		27,245			22,567			80,249			72,471
	Restructuring Charges (see Note 7)		14,906			5,754			14,640			22,314
	Total	$	136,314		$	125,235		$	383,554		$	388,164
	In the first quarter of fiscal year 2015, the Company modified its segment product/service revenue categories to reflect recent changes to the business, including acquisitions and restructuring. All prior periods have been revised to reflect the new categorization as follows:
		For the Three Months						For the Nine Months
		Ended January 31,						Ended January 31,
	Total Revenue by Product/Service:	2015			2014			2015			2014
	Research Communications	$	187,654		$	185,775		$	598,175		$	566,399
	Books and Custom Print Products		171,131			196,468			513,237			546,860
	Education Services (Deltak)		22,974			19,144			58,908			50,395
	Talent Solutions		29,086			6,484			72,702			21,625
	Course Workflow Solutions (WileyPlus)		20,841			18,575			40,552			35,587
	Other		34,219			31,487			97,220			97,240
	Total	$	465,905		$	457,933		$	1,380,794		$	1,318,106

Inventories_Tables

Inventories (Tables)	9 Months Ended
	Jan. 31, 2015
Inventories [Abstract]
Inventories	Inventories were as follows (in thousands):
		As of January 31,						As of April 30,
		2015			2014			2014
	Finished goods	$	48,212		$	62,460		$	62,071
	Work-in-process		6,884			6,875			6,041
	Paper, cloth and other		5,485			7,088			5,476
		$	60,581		$	76,423		$	73,588
	Inventory value of estimated sales returns		9,538			8,797			6,774
	LIFO reserve		(5,092	)		(6,052	)		(4,867	)
	Total inventories	$	65,027		$	79,168		$	75,495

Intangible_Assets_Tables

Intangible Assets (Tables)	9 Months Ended
	Jan. 31, 2015
Intangible Assets [Abstract]
Schedule of intangible assets	Intangible assets consisted of the following (in thousands):
		As of January 31,				As of April 30,
		2015		2014		2014
	Intangible assets with indefinite lives:
	Brands and trademarks	$	151,933	$	162,179	$	164,202
	Content and publishing rights		87,280		105,701		106,898
		$	239,213	$	267,880	$	271,100
	Net intangible assets with determinable lives:
	Content and publishing rights	$	490,478	$	529,197	$	535,827
	Customer relationships		185,291		150,649		162,295
	Brands and trademarks		17,572		13,400		14,716
	Covenants not to compete		745		805		723
		$	694,086	$	694,051	$	713,561
	Total	$	933,299	$	961,931	$	984,661

Retirement_Plans_Tables

Retirement Plans (Tables)	9 Months Ended
	Jan. 31, 2015
Retirement Plans [Abstract]
Components of net pension expense for the defined benefit plans	The components of net pension expense for the company’s global defined benefit plans were as follows (in thousands):
		For the Three Months						For the Nine Months
		Ended January 31,						Ended January 31,
		2015			2014			2015			2014
	Service Cost	$	1,516		$	2,042		$	4,657		$	6,004
	Interest Cost		8,039			7,509			23,228			22,173
	Expected Return on Plan Assets		(9,683	)		(9,176	)		(27,660	)		(27,064	)
	Net Amortization of Prior Service Cost		22			32			77			93
	Recognized Net Actuarial Loss		2,075			3,610			5,855			10,669
	Net Pension Expense	$	1,969		$	4,017		$	6,157		$	11,875

Basis_of_Presentation_Details

Basis of Presentation (Details)	9 Months Ended
	Jan. 31, 2015
Basis of Presentation [Abstract]
Lag period between the company's recent international acquisition and financial reporting	2 months

ShareBased_Compensation_Detail

Share-Based Compensation (Details) (USD $)	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
In Millions, except Share data in Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Jan. 31, 2015	Jan. 31, 2014	Jan. 31, 2015	Jan. 31, 2014
Share-Based Compensation [Abstract]
Share-based compensation expense	$3.70	$3.70	$11.80	$11
Weighted-average Black-Scholes fair value assumptions by stock option grants [Abstract]
Expected life of options (years)			7 years 2 months 12 days	7 years 4 months 24 days
Risk-free interest rate (in hundredths)			2.20%	2.10%
Expected volatility (in hundredths)			30.90%	30.50%
Expected dividend yield (in hundredths)			1.90%	2.50%
Fair value of common stock on grant date (in dollars per share)	$59.70	$39.53	$59.70	$39.53
Restricted Stock [Member]
Share-based compensation data for awards granted by the Company [Abstract]
Awards granted (in shares)			306	375
Weighted average fair value of grant (in dollars per share)	$59.63	$40.75	$59.63	$40.75
Stock Options [Member]
Share-based compensation data for awards granted by the Company [Abstract]
Awards granted (in shares)			188	322
Weighted average fair value of grant (in dollars per share)			$16.97	$10.12

Accumulated_Other_Comprehensiv2

Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss (Details) (USD $)	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Jan. 31, 2015	Jan. 31, 2014	Jan. 31, 2015	Jan. 31, 2014
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss) [Line Items]
Balance	($250,490,000)	($235,463,000)	($190,291,000)	($278,632,000)
Other comprehensive (loss) income before reclassifications	-94,523,000	3,089,000	-158,293,000	40,803,000
Amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive loss	1,758,000	2,697,000	5,329,000	8,152,000
Total other comprehensive (loss) income	-92,765,000	5,786,000	-152,964,000	48,955,000
Balance	-343,255,000	-229,677,000	-343,255,000	-229,677,000
Pension expense amortized from Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss			6,000,000	10,900,000
Foreign Currency Translation [Member]
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss) [Line Items]
Balance	-133,452,000	-93,402,000	-66,664,000	-134,539,000
Other comprehensive (loss) income before reclassifications	-99,306,000	4,351,000	-166,094,000	45,488,000
Amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive loss	0	0	0	0
Total other comprehensive (loss) income	-99,306,000	4,351,000	-166,094,000	45,488,000
Balance	-232,758,000	-89,051,000	-232,758,000	-89,051,000
Unamortized Retirement Costs [Member]
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss) [Line Items]
Balance	-116,475,000	-141,425,000	-123,025,000	-143,124,000
Other comprehensive (loss) income before reclassifications	4,998,000	-1,134,000	8,439,000	-4,528,000
Amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive loss	1,452,000	2,611,000	4,561,000	7,704,000
Total other comprehensive (loss) income	6,450,000	1,477,000	13,000,000	3,176,000
Balance	-110,025,000	-139,948,000	-110,025,000	-139,948,000
Pre-tax actuarial losses included in Unamortized Retirement Costs	2,100,000	3,700,000
Interest Rate Swaps [Member]
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss) [Line Items]
Balance	-563,000	-636,000	-602,000	-969,000
Other comprehensive (loss) income before reclassifications	-215,000	-128,000	-638,000	-157,000
Amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive loss	306,000	86,000	768,000	448,000
Total other comprehensive (loss) income	91,000	-42,000	130,000	291,000
Balance	($472,000)	($678,000)	($472,000)	($678,000)

Reconciliation_of_Weighted_Ave2

Reconciliation of Weighted Average Shares Outstanding and Share Repurchases (Details) (USD $)	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Jan. 31, 2015	Jan. 31, 2014	Jan. 31, 2015	Jan. 31, 2014
Reconciliation of Weighted Average Shares Outstanding [Abstract]
Weighted average shares outstanding (in shares)	58,773,000	59,040,000	59,061,000	58,857,000
Less: Unearned restricted shares (in shares)	-256,000	-306,000	-248,000	-288,000
Shares used for basic earnings per share (in shares)	58,517,000	58,734,000	58,813,000	58,569,000
Dilutive effect of stock options and other stock awards (in shares)	826,000	979,000	819,000	819,000
Shares used for diluted earnings per share (in shares)	59,343,000	59,713,000	59,632,000	59,388,000
Shares repurchased (in shares)	350,000		1,082,502
Average purchase price, (in dollars per share)	$58.42		$47.56
Stock Options [Member]
Antidilutive Securities Excluded from Computation of Earnings Per Share [Line Items]
Anti-dilutive shares excluded for diluted EPS calculation (in shares)	178,144	0	178,144	715,952

Acquisitions_Details

Acquisitions (Details) (USD $)	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended		0 Months Ended	12 Months Ended	0 Months Ended	12 Months Ended
	Jan. 31, 2015	Jan. 31, 2014	Jan. 31, 2015	Jan. 31, 2014	1-May-14	Jun. 30, 2013	Apr. 01, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Apr. 30, 2014	2-May-14
					Country		Language
					Object
					Language
					EndUser
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Lag period between the company's recent international acquisition and financial reporting			2 months
Cash payment in acquisition, net of cash acquired			$172,661,000	$5,150,000
Revenue	465,905,000	457,933,000	1,380,794,000	1,318,106,000
Operating income (loss)	250,479,000	238,569,000	755,541,000	713,090,000
Goodwill	964,818,000	856,707,000	964,818,000	856,707,000					903,665,000
Cross Knowledge [Member]
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Lag period between the company's recent international acquisition and financial reporting			2 months
Cash payment in acquisition, net of cash acquired					166,000,000
Number of learning objects					17,000
Number of languages in which training program provided					17
Number of end-users served by enterprise					5,000,000
Number of countries in which enterprise serves the end users					80
Revenue	16,200,000		31,500,000			37,000,000
Operating income (loss)	-2,800,000		-3,600,000			5,000,000
Purchase price allocation, identifiable long-lived intangible assets										63,000,000
Purchase price allocation, technology										6,300,000
Purchase price allocation, long-term deferred tax liabilities										21,500,000
Negative working capital										-4,300,000
Goodwill										122,500,000
Weighted average estimated useful life			15 years
Profiles International [Member]
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Cash payment in acquisition, net of cash acquired							47,500,000
Revenue	5,800,000		17,200,000					27,000,000
Operating income (loss)								5,000,000
Purchase price allocation, identifiable long-lived intangible assets							22,900,000
Purchase price allocation, technology							2,700,000
Purchase price allocation, long-term deferred tax liabilities							9,400,000
Purchase price allocation, short-term deferred tax assets							-1,900,000
Negative working capital							-6,700,000
Goodwill							$39,900,000
Number of languages in which enterprise clients are served							32
Profiles International [Member] | Minimum [Member]
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Number of enterprise clients served							40,000
Number of countries where enterprise clients are served							120

Restructuring_Programs_Details

Restructuring Programs (Details) (USD $)	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended		33 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Jan. 31, 2015	Jan. 31, 2014	Jan. 31, 2015	Jan. 31, 2014	Jan. 31, 2015
Restructuring Cost and Reserve [Line Items]
Total restructuring charge	$24,034	$4,256	$23,879	$27,327	$91,053
Activity for Restructuring and Reinvestment Program liability [Roll Forward]
Restructuring Liability, Beginning Balance			34,972
Charges	24,034	4,256	23,879	27,327
Payments			-25,473	-20,136
Foreign Translation & Reclassifications			-261
Restructuring Liability, Ending Balance	33,117		33,117		33,117
Severance [Member]
Restructuring Cost and Reserve [Line Items]
Total restructuring charge	11,962	-270	12,605	14,661	58,271
Activity for Restructuring and Reinvestment Program liability [Roll Forward]
Restructuring Liability, Beginning Balance			29,255
Charges			12,605
Payments			-21,460
Foreign Translation & Reclassifications			-695
Restructuring Liability, Ending Balance	19,705		19,705		19,705
Process Reengineering Consulting [Member]
Restructuring Cost and Reserve [Line Items]
Total restructuring charge	446	2,588	301	8,199	11,475
Activity for Restructuring and Reinvestment Program liability [Roll Forward]
Restructuring Liability, Beginning Balance			722
Charges			301
Payments			-1,024
Foreign Translation & Reclassifications			46
Restructuring Liability, Ending Balance	45		45		45
Other Activities [Member]
Restructuring Cost and Reserve [Line Items]
Total restructuring charge	11,626	1,938	10,973	4,467	21,307
Activity for Restructuring and Reinvestment Program liability [Roll Forward]
Restructuring Liability, Beginning Balance			4,995
Charges			10,973
Payments			-2,989
Foreign Translation & Reclassifications			388
Restructuring Liability, Ending Balance	13,367		13,367		13,367
Other Activities [Member] | Other Accrued Liabilities [Member]
Activity for Restructuring and Reinvestment Program liability [Roll Forward]
Restructuring Liability, Ending Balance	100		100		100
Other Activities [Member] | Other Long-Term Liabilities [Member]
Activity for Restructuring and Reinvestment Program liability [Roll Forward]
Restructuring Liability, Ending Balance	13,300		13,300		13,300
Research [Member]
Restructuring Cost and Reserve [Line Items]
Total restructuring charge	4,507	-782	4,322	4,590	14,992
Professional Development [Member]
Restructuring Cost and Reserve [Line Items]
Total restructuring charge	3,588	-833	3,833	4,834	21,977
Education [Member]
Restructuring Cost and Reserve [Line Items]
Total restructuring charge	1,033	117	1,084	375	3,092
Shared Services [Member]
Restructuring Cost and Reserve [Line Items]
Total restructuring charge	$14,906	$5,754	$14,640	$17,528	$50,992

Impairment_Charges_Details

Impairment Charges (Details) (USD $)	3 Months Ended
In Millions, unless otherwise specified	Oct. 31, 2014
Impairment Charges [Abstract]
Pretax impairment charge	$4.80

Segment_Information_Details

Segment Information (Details) (USD $)	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Jan. 31, 2015	Jan. 31, 2014	Jan. 31, 2015	Jan. 31, 2014
			CoreBusinesses
Segment Information [Abstract]
Number of core businesses			3
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Revenue	$465,905	$457,933	$1,380,794	$1,318,106
Shared services and administration costs	136,314	125,235	383,554	388,164
Operating Income	54,042	73,380	179,676	159,131
Distribution and Operation Services [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Shared services and administration costs	21,205	25,227	67,324	75,743
Technology and Content Management [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Shared services and administration costs	59,329	58,375	181,160	178,082
Finance [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Shared services and administration costs	13,629	13,312	40,181	39,554
Other Administration [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Shared services and administration costs	27,245	22,567	80,249	72,471
Restructuring Charges [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Shared services and administration costs	14,906	5,754	14,640	22,314
Research Communications [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Revenue	187,654	185,775	598,175	566,399
Books and Custom Print Products [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Revenue	171,131	196,468	513,237	546,860
Education Services (Deltak) [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Revenue	22,974	19,144	58,908	50,395
Talent Solutions [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Revenue	29,086	6,484	72,702	21,625
Course Workflow Solutions (WileyPlus) [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Revenue	20,841	18,575	40,552	35,587
Other [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Revenue	34,219	31,487	97,220	97,240
Operating Segments [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Contribution to Profit	103,887	112,363	297,990	281,661
Segment Reconciling Items [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Shared services and administration costs	-49,845	-38,983	-118,314	-122,530
Research [Member] | Operating Segments [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Revenue	246,454	248,797	766,149	747,532
Direct contribution to profit	108,727	111,318	344,155	334,179
Contribution to Profit	67,999	69,233	216,603	204,646
Research [Member] | Operating Segments [Member] | Distribution and Operation Services [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Shared services and administration costs	-10,722	-11,406	-34,141	-34,801
Research [Member] | Operating Segments [Member] | Technology and Content Management [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Shared services and administration costs	-24,254	-24,888	-75,440	-75,969
Research [Member] | Operating Segments [Member] | Occupancy and Other [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Shared services and administration costs	-5,752	-5,791	-17,971	-18,763
Professional Development [Member] | Operating Segments [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Revenue	108,587	94,201	306,581	270,832
Direct contribution to profit	35,214	38,886	104,354	100,075
Contribution to Profit	9,307	13,279	26,630	19,513
Professional Development [Member] | Operating Segments [Member] | Distribution and Operation Services [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Shared services and administration costs	-7,401	-9,634	-23,671	-28,790
Professional Development [Member] | Operating Segments [Member] | Technology and Content Management [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Shared services and administration costs	-12,550	-11,834	-35,347	-37,872
Professional Development [Member] | Operating Segments [Member] | Occupancy and Other [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Shared services and administration costs	-5,956	-4,139	-18,706	-13,900
Education [Member] | Operating Segments [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Revenue	110,864	114,935	308,064	299,742
Direct contribution to profit	46,415	48,411	114,721	113,041
Contribution to Profit	26,581	29,851	54,757	57,502
Education [Member] | Operating Segments [Member] | Distribution and Operation Services [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Shared services and administration costs	-3,341	-4,098	-9,886	-11,987
Education [Member] | Operating Segments [Member] | Technology and Content Management [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Shared services and administration costs	-12,815	-11,935	-39,630	-34,979
Education [Member] | Operating Segments [Member] | Occupancy and Other [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Shared services and administration costs	($3,678)	($2,527)	($10,448)	($8,573)

Inventories_Details

Inventories (Details) (USD $)	Jan. 31, 2015	Apr. 30, 2014	Jan. 31, 2014
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified
Inventories [Abstract]
Finished goods	$48,212	$62,071	$62,460
Work-in-process	6,884	6,041	6,875
Paper, cloth, and other	5,485	5,476	7,088
Gross inventory	60,581	73,588	76,423
Inventory value of estimated sales returns	9,538	6,774	8,797
LIFO reserve	-5,092	-4,867	-6,052
Total inventories	$65,027	$75,495	$79,168

Intangible_Assets_Details

Intangible Assets (Details) (USD $)	Jan. 31, 2015	Apr. 30, 2014	Jan. 31, 2014
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified
Indefinite-lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Intangible assets with indefinite lives	$239,213	$271,100	$267,880
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Net intangible assets with determinable lives	694,086	713,561	694,051
Total	933,299	984,661	961,931
Content and Publishing Rights [Member]
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Net intangible assets with determinable lives	490,478	535,827	529,197
Customer Relationships [Member]
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Net intangible assets with determinable lives	185,291	162,295	150,649
Brands and Trademarks [Member]
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Net intangible assets with determinable lives	17,572	14,716	13,400
Covenants not to Compete [Member]
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Net intangible assets with determinable lives	745	723	805
Brands and Trademarks [Member]
Indefinite-lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Intangible assets with indefinite lives	151,933	164,202	162,179
Content and Publishing Rights [Member]
Indefinite-lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Intangible assets with indefinite lives	$87,280	$106,898	$105,701

Income_Taxes_Details

Income Taxes (Details)	3 Months Ended	9 Months Ended
In Millions, except Per Share data, unless otherwise specified	Jul. 31, 2013	Jan. 31, 2015	Jan. 31, 2014	Jan. 31, 2015	Jan. 31, 2015	Jan. 31, 2014
	USD ($)	USD ($)		Foreign Tax Authority [Member]	Foreign Tax Authority [Member]	Foreign Tax Authority [Member]
				USD ($)	EUR (€)	EUR (€)
Income Taxes [Abstract]
Effective tax rate (in hundredths)		24.30%	17.60%
Non-cash deferred tax benefit associated with new tax legislation enacted in the U.K.	$10.60
Non-cash deferred tax benefit associated with new tax legislation enacted in the U.K. (in dollars per share)	$0.18
Reduction in U.K. statutory income tax rates (in hundredths)	3.00%
Income tax statutory rate for UK in 2014 (in hundredths)		21.00%
Income tax statutory rate for UK in 2015 (in hundredths)		20.00%
Effective tax rate excluding the tax benefits due to new tax legislation enacted in the U.K. (in hundredths)		24.30%	24.60%
Income Tax Examination [Line Items]
Expected tax benefits derived from the step-up					50
Expected tax benefits amortization				15 years	15 years
Deposits related to amortization claimed on certain stepped-up assets					5	8
Total deposits					48
Additional deposits for future deposits					10
Minimum expected time for a decision to be rendered		18 months
Maximum expected time for a decision to be rendered		24 months
Expected interest rate on deposits (in hundredths)				6.00%	6.00%
Deposits and accrued interest income				60.1
Accrued interest percentage (in hundredths)				6.00%	6.00%
Net tax reserve release		$2

Retirement_Plans_Details

Retirement Plans (Details) (USD $)	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Jan. 31, 2015	Jan. 31, 2014	Jan. 31, 2015	Jan. 31, 2014
Defined benefit plans, net periodic benefit cost [Abstract]
Service Cost	$1,516,000	$2,042,000	$4,657,000	$6,004,000
Interest Cost	8,039,000	7,509,000	23,228,000	22,173,000
Expected Return on Plan Assets	-9,683,000	-9,176,000	-27,660,000	-27,064,000
Net Amortization of Prior Service Cost	22,000	32,000	77,000	93,000
Recognized Net Actuarial Loss	2,075,000	3,610,000	5,855,000	10,669,000
Net Pension Expense	1,969,000	4,017,000	6,157,000	11,875,000
Pension plan contributions	3,100,000	9,000,000	8,100,000	14,500,000
Defined contribution plan	3,200,000	6,100,000	12,100,000	10,800,000
Plan amendment credit	($600,000)

Debt_and_Available_Credit_Faci1

Debt and Available Credit Facilities (Details) (Revolving Credit Facility [Member], USD $)	0 Months Ended
In Millions, unless otherwise specified	Dec. 22, 2014	Oct. 31, 2014	Dec. 22, 2014	Oct. 31, 2014
Credit Facilities [Line Items]
Amount of financing available under credit facilities	$50	$50	$50	$50
Term of credit facility	30 days	364 days
Borrowing rate description	LIBOR plus an initial applicable margin of 1.0%	LIBOR plus an applicable margin ranging from 0.80% to 1.40%
Period for reviewing outstanding amount	30 days
Remaining outstanding amount	$50		$50
Minimum [Member]
Credit Facilities [Line Items]
Facility fee (in hundredths)		0.13%
Maximum [Member]
Credit Facilities [Line Items]
Facility fee (in hundredths)		0.30%
LIBOR [Member]
Credit Facilities [Line Items]
Variable rate (in hundredths)	1.00%
LIBOR [Member] | Minimum [Member]
Credit Facilities [Line Items]
Variable rate (in hundredths)		0.80%
LIBOR [Member] | Maximum [Member]
Credit Facilities [Line Items]
Variable rate (in hundredths)		1.40%

Derivative_Instruments_and_Hed1

Derivative Instruments and Hedging Activities (Details)

3 Months Ended

9 Months Ended

9 Months Ended

3 Months Ended

9 Months Ended

In Millions, unless otherwise specified

Jan. 31, 2015

Jan. 31, 2014

Jan. 31, 2015

Jan. 31, 2014

Jan. 31, 2015

Apr. 30, 2014

Jan. 31, 2014

Jan. 31, 2015

Jan. 31, 2015

Jan. 31, 2015

Jan. 31, 2015

Jan. 31, 2015

Jan. 31, 2014

Jan. 31, 2015

Jan. 31, 2014

Jan. 31, 2015

Jan. 31, 2014

Jan. 31, 2015

Interest expense [Member]

Interest expense [Member]

Interest expense [Member]

Interest expense [Member]

Interest rate swaps [Member]

Interest rate swaps [Member]

Interest rate swaps [Member]

Interest rate swaps [Member]

Interest rate swaps [Member]

Interest rate swaps [Member]

Forward exchange contracts [Member]

Forward exchange contracts [Member]

Forward exchange contracts [Member]

Forward exchange contracts [Member]

Forward exchange contracts [Member]

Forward exchange contracts [Member]

Forward exchange contracts [Member]

Fair value, fair value disclosure [Member]

USD ($)

USD ($)

USD ($)

USD ($)

USD ($)

USD ($)

USD ($)

March 2012 Interest rate swap (variable rate loans) [Member]

January 2014 Interest rate swap (variable rate loans) [Member]

August 2014 Interest rate swap (variable rate loans) [Member]

EUR (€)

GBP (£)

GBP (£)

Foreign exchange transaction losses [Member]

Foreign exchange transaction losses [Member]

Foreign exchange transaction losses [Member]

Foreign exchange transaction losses [Member]

USD ($)

USD ($)

USD ($)

USD ($)

USD ($)

USD ($)

USD ($)

USD ($)

Fair Value, Balance Sheet Grouping, Financial Statement Captions [Line Items]

Variable rate loans outstanding

$688

Derivative [Line Items]

Inception date

30-Mar-12

15-Jan-14

15-Aug-14

Fixed interest rate (in hundredths)

0.65%

0.47%

0.65%

Fair value of derivative instrument

-0.8

-1

-1.1

Basis of variable interest rate, reference rate reset period (in months)

1 month

1 month

1 month

Term of derivative instrument

3 years

2 years

2 years

Expiration date

31-Mar-15

15-Jan-16

15-Aug-16

Notional amount of derivative liability

150

150

150

75

103

73

Description of variable rate basis

one-month LIBOR

one-month LIBOR

one-month LIBOR

Deferred loss on interest rate swap recorded as other accrued liabilities

-0.4

-0.7

Deferred loss on interest rate swap recorded as other long term liabilities

-0.4

-0.3

-1.1

Derivative Instruments, Gain (Loss) [Line Items]

Net losses reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive loss

0.5

0.3

1.3

0.9

Loss on fair value of derivative instruments

-8.8

-0.3

Losses recognized on derivative instruments

($4.60)

($0.30)

($8.80)

($0.40)

Corporate_Headquarters_Lease_R1

Corporate Headquarters Lease Renewal (Details) (USD $)	9 Months Ended
In Millions, unless otherwise specified	Jan. 31, 2015
Corporate Headquarters Lease Renewal [Abstract]
Lease expiration date	31-Mar-33
Future minimum payments due	$223
2018	14.4
2019	14.4
2020	14.4
2021	14.4
2022	$14.40