Popular gaming site IGN now has a new owner.
This morning, it was announced that IGN Entertainment and its affiliates have been purchased from News Corp by J2 Global subsidiary Ziff Davis.
Neither party is saying how much the sale cost Ziff Davis, but several reports indicate that it was below the $650 million News Corp paid for, and less than the $100 million News Corp initially was looking for.
Ziff Davis is the former owner of gaming magazine EGM and the website 1UP. After experiencing a period of financial troubles, Ziff shuttered EGM and sold off 1UP to Hearst Corporation in 2009, along with the rights to the shuttered magazine.
Two years later, 1UP and the rights to EGM were sold to News Corp, and both were put under the IGN Network banner. Hearst Corporations’ other properties were included in the deal.
IGN Entertainment was put up for auction six months ago by News Corp for a rumored $100 million. Rumors began circulating recently that Ziff Davis was interested.
“This is a transformative deal for our digital media business,” said Hemi Zucker, CEO of j2 Global. “By combining two of the most storied organizations in tech, gaming and entertainment, we have created a very powerful company capable of producing and delivering content in all forms to an audience that marketers highly value.”
Ian Chambers, VP, International at IGN, had this to say:
“Joining Ziff Davis’s world-class digital media portfolio further strengthens IGN and AskMen’s growing presence in international markets. Alongside our local teams in the UK and Australia, we have developed a global network of expert publishing partners that deliver locally relevant content in 10 languages and over 40 countries. By combining our forces we will reach a greater audience of males 18-34 than ever before.”
