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Gizmodo Media Group and The Onion have a new owner, the private equity firm Great Hill Partners.
As part of the deal, digital media executive Jim Spanfeller becomes the CEO (and investor) of the renowned G / O Media. Spanfeller previously headed Forbes.com as CEO and also founded Spanfeller Media Group, the company behind the Daily Meal.
"This opportunity comes at a time when the entire digital media category is beginning to be recognized for its unique ability to meet the diverse content and distribution needs of consumers and advertisers," Spanfeller said in a statement. "As a leading player in our industry, G / O Media is in an ideal position to capitalize on this dynamic. I'm excited to be collaborating with a great team that has an incredible track record to further expand our reach, add value to our advertisers, and enrich the lives of our visitors. "
According to this announcement, G / O Media Group's sites reach approximately 100 million unique visitors each month. The Gizmodo media group includes Deadspin, Jezebel, Kotaku, Lifehacker and others, as well as Gizmodo. They started as members of Gawker Media and were acquired by Univision following Gawker's legal defeat in a lawsuit filed by Terry Bollea (aka Hulk Hogan) and subsequent bankruptcy.
The acquisition was part of a broader effort by Univision to reach an English-speaking audience – it also acquired its initial stake in The Onion around the same time. Since then, however, Univision has impaired its English-language assets and apparently sought to sell them.
The Wall Street Journal, which announced for the first time that Great Hill was in talks to acquire Gizmodo's portfolio, now indicates that the company would pay "a lot less" than the $ 135 million paid by Univision in 2016. Great Hill had previously worked with Vivek Shah to acquire publisher Ziff Davis, who was later sold to j2 Global.
In the meantime, Gawker's website has been acquired separately by Bustle's owner Bryan Goldberg. He struggled, however, as his editorial staff resigned earlier this year.
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