Ziff Davis Acquires IGN

Steven Bogos

The Taco Man
Jan 17, 2013
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Ziff Davis Acquires IGN



1UP.com, included in the deal, returns to Ziff Davis following its sale to UGO in 2009.

confirmed. [http://allthingsd.com/20130201/exclusive-news-corp-s-ign-poised-to-sell-to-j2s-ziff-davis/] Ian Chambers, VP, International at IGN said alongside the announcement that "Joining Ziff Davis's world-class digital media portfolio further strengthens IGN and AskMen's growing presence in international markets." He claimed the deal would help the digital media outlet reach a greater audience of males aged 18-34 than ever before. Chambers did not disclose the amount that the property was sold for, but it is rumoured to be less than the $650 million News Corp. paid for it back in 2005.

Ziff Davis is owned by parent company J2 Global, who bought the conglomerate for $167 million last year. In an increasingly complex web of acquisitions, Ziff Davis has also regained control of 1UP.com. They sold the property to UGO back in 2009, which was in turn acquired by Hearst, which was in turn was acquired by News Corp., who have in turn included it in this week's deal with Ziff Davis.

The acquisition means that Ziff Davis now controls not only 1UP.com and IGN, but also GameSpy, FilePlanet, Direct2Drive, TeamXbox, AskMen, AppScout, DL.TV, ExtremeTech, Geek.com, GoodCleanTech.com, PC Magazine, and IT Toolbox. News Corp. owns many intellectual properties, ranging from MySpace to Fox News, but this latest deal leaves them with little in the way of digital gaming media.

J2 Global CEO Hemi Zucker also spoke today on the deal:

"This is a transformative deal for our digital media business. 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."

Source: VG247 [http://www.vg247.com/2013/02/04/ign-sold-to-ziff-davis-ign-responds-to-acquisition/]

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Aussie502

New member
Apr 19, 2011
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Steven Bogos said:
News Corp. owns many intellectual properties, ranging from MySpace
Completely off topic but I thought Myspace was bought by Justin Timberlake?
 

Kuredan

Hingle McCringleberry
Dec 4, 2012
166
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Ahh good old ZD. I remember back in the day when Computer Gaming World was still a magazine and 1UP had just been launched. 1UP used to be a site that felt like it was designed by gamers and for gamers; where you could talk with the reviewers of CGW and EGM directly (Seanbaby, Jeff Green, Tom vs. Bruce (and sometimes Erik)) like they were real people. It was good times all around. Then the site became corporate, reviews heavy, and no different from IGN et. all. Now it's bought back by ZD. Is it too much to hope it returns to its roots? In any case, I'm glad I found the Escapist because it's as close to the old 1UP as I have found.
 

BrotherRool

New member
Oct 31, 2008
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Well always good to see News Corp not owning something. The only reason I have to care about IGN is the IPL, so as long as the continues it's all good

Aussie502 said:
Steven Bogos said:
News Corp. owns many intellectual properties, ranging from MySpace
Completely off topic but I thought Myspace was bought by Justin Timberlake?
You're right, News Corp bought it and then sold it at a ridiculous loss (although considering it's myspace, getting any money at all for it probably counts as a win)