The 96-year-old tabloid National Enquirer will soon be going online, along with sister publications Globe, National Examiner, and The National Enquirer U.K., according to new owners VVIP Ventures.
The new ownership group is a joint partnership between digital media company Vinco Ventures and the newly created Icon Publishing, founded by former MoviePass chairman Ted Farnsworth. VVIP Ventures in February acquired the National Enquirer and sister properties from a360 Media for around $100 million.
The company plans to integrate the new sites into the Vinco ecosystem and monetize them through its programmatic ad platform.
The National Enquirer library of historic content will also be leveraged to produce “TV shows, documentaries and true crime series, podcasts, online and streaming productions, special issues, and more,” the company said.
The company also struck a licensing deal with a360 Media, which will give it access to content from In Touch, Star, Closer and other celebrity news publications.
VVIP Ventures has named as president and CEO James Robertson, formerly of a360 Media where he was the editor-in-chief of US Weekly. Chris Polimeni was named CFO and COO, and previously held those positions at Accelerate360 Holdings, a360 Media’s parent company.
Source: Money + Investing /TMX
