The terms of the deal were not officially disclosed, however, The Wall Street Journal puts the figure at “in the range of $20 million” whereas The Hollywood Report puts it at “around $30 million”.
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Hello Giggles was founded in 2011 by The Hills producer Sophia Rivka Rossi, former Gawker blogger Molly McAleer and Deschanel.
The move to shut the print title comes on the same day that Time purchased HelloGiggles, a digitally-oriented young women’s lifestyle magazine, in an effort to solidify its grasp of female millennials.
The website now has about 16 million monthly global unique visitors according to Quantcast.
In an interview with People and Entertainment Weekly president Rich Battista, who joined the company in March, said Time Inc. would help HelloGiggles scale up its video and advertising operations, as well as expanding to TV, movies, books, e-commerce, and live events. CEO Joe Ripp in a statement. “The site provides strategic benefits including a contributor network that unlocks access to a new pool of editorial and creative talent, an expansive audience of highly-engaged consumers and experience in branded and native content solutions”.
Under the deal, the site is being folded into Time Inc.’s People and Entertainment Weekly group but will continue to operate independently in Los Angeles.
Time Inc., the New York-based publishing company with over 90 magazines in its stable, has announced the acquisition of a lifestyle, pop culture and beauty website called Hello Giggles.
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“As part of our ongoing transformation of Time Inc., we are constantly evaluating our portfolio of brands and products, examining existing assets and assessing their ability to deliver meaningful growth into the future”, Time Inc.’s Executive Vice President Evelyn Webster said in a memo to staffers.
