Penske Media Corp on Thursday announced it has completed its acquisition of Vox Media, creating what the company describes as the largest publisher in digital media. The purchase brings titles including The Verge and Punch into Penske’s existing collection of brands such as Rolling Stone, Billboard and Variety.
No financial details of the transaction were released. Penske said it held the position of Vox’s largest shareholder prior to finalizing the purchase.
The closing finalizes a multi-stage sale of Vox’s assets. In May, Lupa Systems - owned by James Murdoch - acquired Vox.com, the Vox Media podcast network and New York Magazine for more than $300 million. That agreement also included rights for Lupa to use the Vox brand. The assets that remained after that sale were organized as an independent company operating under a new corporate name prior to Penske’s acquisition.
To oversee the combined set of media properties, Los Angeles-based Penske has established a new subsidiary called PMX. The company said PMX will manage a portfolio that exceeds 25 media brands, reach hundreds of millions of people each month and stage more than 300 live events annually.
Jay Penske, founder and CEO of Penske Media, highlighted the strategic fit of the additions, saying, "These distinct digital brands bring highly engaged audiences with them, complement our existing portfolio, strengthen our content offering, and expand the possibilities for the hundreds of live events PMX will produce each year."
Leadership appointments for the new unit were also announced. Ryan Pauley, previously president of Vox Media, has been named president of PMX. Ken Delalcazar, who serves as Penske’s executive vice president of finance, will take on an expanded role as chief financial officer of PMX.
Observers note the transaction as another example of consolidation in the media sector, driven by publishers pursuing greater scale and a broader mix of revenue from events, advertising and subscriptions. The deal brings together a larger collection of digital brands under a single corporate umbrella and centralizes management of editorial, advertising and live-event operations.
Sectors affected: Digital media publishing, advertising, live events and subscription businesses.