Red Ventures is selling CNET to Ziff Davis, a digital media and web company that owns other well-known technology publications such as Can be mixed and matched, IGNand life hacking. Ziff Davis CEO Vivek Shah confirmed the acquisition New York Times Tuesday.
Ironically, as early as 2000, CNET Networks Inc. spent $1.6 billion to acquire the then technology publishing giant Ziff-Davis Inc. and its online service company ZDNet. So much has happened in the past two decades in the form of divestments and restructurings that today’s reverse takeovers aren’t as big of a deal as they might seem. In 2020, Red Ventures acquired CNET and a number of other smaller assets for $500 million.
While official figures have yet to be released, Zev Davis reportedly “paid more than $100 million for CNET” era” Sources said this is only a fraction of the $1.8 billion valuation CBS acquired the company in 2008. Axios Red Ventures is reportedly looking for a buyer, per CNET.
CNET has been working hard to improve its image lately. Surveyed by edge and Futurism 2023 discovered that the site is using generative artificial intelligence to produce some of its articles. Chaos and layoffs ensued, but that didn’t stop Zeev Davis from making acquisitions. according to eraShah wanted CNET because it was a “well-known industry brand” and still had a large enough audience to be attractive to tech advertisers. “I have a very clear and optimistic view of the content,” Shah said. The executive did not mention how artificial intelligence would affect CNET’s future publishing strategy.
