BUSINESS
Univision Sells Gizmodo Media Group and The Onion to Great Hill Partners
4/8/2019
by
Judy Cantor-Navas
Retreating from a wider, millennial-focused market, Univision says it will now concentrate on its core Hispanic media assets "and strengthen its position as the no. 1 media company serving U.S. Hispanics."
Univision Communications has announced the sale of Gizmodo Media Group and The Onion to private equity firm Great Hill Partners. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
A statement from Univision said that the sale "is part of Univision’s go-forward strategy to focus on its core Hispanic media assets and strengthen its position as the No. 1 media company serving U.S. Hispanics."
The GMG digital portfolio includes Gizmodo, Jezebel, Deadspin, Lifehacker, Splinter, The Root, Kotaku, Earther, and Jalopnik. The Onion portfolio includes The Onion, Clickhole, The A.V. Club, and The Takeout.
In a bid to take over the millennial market, Univision had purchased the digital assets of the former Gawker Media for $135 million, and acquired 40% of The Onion, in 2016.
Signaling the dismantling of the much-publicized strategy that started in 2013 with the premiere of the Fusion TV channel, created to court the young English-dominant Latinx audience, and its retreat back to its tried-and-true focus on the Spanish-language market, this past June Univision gave buyouts to over 40 employees of the Gizmodo properties.
"Today’s announcement is the culmination of a very thorough process, as part of Univision’s broader strategic realignment and return to its core strengths in Hispanic media and marketing," said Vince Sadusky, Chief Executive Officer of Univision in the statement. "Our aim from the outset of this process was to sell these assets as one, and we are pleased to have found a terrific buyer in Great Hill Partners that is committed to growing these properties. We are grateful to our colleagues at GMG and The Onion for all of their high-quality journalism and achievements as part of our company and we wish them and Great Hill Partners tremendous success."
