Buzzfeed to take over Huffington Post

Online news and lifestyle site Buzzfeed is taking over the Huffington Post in a deal that brings together two of the most high-profile digital media firms.

Seller Verizon Media will become a minority shareholder in Buzzfeed as part of the deal and invest in the combined company.

The two firms will also join up for advertising and sharing content, a partnership they said would “create new revenue opportunities”.

The price was not disclosed.

Buzzfeed chief executive Jonah Peretti will lead the combined business. He co-founded Huffington Post in 2005 with publisher Arianna Huffington, and started Buzzfeed a year later.

Huffington Post rose to prominence during the George W Bush presidency as a site for liberal bloggers, many of whom contributed for free.

Buzzfeed made its name creating content like listicles and quizzes, which drew young audiences. It also brought on reporters for its news site.

But digital media firms have struggled to draw online advertising dollars away from tech giants such as Facebook and Google. In recent years, Buzzfeed and Huffington Post have both shed staff. In May, Buzzfeed closed its newsrooms in the UK and Australia and slashed staff pay.

Mr Peretti said the new deal would increase Buzzfeed’s heft, by adding Huffington Post readers to its audience and allowing it to tap into Verizon’s ad network.

Huffington Post is expected to remain a standalone brand, alongside other Buzzfeed sites, including Tasty and Buzzfeed News.

A spokeswoman for Buzzfeed declined to comment on the possibility of job losses triggered by the tie-up.

Verizon Media is part of a US telecom giant, which is known primarily for its pay-TV and mobile phone service. It acquired Huffington Post in 2015 when it bought AOL for $4.4bn (£3.32bn), later combining it with Yahoo.

bbc