Sports Illustrated was saved when licensing giant Authentic struck a 10-year deal with digital media company Minute Media to continue publishing the magazine/website, two months after mass layoffs and AI controversies left its future in doubt.
Monday’s announcement comes after Authentic terminated its publishing agreement with The Arena Group, which in January acquired the rights to publish SI editorial content in 2019 as theMaven, Inc., following a missed $3.756 million quarterly payment.
Minute Media, best known for its sports sites The Players’ Tribune and FanSided, said it has entered into a long-term partnership with Authentic to “herald the future of the SI brand.”
‘Sports Illustrated is the gold standard for sports journalism and has been for almost 70 years in both print and digital media. The weight and power of that distinction cannot be underestimated. At Minute Media, our focus will be on bringing that legacy to new, emerging channels that increase visibility, commercial viability and sustainable impact, while ensuring the SI team is inspired to thrive in this new media age” , said the founder and CEO of Minute Media. Asaf Peled said in a statement.
As part of the deal, Authentic will also acquire an equity stake in Minute Media.
More to follow…