Owners drop Mic
Bustle picks up millennial site for song
Bustle Digital Group has sealed the deal to buy Mic, the millennial-focused digital news site, for less than $5 million, sources told The Post.
That’s a stunning discount for a once-hot startup that raised $60 million from investors in deals that had valued it at hundreds of millions of dollars.
Bustle — which in addition its namesake women’s lifestyle site is relaunching Gawker next year — will meet with Mic’s top brass on Friday, according to sources close to the talks.
The Post first reported Mic’s sale price and news that Bustle would close the deal Thursday morning.
Insiders said Viacom and The New York Times had been circling Mic, but the talks were not serious. Bustle founder and Chief Executive Officer Bryan Goldberg swooped in early this week and convened his board, which met within 24 hours.
Reps for Bustle declined to comment. Mic didn’t respond to requests for comment.
Mic is said to have laid off between 60 and 70 of its employees Thursday morning in preparation for the move. Bustle will retain Mic’s revenue team and branded newsroom, which produces sponsored videos for advertisers, and employs about 35 to 40 people, according to sources familiar with the deal.
The employees that remain from Mic will move their offices from One World Trade Center to Bustle’s headquarters in the Flatiron District, sources said.
Mic co-founders Jake Horowitz and Chris Altchek, who is also the CEO, are expected to move over to Bustle, as is Sarah Iooss, the executive vice president of revenue.
According to a source, Mic’s demise came swiftly, after Facebook canceled its plans to feature shows on its Facebook Watch platform. Facebook had inked a $5 million deal with Mic for the year to produce shows.
As a result, Mic staffed up, and when the plug was pulled, they were left staggering. Unable to raise money from investors, Mic looked for buyers, according to sources.