Vice Media to be acquired by buyers from Fortress Investment Group – report
Vice Media, whose assets include Vice News, Motherboard, Refinery29 and Vice TV, is slated to be acquired by a group of buyers from Fortress Investment Group, according to a report in the New York Times.
Just last month, the organization filed for bankruptcy.
Amid multiple bids, Fortress’s bid was reportedly the most “qualified” buyer for the standard set by Vice. The Times also noted that when companies declare bankruptcy, subsequent deals need to be approved by a bankruptcy judge who decides if the buyers’ plan is “sustainable for the business”.
An upcoming bankruptcy auction for the company was originally scheduled for Thursday and has been called off, per the Times.
A source disclosed to the Guardian that GoDigital, a privately held multinational group that owns the Latino digital media company NGLmitú, music distributor Cinq Music, and more, had been in negotiations to acquire Vice, but that fell through.
In a statement to the Guardian, GoDigital said they “developed a plan not just for the survival of Vice and its brands, but for their rejuvenation, growth, and expansion” and “put in a bid that properly reflects a future where everyone has a stake”. They claimed to have “worked until the last minute to make adjustments that would help meet a productive compromise” but ultimately “the sellers and we have different values”.
In an email obtained by the Guardian sent to Vice staff on Thursday morning, co-CEOs Bruce Dixon and Hozefa Lokhandwala wrote: “Today we filed a notice with the bankruptcy court designating the ‘stalking horse bidder’ as the successful bidder for the company.”
While noting that their lenders included Fortress Investment Group, Soros Fund Management and Monroe
Capital, Dixon and Lokhandwala did not disclose who the “superior” bidder was, but added that they would be “presenting the sale for approval by the bankruptcy court tomorrow, and expect the transaction to close on or around Friday July 7th.”
The co-CEOs claimed the sale would be “an important milestone” for the company to have “financial health and stability”.
In a statement from Writers Guild of America East members at Vice and IATSE MPEG Local 700 members, the group said they were looking “forward to working with Fortress Investment Group and the other buyers on another fair contract”. They added that, in the wake of Vice Media’s recent bankruptcy declaration, “many of our recently laid-off colleagues have not received a single dollar of their contractually-owed severance for almost two months”.
They implored Fortress Investment Group, Soros Fund Management, and Monroe Capital, as well as past and present executives at Vice, to contribute to a GoFundMe to “help our laidoff colleagues”.
Vice Media declined the Guardian’s request for comment.