Yahoo sells TechCrunch to investment firm Regent
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TechCrunch is one of the most influential tech news sites in Silicon Valley. Photo: Jaap Arriens/NurPhoto via Getty Images
Yahoo on Friday said it has struck a deal to sell TechCrunch, the 20-year-old tech journalism site, to Regent, a media investment firm.
Why it matters: Yahoo's business centers mostly on aggregation. Journalism isn't its core focus.
Zoom in: Regent is trying to pull together a portfolio of tech news sites and is eager to invest in news. Earlier this week, it acquired Foundry, which houses a slew of online tech publications, such as PCWorld, Macworld and TechAdvisor.
- In a statement, Regent said it is "thrilled to expand its reach as it provides breaking technology news, opinions, and analysis on tech companies worldwide to our audience."
- Financial deal terms were not disclosed. The deal will not require regulatory review, which is normally needed for deals valued at roughly more than $100 million.
Catch up quick: TechCrunch is one of the most influential tech news sites in Silicon Valley. It focuses on breaking news and analysis that matters to tech investors and startup entrepreneurs.
- It was founded in 2005 by Michael Arrington and Keith Teare, partners of Archimedes Ventures, a venture firm focused on B2B product companies.
- TechCrunch was an early pioneer in providing data as a service to readers and investors. The company created a data site called Crunchbase that housed startup funding information in 2007 and operated it until 2015.
Between the lines: TechCrunch has been subject to several ownership changes over the past few years.
- It was pulled under the Yahoo umbrella after its former parent AOL and Yahoo were acquired by Verizon and subsequently sold to Apollo as one entity in 2021.
- Last year, TechCrunch laid off a handful of staffers as it shuttered its subscription offering TechCrunch+.
Zoom out: Yahoo's business has evolved to focus on its biggest consumer properties, such as Yahoo Mail, Yahoo Sports, Yahoo Finance and Yahoo News, as well as advertising technology.
- While it doesn't focus on journalism at its core, it does work with thousands of media sites to distribute traffic.
- In a statement, Yahoo said it will continue to collaborate with Regent and TechCrunch, "built upon a long-term partnership focused on expanding audience reach, fostering innovative content development, and creating mutual financial growth."
- "We believe this next chapter under Regent can help maintain TechCrunch's influence and support its continued growth,"
