EGM closes, 1UP sold in Ziff-Davis shakeup

Electronic Gaming Monthly, one of the major American gaming magazines and longtime GamePro competitor, has printed its final issue.

1UP.com has finally confirmed what many have speculated for months--that the company has been sold by Ziff-Davis to Hearst Corporation, one of the biggest media conglomerates in the US. Hearst Corporation already owns a gaming portal, UGO.com, and it seems as though the two sites will remain as seperate entities for the time being.

EGM is No More, 1UP Sold

While it hasn't been confirmed by Ziff-Davis or Hearst, Gamasutra has obtained an internal email sent to Ziff-Davis staff stating that the magazine will cease publishing as of is January 2009 issue. EGM was the longest-running multi-platform magazine still publishing, starting in March of 1989 while GamePro started in May (Nintendo Power began publication in the Summer of 1988). The loss of EGM leaves the US with only three monthly multi-platform videogame magazines -- GamePro, Game Informer, and Play. Reprinted below is a section of the email reportedly sent by Ziff-Davis CEO Jason Young.

"After a comprehensive process, this morning we completed a deal with Hearst Interactive, the owner and operator of UGO Entertainment. 1UP.com, MyCheats.com, Gamevideos.com, and Gametab.com will now all be part of the UGO Entertainment business. Many of our employees will travel with this business and become part of the UGO team.

With this transaction happening, we have also made the decision to discontinue publication of EGM. The January 2009 issue will be the final issue of the publication. With demand for print continuing to decline amongst both advertisers and readers and the content being produced by 1UP no longer available for use in the publication, it simply did not make sense for us to move forward with this business any longer."

The staff of GamePro extends its best wishes to the EGM staffers affected by the magazine's closure and 1UP's sale. Salud.

THE VERDICT by Dave Rudden Dave Rudden's Avatar

This one has us all of us here at GamePro stunned. While rumors of EGM's demise have circled before, this seems legit. EGM has been our biggest competitor, but it's one we've always held in very high regard. We wish all of the 1UP staff the best under their new ownership.

Comments [55]

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Spooty_the_Gameguru

While it's a surprise to me. I'm not fretting the online side of 1up. They really do a great job.

ChokaDaChicken

I wish the best for the folks at EGm I an an original reader from back in the day but have been loggin on over here and hadn't had time for them. The economy is bad and games have been good. Maybe they can run together with Ugo and try to take y'all out. Naw I doubt that'll happen

the_storyteller

I use to get EGM, but then the magazine became as i would say it, not "fun" They got rid of too many things in the magazine that i liked

solidcheif

I bet you guys at Gamepro are happy. You'll probably get EGM's customers now.

greyscale

solidcheif wrote:

I bet you guys at Gamepro are happy. You'll probably get EGM's customers now.

Trust me -- that's not how it works. While there are definite "competitions" between magazines and franchises, nobody likes to see a fellow journalist, much less a fellow gamer take a fall.
EGM's been a fantastic mag, and one that I'll continue to respect only the fondest memories of.

method0123

Print magazines are a dying breed in this world of digital media. I remember when GP and EGM were my only input to the game developement world, now I come online to see reviews and news. It's not that the magazines are bad, but it is so much easier and faster to get it online. Plus you can interact with staff and participate in the forums. IMHO, It's sad to see, but it may be a necessary step for the gaming community in general to move completely online. This is what we all want eventually for everything right? Complete integration between our various forms of media and to make Bill Gates our Lord Almighty. Right?

ViciousSid

I bet you guys at Gamepro are happy. You'll probably get EGM's customers now.

Ditto greyscale, we have no love for this situation. We're friends with some of the guys from EGM, so people we knew lost their jobs :\

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