Live event organizer ReedPOP, which runs the annual PAX gaming conventions, now owns some of the biggest publications in games. The company announced today that it has acquired the entire Gamer Network roster of websites, channels and events, as it enters into the editorial and video content space.
ReedPOP, a division of the larger Reed Exhibitions, produces numerous live events worldwide. In the U.S., it’s best known for running both New York Comic Con and the increasing portfolio of PAX conventions. But the Gamer Network acquisition marks previously uncharted territory for the company.
It makes sense that ReedPOP would go after Gamer Network. The U.K.-based games media company began in 1999, when co-founders Rupert Loman and Nick Loman launched their flagship website, Eurogamer. The company’s lineup has since expanded to include USgamer, as well as Rock Paper Shotgun, GamesIndustry.biz, Digital Foundry and Mod DB.
But Gamer Network operates its own notable event as well: EGX, which touts itself as the largest gaming convention in the United Kingdom.
“The opportunity to be in business with Rupert Loman and the brands, events and team he has created is a once in a lifetime opportunity,” said Lance Fensterman, ReedPOP’s global head, in a news release. “Bringing ReedPOP and Gamer Network together, PAX and EGX together — these are the kinds of mash ups you dream of.”
That Gamer Network also lays claim to some of the most reputable names in game journalism also helps, as ReedPOP says it’s looking to move into other areas of the industry. This is echoed in a Eurogamer post about the site’s new owner.
“As you might expect, it was our EGX events that brought us to ReedPOP’s attention. But the ReedPOP team is 100 per cent committed to our digital media business (which is a businessy way of saying our websites and YouTube channels), too,” wrote Oli Welsh, Eurogamer’s longtime reviews editor. “Just as we, over a decade ago, figured that the online communities we’d built around our websites might want to meet up in the real world to play games, ReedPOP wants to find ways to talk to the communities it has built around its events outside of those events.”
ReedPOP’s ownership of Gamer Network begins immediately, although staff at Eurogamer, USgamer and the other publications maintain that it’s business as usual at the websites.