IGN, UGO Merge to Create Video Game Media Colossus

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The long, drawn-out and brutal war of high-profile videogame-centric websites – a battle so severe that you may not even have known it was happening – has finally ended with the news that News Corp., owners of IGN Entertainment, will purchase UGO Entertainment from Hearst Corp. for an undisclosed sum.

The deal will create what the companies are calling “a clear leader in video games media,” merging IGN’s properties (including IGN.com, Gamespy and TeamXBox) with UGO’s sites (UGO.com, 1up.com and others). According to IGN, this merger will expand IGN’s reach to “one in four men online.”

Although News Corp. is officially acquiring UGO from Hearst, the latter will remain connected with the new joint venture, both as a shareholder and “an active participant in the development of its business,” according to the Hollywood Reporter. “The combination of IGN and UGO will create the complete ‘go to’ online destination for video game enthusiasts,” says Hearst Interactive Media’s Ken Bronfin.

No news yet as to whether the result of the merger will be renamed “IUGGNO.”

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