March 18 (UPI) — Sports Illustrated intellectual property rights holder Authentic Brands Group has reached a deal to keep the legacy publication afloat.
British digital media company Minute Media will now continue to operate Sports Illustrated, the company confirmed in a statement Monday.
Founded in 1954, Sports Illustrated announced in January it would lay off “possibly all” of its staff after failing to pay the parent company.
At the time, Authentic Brands Group revoked then-publisher The Arena Group’s right to publish after missing a quarterly payment of about $3.75 million.
London-based Minute Media is best known for publishing The Players’ Tribune, which was originally founded by retired New York Yankee Derek Jeter in 2014.
The international publishing company also has a major office hub in Tel Aviv, Israel, and will now take over responsibility for the Sports Illustrated brand.
“Minute Media will oversee all digital and print editorial operations across the SI portfolio, which has been the industry leader in dedicated sports journalism for decades,” the company said in the statement.
“Minute Media plans to leverage its premium sports content expertise, as well as its technology platform that powers the creation, global distribution and monetization of hundreds of digital content brands, to continue to grow the Sports Illustrated media business.”
The company did not immediately specify what changes it would make to the brand.
“Sports Illustrated is the gold standard for sports journalism and has been for nearly 70 years across both print and digital media. The weight and power of that distinction cannot be understated,” Minute Media founder and CEO Asaf Peled said in the company’s statement.
“At Minute Media, our focus will be to take that legacy into new, emerging channels enhancing visibility, commercial viability and sustainable impact, all while ensuring that the SI team is inspired to flourish in this new era of media.”
Authentic Brands Group acquired Sports Illustrated in 2018 and licensed its publishing rights to Arena Group in 2019 under a 10-year agreement.
The once-iconic magazine has struggled to remain relevant over the past few years, including during an artificial intelligence scandal in which it later admitted publishing articles written by AI.
