Despite the chatter that TechCrunch and Engadget are on the auction block, AOL CEO Tim Armstrong says the company’s tech properties aren’t for sale.
Where did the idea reported by ex-TechCruncher Sarah Lacey at her PandoDaily, that the tech properties were for sale for $ 70-to-$ 100 million come from? Armstrong tells paidContent in a post-earnings interview that they were out in the marketplace talking to possible investors about partnerships for scaling the tech properties.
“We don’t have any interest in selling TechCrunch or Engadget,” he said firmly. “Our number one goal basically has been to scale them up. At this point, it’s likely we’ll just end up investing ourselves.”
(In case you were wondering, TC founder Michael Arrington told Lacey “I am not in the least bit interested” in buying back the site.)
The sites, which are are now run separately from the Huffington Post Media Group, already have some international presence. What does Armstrong mean by scale? Armstrong says what he wants to do is move them from brands to businesses. That means more coverage areas, more video, more international, more events. TC has been staffing up and moving to retain the staff that stuck around after a Michael Arrington-Arianna Huffington showdown last year.
Huffington, who continues to head the Huffington Post Media Group, has nothing to do with the tech properties now. Instead, they are being run by former Time Inc. exec Ned Desmond, reporting to Jay Kirsch, SVP and GM, AOL Marketplace. He in turn reports to CFO Artie Minson.
More to come
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