Gawker will sell to highest bidder after filing for bankruptcy

If you’ve read websites like Gizmodo, Jezebel, Deadspin, Jalopnik, Kotaku, or Lifehacker, you may or may not know that these websites are actually under the control of a parent company called Gawker Media.

In the filing, Hogan, whose real name is Terry Bollea, was listed as Gawker’s biggest creditor.

Gawker plans to appeal the judgment, and additional lawsuits against the company by Hogan are still pending.

In a filing made in the US bankruptcy court for the Southern District of New York, Gawker said that its assets are worth between $50 million to $100 million, while its liabilities are estimated to be between $100 million to $500 million.

The network was founded in 2003 by Nick Denton and has grown to be one of the most prolific collection of news and gossip websites in the country.

Gawker Media has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy after losing a $140m (£98m) privacy case brought by former wrestler Hulk Hogan over a sex tape.

Hogan says, Gawker chose the wrong guy! Media company Gawker has filed for bankruptcy in response to the penalties levied against them as a result of the Hulk Hogan sex tape case.

Following the bankruptcy filing, the embattled United States media group said it had reached a deal to sell its media brands to publishing group Ziff Davis.

It said the sale will be conducted through a bankruptcy court supervised auction, in which other bidders may also participate. That bid was for $90 million to $100 million, according to a person briefed on Gawker’s plans, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

The company is beginning an auction, and Ziff Davis, a digital media company, has submitted an opening bid.

I wanted to share some news about a potential acquisition for Ziff Davis.

“There’s a tremendous fit between the two organisations, from brands to audience to monetisation”, said a spokesman for Ziff Davis. “[It’s] very painful and paralysing for people who were targeted”. He also invited Thiel to discuss the issue publicly.

The dramatic move was motivated by the company’s expensive legal fight with Hulk Hogan, a court fight that was funded by Silicon Valley investor Peter Thiel.

“It’s less about revenge and more about specific deterrence”.

It’s tough luck for Nick Denton and the other famously unscrupulous powers that be at Gawker, but as the esteemed Hulkster himself so memorably opined, “Whatcha gonna do, brother?”