Sports Illustrated Deal

Digital sports media company Minute Media has agreed to partner with Sports Illustrated, reportedly overseeing all editorial operations across its digital and print platforms. The deal spans up to 10 years with a possible extension of up to 20 more, although detailed financial terms remain unclear.

The news comes after a turbulent past year for the sports media giant. The CEO of Sports Illustrated's parent company Arena Group—which held the publishing rights to the 70-year-old publication from Authentic Brands Group—was ousted in December after reports surfaced that artificial intelligence was used to produce content. Mass layoffs were held in January after Arena failed to make a $3.75M licensing payment to ABG. Arena had planned to end Sports Illustrated's print edition in May; Minute Media said it aims to continue the print edition and broaden Sports Illustrated's global presence. As part of the deal, ABG will reportedly gain a stake in Minute Media.

Minute Media, which owns The Players’ Tribune and FanSided, is known for creating short-form sports content. See how Minute Media has used its proprietary tech platform to turn brands profitable here.