ViacomCBS Set To Sell Tech Website CNET In $500M Deal With Red Venture – Update
UPDATED 09/4/20, 4:40AM PST: ViacomCBS and Red Ventures are close to completing a $500M deal for tech website CNET, according to the Wall Street Journal.
The pact could be announced this week and is expected to close in Q4. Red Ventures is a digital marketing company that owns a varied portfolio of online businesses. CBS acquired CNET Networks in a $1.8BN deal back in 2008.
PREVIOUSLY, 08/18/20: ViacomCBS which has been looking to shed assets since its merger last year is in talks to unload tech website CNET to Red Ventures, a digital-focused holding company, Deadline has confirmed.
A deal could be worth about $500 million, according to the Wall Street Journal, which first reported the talks.
A spokesman for ViacomCBS declined to comment.
The company has been paring costs since the merger and has made a major pivot towards streaming. It put publisher Simon & Schuster on the block as well as Black Rock, CBS’ iconic Manhattan headquarters.