Vice Media to relaunch digital platform in partnership with Savage Ventures

Vice Media will relaunch its eponymous digital platform vice.com through a partnership with Nashville-based Savage Ventures, according to a joint statement on Thursday, bringing back to life the popular media brand that went bankrupt last year.

The terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Vice, which started as an alternative punk magazine in 1994, emerged as a popular media brand among young audiences in the digital era thanks to its edgy and provocative content, and bold documentaries, including a three-part series titled "Inside North Korea."

It shut down its flagship site and cut hundreds of jobs in February.

At its peak in 2017, Vice Media was estimated to be worth $5.7 billion but accumulated debt led to the company being acquired by a lender consortium led by Fortress Investment Group for $350 million in 2023.

The deal will also see the revival of Vice's Motherboard, Munchies, and Noisey sections, which focused on tech, food, and music, and the relaunch of its social media channels.

Digital assets related to Vice News, however, are not part of the deal.

Savage Ventures, which owns a bouquet of digital media businesses, will help Vice expand its audience as part of the joint venture and strategic partnership.

The deal will accelerate Vice's "path to profitability and shifts its strategic focus to being a business-to-business content player," the companies said.