Prometheus Global Media has sold a stake in Back Stage to a group of investors led by John Amato, who will take over as CEO.
Parent company Prometheus is billing the arrangement as a “strategic alliance.” It comes a week after the company unloaded Hollywood Creative Directory, a story first reported by TheWrap.
"We continue to develop in all our major areas of business both vertically and globally, and we are delighted to be working with John Amato to expand Back Stage across numerous platforms," Jimmy Finkelstein, Chairman of Prometheus Global Media said in a statement.
It is not immediately clear how much the investors paid for this stake. The New York Post reports that the deal is worth $3 million and that Amato now holds a majority stake in his new company. Sister publication the Hollywood Reporter simply reported that the investors had acquired a stake in Back Stage.
Also read: Hollywood Reporter Fires Creative Directory (Updated)
Prometheus has not released the terms of the deal, while Guggenheim Partners has yet to respond to a request for comment.
Prometheus said that it wants to expand Back Stage — but it is not clear how. Back Stage, more than 50 years old, has offered “job listings, career buildings tool, and industry news.” Amato was the president and co-founder of Show Media, a provider of taxi advertising in New York City.
Also read: Michael Wolff Ouster at Adweek Imminent, Say Insiders
TheWrap reported last week that Prometheus unloaded the Hollywood Creative Directory, putting its four employees out of a job. The HCD operated under the auspices of The Hollywood Reporter, which has also given Prometheus problems of its own.
THR is facing a lawsuit from Penske Media Corporation, the parent company of rival Deadline Hollywood, for copyright infringement. It has also been dogged by rumors of weak financials, as advertising has not picked up enough to cover its expensive redesign.
Then there is another of Prometheus' properties, Adweek, where rumors have circulated for months about weak ad sales, and the ouster of editorial director Michael Wolff is considered imminent.