While many refer to 2016 as the year of the grim reaper, killing off celebrities and washing away Mariah Carey’s career, we found out that TeamRock laid off over 70 employees right before Christmas. The British publishing company purchased Metal Hammer for over $10 million in 2013. Three years later, they found themselves drowning in a pool of debt, leaving the publications future, including Classic Rock and Prog in question.
Orange Goblin frontman Ben Ward started a crowdfunding campaign to help those who lost their jobs, given that it happened right before Christmas. Metal Hammer has been around for well over thirty years supporting the metal scene that we all know and love. The campaign continues and currently has well over 3500 supporters thus far. Initially seeking £20,000, the campaign has already raised over £85,000 , showing there’s still quite a fan base and appetite for teamrock’s publications.
Now that 2016 is behind us, 2017 is beginning with a sign of hope and relief hearing Metal Hammer (and Classic Rock and Prog) have been brought back to life. According to The Guardian, Future Publishing secured Metal Hammer for a relatively small amount of $800,000. It’s somewhat ironic given the fact that Future Publishing initially sold Metal Hammer to TeamRock in 2013 for £10 million and are now getting them back for under a million.
Zillah Byng-Thorne, chief executive of Future Publishing made the following comments:
“The acquisition of these classic rock brands with their associated magazines, events and websites marks a further step in our buy and build strategy. It further reinforces our creation of a leading global specialist media platform with data at its heart, which we are monetising through diversified revenue streams. We look forward to developing further these iconic and much-loved brands and to continuing to serve their communities of dedicated enthusiasts around the world.”
It’s questionable whether Metal Hammer will return to print or just be an online entity, but regardless, we are happy to see their resurrection. Happy New Year!
