Publisher Ziff Davis has
been in trouble for a while, and now we know how bad. The publisher
skipped an interest payment and is entering into negotiations regarding its $390 million debt. Ziff Davis says they are still operationally "in very good shape," but they still have debt left over from when the company "was a very different scale." The company used to employ 1,200 people, it is now down to 290 and among its many websites (including 1UP), it only has three magazines left:
PC Magazine, EGM and
Games for Windows. During the attempted sales of its games division it became clear
buyers wanted 1UP, but had no interest in the declining magazines.
Death in the video game magazine business seems inevitable, unless you're bundled with a
mega gaming retail chain's discount card. Although this shouldn't be taken as a sign that
EGM and your other Ziff publication's are finished. There's obviously a reason these magazines have survived while the others died off.
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{ Aug 16th 2007 at 6:56PM } 
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
BananaBoat @ Aug 16th 2007 7:02PM
It's a good thing that Patrick Norton is jumping ship just in time to not be affected by this. Ziff Davis let itself go to hell in a handbasket. I'd say EGM and 1UP are the two crowning jewels of it's properties, and I'll be pretty sad if either of them jump the shark.
DWells55 @ Aug 17th 2007 3:05PM
Crap, the only three magazines I have subscriptions to are EGM, PC Magazine, and Games for Windows. Go figure.
Grindstone @ Aug 16th 2007 7:02PM
Bail out Ziff! This boat is sinking, and no amount of effort will save it. The hull is breached, taking on water, get your swim trunks.
Korova @ Aug 16th 2007 7:05PM
Another victim of the Joystiq juggernaut!
Singard @ Aug 16th 2007 7:07PM
I love 1up and their online properties, and I still pick up EGM from time to, so I have to say I'll be sad if it all falls apart (which looks to be the case). They really should have sold off 1up on their own and just let EGM and GFW die when they had the chance -- at least great properties like the Web site, 1up Yours and the 1up Show would still survive (but could you imagine either of them without Shane Bettanhausen, Shoe, etc.?).
Let's hope they find a buyer or right the ship before it's all over for good.
Ace121212 @ Aug 16th 2007 7:06PM
Do not pass go. Do not collect 390 million dollars.
scooby0110 @ Aug 16th 2007 7:09PM
Nothing to see here....move along.
Shagittarius @ Aug 16th 2007 7:09PM
A Spokesperson for Ziff Davis commented ," We expect profits to rise dramatically again once this internet fad passes".
Monkeydog @ Aug 16th 2007 7:12PM
Man, if EGM goes over, what will supply me my gaming knowledge while on the can?
Donald @ Aug 16th 2007 9:13PM
Step 1: Get a handheld device with a decent web browser
Step 2: Set browser homepage to http://www.joystiq.com
Step 3: ???
Step 4: PROFIT!
phattie @ Aug 16th 2007 7:14PM
I dont even remember the last time i bought a magazine... at most, i'll browse some mags to kill time; but, plunking down money for magazines doesnt make any sense anymore.
shoop @ Aug 16th 2007 7:18PM
no big loss
faceless coward @ Aug 16th 2007 7:18PM
I have a subscription to EGM and Games for Windows. Unfortunately for Ziff Davis, both of my subscriptions were free, and I feel kind of guilty for wasting paper every time I skim through for the rare article I'm really interested in reading.
DangerMouse @ Aug 16th 2007 7:31PM
With the advancement of handheld gaming and portable internet browsing, i have no use what-so-ever for magazines.
Arturo @ Aug 16th 2007 7:39PM
I read them (free subs to EGM and GFW) at my crappy although hopefully temporary job as they keep me sane while im there.
Sam G. @ Aug 16th 2007 8:24PM
Joystiq's in ur Internets stealin ur marketsharez!!!
But seriously folks, ZD Games is too attractive an asset for someone to NOT take a flyer on buying it on the cheap. I expect 1Up et al to survive; I wouldn't be surprised at all if MTV/Viacom takes a look; after all, they just said they're willing to spend an assload of money.
Obie @ Aug 16th 2007 8:06PM
Whoops, I bet those leaked scans of Halo 3 didn't help the bottom line.
I do hope they get themselves out of this mess.
AoE @ Aug 16th 2007 8:45PM
hey... is that newscorp circling overhead?
ferrarimanf355 @ Aug 16th 2007 11:39PM
They have IGN already.
Ratchet the Lombax @ Aug 16th 2007 8:45PM
I wouldn't be surprised if someone does buy 1up.com but as for EGM I think it's time has come and gone. With the internet so affordable now and the countless number of gaming blogs and sites like Gamefaqs and gamewinners there's really no need for gaming magazines. By the time they come out once a month they already have out of date info that everyone has seen on a dozen times on every other gaming site.
gamernewz.net @ Aug 16th 2007 8:45PM
It will certainly mark an ending of an incredible era when EGM closes down. I know a lot of people hate them now. I myself have stopped picking it up.
But damn, I used to the count days before the next EGM.
Oh well, Mags are on the way out in a big way.
BTW, check out my overhaul.
plyx @ Aug 16th 2007 8:58PM
I'm sure poor management played a big role in this. Ever since Dan "Shoe" Hsu took over EGM the quality of the magazine has been in a perpetual state of decline.
Mark @ Aug 17th 2007 2:01AM
I thought his editorials were always pretty spot-on. Although I'd be sad to see EGM go, as I've read their publication from a very young age, I owe them 20$ in subscription fees at the moment...so I don't really care either way.
Yay for free stuff!
Squirrel3D @ Aug 17th 2007 11:13AM
I so agree with that. Take a look at how they kissed sony's behind when they were comparing the PSP to the DS. Then they started having failed celebrites trying to tell us why they play games, and that was it for me.
Singapura @ Aug 16th 2007 9:07PM
Snif, all the great mags are either disappearing or rapidly turning into advertisement folders with some editorial content. C&VG (ad-mag), Dragon magazine (stopped publishing), Dungeon magazine (stopped publishing). Internet is still no substitute for a quick read before sleep.
Tarc @ Aug 17th 2007 7:22AM
I've been a subscriber to EGM for 10-12 years now. As much as teh Internets are cool and up-to-the-nanosecond with news and all that, I still enjoy just kicking back computer-free and reading game articles every month.
Einhanderkiller @ Aug 16th 2007 9:54PM
I just hope this doesn't affect Games For Windows: The Official Magazine. That's my favorite magazine.
blooh @ Aug 17th 2007 1:12AM
lol
NintendoFanbot @ Aug 16th 2007 9:56PM
On one hand I want God to smite EGM...
but on the other... I want them to save Wizard Magazine.
I'm conflicted. :(
rokerovakero @ Aug 17th 2007 1:31AM
Nelson: HA HA!
Alex @ Aug 17th 2007 3:10AM
Wow. This really sucks. Oh, and for all those who say, why do I need a magazine? Well, if you read them you would know that magazines for the most part always have exclusive news for games. Like EGM with their Halo 3 cover (too bad it was on the internet thanks to thiefs).
I myself enjoy reading a gaming magazines because I don't really care to read bias gaming blogs. Their stories are just rip offs of other people's investigative hard work. I also am not always on the internet. I deny paying $10 for browsing on my phone when I already pay money for calling and data and handheld browsers sucks ass. I don't care what anyone says. Plus, over the years I've really come to love the guys at EGM, GFW, and 1Up. I can't wait for Fridays and Mondays when I can get their podcasts. 1up Yours, 1up Show, and EGM Live.
DrXym @ Aug 17th 2007 4:47AM
Ziff might pick up more revenue from 1UP if they FIXED THE DAMN SITE!!! I don't know how many times I've tried to visit or post a comment and encountered page load errors. It's just so slow and broken at times that I fully expect that many 1st time visitors never come back.
brian276 @ Aug 17th 2007 5:02AM
For anyone worrying where all the good quality videogame magazines have gone, may i point you in the direction of Edge, which unlike certain magazines, we all know, glance at and regret buying 30 minutes later, has serious video game culture articles which aren't merely puff pieces to ensure acess to future product- Edge isn't afraid to bite the hand that feeds it!!
Ilchymis @ Aug 17th 2007 9:04AM
There's some sort of inexplicable happiness that comes with having a physical magazine to look at once a month. I've been subscribed to various videogame magazines over my years, ranging from Game Players and GamePro, to Games for Windows, Nintendo Power, and EGM, and I can honestly say that I prefer them over anything on all of the internets. I think it harkens back to my childhood, and having magazines being the ONLY form of gaming news that I could get my hands on, but I miss it. The internet has really killed the joy in a lot of things.
As for the content of EGM, it's quickly grown into one of my alltime favorites. I like the wit and humor, and I feel that they have some of the best writers out there. Their reviews may be a bit lacking, but the rest of the mag holds its own rather well. It's a good read.
DarthDavid @ Aug 17th 2007 10:17AM
I've been reading and collecting EGM since 92'/93', throughout all the years of gaming this is the only great magazine that stood the test of time. Some of my other favs died out (Gamers Republic and Diehard Gamefan)........EGM, Play, and Egde(UK) are the only good mags left (Gamepro sucks!). It WILL be a sad day when the final issue of EGM is sold =(
HB96st @ Aug 17th 2007 12:18PM
"It will certainly mark an ending of an incredible era when EGM closes down. I know a lot of people hate them now. I myself have stopped picking it up.
But damn, I used to the count days before the next EGM."
COSIGN!... I started collecting EGM back with the Street Fighter for the SNES issue! -Remember Sushi-X?? Wonder who he really was??
Anyways, once I started noticing them being Biased to companies/games, I ended my subscription. I think alot of money exchanged hands between the reviewers of EGM and major companies..
Remember how you would look for a certain game review, knowing that the game was out, but wouldn't see the crappy review until 1-2 issues later! (NBA LIVE 07 was one of them..)
Dan "Shoe" Hsu used to always talk about in his editorials about how EGM is unbiased.. He must've been the most paid-off Reviewer in EGM!
Good riddance to bad rubbish. -I'll miss Electronic Gaming Monthly, Not EGM.
Abscissa @ Aug 17th 2007 5:53PM
"There's obviously a reason these magazines have survived while the others died off."
I don't know about PC Magazine or Games for Windows, but in the case of EGM that reason couldn't have possibly been quality of writing. That mag (just like GameInformer) is the video game equivalent of Maxim or FHM: written by junior high boys for junior high boys, while pretending to be by and for, *ahem*, "mature" adults.