Vox Media acquires tech news site Re/code in an all-stock deal

27 May 2015

From left: Walt Mossberg, Vox CEO Jim Bankoff and Kara Swisher

Re/code, the technology news website established by veteran tech journalists Kara Swisher and Walt Mossberg only 18 months ago, has been acquired by Vox Media, publisher of The Verge, in an all-stock transaction.

Swisher, who is a guest chair at our Inspirefest event in June, established Re/code with Mossberg after they both left the Wall Street Journal after building up the successful All Things Digital news and events brand.

“This is the next big step in our mission to bring you quality tech journalism, because our work will now be amplified and enhanced by Vox Media’s deep and broad skill set,” Swisher and Mossberg said in a statement to readers of the site last night.

While the details of the transaction involving Vox Media’s acquisition of Re/code’s parent company Revere Media were not disclosed, the move will give Re/code access to a wider audience.

The move comes just months after another respected tech title Gigaom collapsed. However, it is understood Gigaom is planning to restart in August after being acquired by Knowingly Corp.

Swisher and Mossberg said it will be business as usual at Re/code. However, the one key change will be that Re/code’s review team of Lauren Goode, Katie Boehret and Bonnie Cha will join The Verge staff and Walt Mossberg will be writing reviews and columns for both sites.

“Re/code will benefit from joining Vox Media by integrating Vox Media’s various capabilities — including marketing, communications, audience development, sales and production,” Swisher and Mossberg said. “We will also eventually migrate to Vox Media’s beautiful, powerful and flexible proprietary publishing platform, which will give us new ways to present our stories to you.

“We plan as well to collaborate where appropriate with Vox Media’s current and very successful tech news site, The Verge. While the two sites occasionally overlap, we have focused on the business of tech, while The Verge has focused on covering tech from a lifestyle perspective.”

John Kennedy is a journalist who served as editor of Silicon Republic for 17 years

editorial@siliconrepublic.com