What Evolve Media, LLC does

Evolve Media, LLC is a private digital media publishing company that operates a portfolio of 16+ owned and operated enthusiast websites targeting niche audience verticals including entertainment (ComingSoon, SuperHeroHype, RealityTea), gaming (GameRevolution, PlayStation LifeStyle), combat and team sports (Sherdog, WrestleZone, HFboards), beauty and fashion (TotalBeauty, BeautyRiot, TheFashionSpot), parenting (Momtastic), pets (DogTime, CatTime), men's lifestyle (Mandatory), and outdoor recreation (LiveOutdoors). The company serves two constituencies: end consumers who consume free content across its publishing network, and brand partners—predominantly entertainment marketers, motion picture studios, and gaming companies—that purchase advertising and content licensing to reach those audiences in contextual environments.

The company's publishing operations run on Pebblebed, a proprietary content management system built on top of WordPress and created in 2013 to serve all owned and operated properties from a unified platform. In 2020, Evolve migrated its hosting infrastructure from local servers to a cloud-based solution to improve scalability and reliability. Several of its properties were launched in the late 1990s and have accumulated multi-decade content archives and loyal followings, particularly the community-driven sites (Sherdog since 1997, HFboards since 1999, GameRevolution since 1996) that operate forums and interactive features. The portfolio was assembled primarily through acquisitions between 2005 and 2016, supplemented by select launches and divestitures (Quizilla sold in 2006, SheKnows Media sold to Great Hill Partners in 2012, MyAnimeList sold to DENA in 2015).

Evolve Media generates revenue primarily through digital advertising across its owned network, including targeted display advertising using demographic and behavioral signals, supplemented by content licensing and brand campaign work for entertainment marketers. The business monetizes audience reach through B2B advertising partnerships sold directly to studios, gaming companies, and brand marketers, with pricing negotiated on a per-campaign or contractual basis. The company operates internationally through offices in Beverly Hills (headquarters, relocated in September 2021), Toronto (2007), London (2008), Sydney (2009), and Mexico City (2017), serving advertisers across North America, Europe, Oceania, and Latin America.

Name

Evolve Media, LLC

Legal name

Evolve Media, LLC

Website

https://evolvemediallc.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1999

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Private digital media publisher operating a portfolio of 16+ niche enthusiast websites spanning entertainment, gaming, sports, beauty, parenting, pets, and lifestyle verticals; serves brand partners and entertainment marketers through contextual digital advertising reaching tens of millions of engaged readers globally.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Digital Media Publishing

NAICS

Media Streaming Distribution Services, Social Networks, and Other Media Networks and Content Providers (516210)

SIC

Miscellaneous Publishing (2741)

akta.pro primary industry

Creator Publishing & Membership Platforms (Writer-Centric) (MPACAIAD)

akta.pro secondary industry

Creator Partnerships & Sponsorship Sales (Brand Partnerships) (MPAAAHAK)

Keywords

• Digital media publishing
• Entertainment websites
• Niche content publishing
• Digital advertising network
• Passion-based publishing

Headquarters

HQ city

Los Angeles

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices6 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Operations, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Digital Advertising: Display advertising on owned and operated publishing sites, including targeted advertising based on user demographics and online behaviors. Revenue generated from advertisers seeking to reach the company's millions of engaged readers across niche content categories.
2. Content Licensing & Ad Campaigns: Licensing content and running advertising campaigns for entertainment marketers, including motion picture studios, gaming companies, and other advertisers seeking to reach engaged audiences on the company's publishing network.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels1 record

Core offering

Evolve Media, LLC is a digital media publisher operating a portfolio of 16+ owned and operated enthusiast publishing brands spanning entertainment, gaming, sports, beauty, pets, and parenting verticals. The company produces original editorial content across these niche sites to attract millions of engaged readers, then monetizes the audience through digital advertising sales and content licensing to brand partners and entertainment marketers.

Product overview

Evolve Media, LLC is a digital media publishing company operating a portfolio of vertical-focused websites. The company runs multiple acquired entertainment and lifestyle brands including gaming sites (GameRevolution, PlayStation LifeStyle), entertainment news (ComingSoon, SuperHeroHype), sports/fighting (Sherdog, WrestleZone, Hfboards), outdoor recreation (LiveOutdoors), men's lifestyle (Mandatory), beauty (TotalBeauty, BeautyRiot, TheFashionSpot), parenting (Momtastic), reality TV (RealityTea), and pets (DogTime, CatTime). The business model is passion-based publishing that connects advertisers with tens of millions of loyal readers through contextual content environments. The company generates revenue through advertising, including targeted and behavioral advertising using cookies and tracking technologies.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• ComingSoon: Movie news and entertainment coverage providing exclusive content and top-notch news coverage daily.
• SuperHeroHype
• GameRevolution
• PlayStation LifeStyle
• Sherdog
• WrestleZone
• Hfboards
• LiveOutdoors
• Mandatory
• BeautyRiot
• TotalBeauty
• TheFashionSpot
• Momtastic
• RealityTea
• DogTime
• CatTime

Products and services

• ComingSoon Movie and entertainment news site providing exclusive content and daily coverage of films, television shows, and Hollywood for entertainment enthusiasts.
• SuperHeroHype News and insider coverage of comics, superheroes, fantasy, sci-fi, cosplay, and geek culture written by superfans.
• GameRevolution Gaming journalism site offering breaking news, reviews, previews, and guides for gamers, operating since 1996.
• PlayStation LifeStyle PlayStation-focused gaming community providing news, reviews, and features for PlayStation enthusiasts.
• Sherdog Mixed martial arts journalism website serving the MMA community with hard-hitting journalism since 1997.
• WrestleZone Professional wrestling news, interviews, features, and coverage site.
• HFboards Internet's largest hockey community forum for NHL, college teams, and global ice hockey discussion.
• LiveOutdoors Outdoor recreation site connecting individuals with nature through knowledge and confidence-building content.
• Mandatory Men's lifestyle site engaging audiences with content that entertains, inspires, and encourages active involvement.
• BeautyRiot Beauty content platform featuring celebrity hairstylists, makeup artists, and fashion stylists sharing insider secrets on achieving flawless looks.
• TotalBeauty Beauty product and review site covering skin care, hair care, and makeup.
• TheFashionSpot Fashion trends, beauty must-haves, and wellness tips platform for fashion enthusiasts.
• Momtastic Parenting site delivering personal stories, pregnancy and parenting tips, and expert advice to moms and moms-to-be.
• RealityTea Reality TV news site covering celebrity rumors, gossip, and news about reality television stars and shows.
• DogTime Pet site providing dog health information, canine celebration content, and rescue/shelter community engagement resources.
• CatTime Pet site providing cat care resources, feline celebration content, and shelter/rescue adoption support.

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core, strategic and foundational.

• Ad.NetcoreTechnology or Integration · 1 January 2020Search partnership formed in 2020 to provide readers with better in-site search experiences across Evolve Media's web properties. Ad.Net provides search technology integration.
• OutbrainstrategicGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2019Strategic partnership formed in 2019 for traffic growth across Evolve Media's publishing sites. Outbrain provides content discovery and recommendation platform to drive audience engagement and site traffic.
• Third-Party Publishers (ComingSoon, SuperHeroHype, RottenTomatoes)foundationalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 January 2003Ad sales agreements signed in 2003 with independent web publishers including ComingSoon, SuperHeroHype, and RottenTomatoes who had large site audiences but no direct ad sales capabilities. Evolve Media provided ad sales representation.
• Motion Picture Studios (Multiple)foundationalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 January 2001Partnerships with several motion picture studios established in 2001 to build official movie websites and run advertising campaigns. Studios include unnamed major entertainment studios.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Bleacher Report: Sports-focused digital publisher built around passionate vertical communities with heavy user-generated content — comparable to Evolve's Sherdog and HFboards properties in cultivating niche audience loyalty, though concentrated in sports.
• Dotdash Meredith: IAC-owned multi-brand digital publisher operating vertical-focused sites like Investopedia, The Spruce, Byrdie, Verywell, and People.com. Highly comparable model of niche vertical enthusiast publishing monetized through display and affiliate commerce.
• Future plc: UK-based multi-vertical enthusiast digital publisher with brands like GamesRadar, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, Tom's Hardware, and Marie Claire. Closest publicly-traded analog: vertical-focused content sites monetized through display ads, affiliate commerce, and licensing across enthusiast and lifestyle categories.
• Ziff Davis: Operates a portfolio of enthusiast digital publishing brands including IGN, PCMag, Mashable, and Everyday Health. Highly comparable roll-up strategy of vertical-focused sites monetized through display advertising, commerce content, and licensing — same fundamental model as Evolve Media.
• Minute Media: Owns The Players' Tribune, FanSided, Mental Floss, and The Big Lead — a sports-and-entertainment focused multi-brand digital publishing network with proprietary tech stack (Voltax). Direct comparable in business model and category mix.
• Vox Media: Operates The Verge, Polygon, SB Nation, NY Magazine, and Vox.com — a multi-vertical digital publishing network with strong sports/entertainment focus. Comparable diversified enthusiast publisher with proprietary platform (Chorus) and similar advertising/partnerships monetization.
• Penske Media Corporation: Operates entertainment-focused digital and print brands including Variety, Rolling Stone, Billboard, Deadline, and Sportico. Comparable mix of entertainment and event-adjacent enthusiast publishing with strong brand partnerships business serving studios and marketers.
• Static Media: Operates a portfolio of vertical enthusiast digital brands including Mashed, SlashFilm, Looper, The List, Chowhound, and Tasting Table. Closest private-market analog in scale, structure, and monetization approach.

Broad incumbents

• CNET: General technology and consumer-electronics digital publisher now operated by Red Ventures. Larger incumbent with broader editorial scope but overlapping display-advertising and brand-partnership monetization model.
• Hearst Digital Media: Large multi-brand publisher with digital properties spanning cars, women's lifestyle, technology, and entertainment (e.g., Esquire, Cosmopolitan, Car and Driver, Popular Mechanics). Broader portfolio and deeper resources than Evolve, with overlapping B2B ad-partnership business.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/evolve-media-llc
• Xx.com/EvolveMedia_LLC
• Facebookfacebook.com/evolvemediallcpublishing

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Subsidiaries18 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A10 records

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Evolve Media, LLC