• by Gavin O'Malley  @mp_gavin, July 25, 2007

Eyeing male audiences, Hearst Corp. now plans to buy UGO Networks and its group of sites devoted to gaming, movies, and entertainment. Once the deal closes, Hearst will roll Ugo into its growing interactive media unit. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Ugo trades in "a healthy mix of internal and third-party content," according to Kenneth Bronfin, president of Hearst Interactive Media, adding: "UGO continues to build a very substantial, highly sought-after audience base."

Its network presently attracts some 11 million monthly visitors stateside, and 28 million worldwide--one in ten of whom are between the ages of 18 and 34.

And Ugo is more deserving than other Web companies today because it has already weathered one Internet bubble, said UGO CEO J Moses, who will remain with the New York-based company. Ugo presently has 82 employees.

"We survived the shake-out and we have built a strong business as an independent dot-com over the past nine years," Moses said. With the acquisition, he added, "Our goal is to become the No. 1-rated men's lifestyle site on the Web."

Ugo's sites are supported by advertising, and specialize in customized initiatives for top brands. NBC is a longtime ad partner--by this industry's standards--most recently working with Ugo to promote its prime-time hit "Heroes." UGO previously ran ads for the 2004 Summer Olympics and 2006 Winter Games.

As the print market continues to atrophy, Hearst is investing further online, recently relaunching new Web sites for its three teen magazines--CosmoGIRL.com, Seventeen.com, and Teenmag.com--with interactive content, photos, video, and podcasts. In January, Hearst bought teen social network eCRUSH.com for an undisclosed sum.

Hearst Interactive Media has in the past invested in a number of new media companies, including iVillage, Netscape, XM Satellite Radio, Broadcast.com, Exodus, Sling Media and Brightcove.