• by Erik Sass  @eriksass1, January 7, 2009

Some much-needed good news in magazine-land got short shrift in today's edition of MediaDailyNews: 8020 Media, the publisher of JPG--a magazine devoted to photography with user-generated content--is not closing as reported.

While founder Mitchell Fox did announce 8020's demise in an email sent out on New Year's Day, he apparently spoke too soon. Since then, he received a number of offers from investors looking to acquire the struggling magazine publisher.

It's not clear who will end up owning 8020, but the company set Wednesday, Jan. 7 as the deadline for receiving bids. In an ebullient follow-up email, Fox said: "After we announced we were forced to close 8020 Media, we were approached by over 20 people/companies who want to make an offer to acquire the company."

The rush to buy a relatively new magazine publisher with an innovative publishing model is a welcome bright spot in an otherwise apocalyptic media environment. (8020 also owns the reader-generated travel magazine Everywhere.)

As credit markets remain paralyzed and print ad revenues tumble, established magazine publishers are facing the prospect of more staff cutbacks and magazine closures, while several big newspaper publishers are flirting with bankruptcy.

But as the story of 8020 demonstrates, private investors and venture capitalists still possess enough cash to make smaller deals. They may even view the downturn as an opportunity to acquire distressed properties that may be viable in the long term.