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[MrCunningham]

Gawker site had a sex tape of Hulk Hogan having sex with a friend's wife, Gawker tried to ruin his life (though Gawker has tried to ruin plenty of people's lives for any reason). Hulk Hogan is also a terrible racist.

No one comes out really clean in all this. Kotaku and other subsites are victims in the crossfire of this whole ordeal because Gawker is awful.

Thanks for the summary. Terrible situation and a shame that Kotaku has to be an innocent bystander that was caught in the crossfire in all of this.

 

[ItWillGetBetter]

Thanks for the summary. Terrible situation and a shame that Kotaku has to be an innocent bystander that was caught in the crossfire in all of this.

Well, Hulk Hogan ins't a TERRIBLE racist according to everyone he's worked with.
He's just an old guy who is maybe slightly racist when it came to his daughter that one time. Its like my dad. Exactly the same. So is my dad RACIST? kind of.....But no more than anyone else from around that time.

 

[Dysun]

gawker is pure scum, but have to feel bad for the bystanders caught up in their mess

 

[Dubz]

American lawsuits are so funny, how in the world can this be worth at least 115million..

It's not that this is worth 115M. It's a warning shot to any other scum bag operations that feel like infringing on a human beings privacy for the sake of sport and profit.

 

[RE_Player]

For Christ's sake. Kotaku isn't going anywhere.

If Gawker folds, they'll get sold. They have a value on the market, a big following and they do good work. All that value is wasted if they just close it down and sell the office supplies.

Its not as simple as that.

 

[RPGam3r]

Klepek doesn't belong on giant bomb at all.

Austin fills his role twice as he ever did

Scoops was awesome on GB. Never understood this way of thinking/hating. The crew has such huge range now that he would easily fit back in.

 

[mercenar1e]

Why is Gawker expected to go out of business? This is a rough hit, but if Hogan wants his money it's in his best interest not to bleed them to the point of bankruptcy. Their Wikipedia says they're estimated to net around 30 million in profit every year, so it's not like they can't pay up eventually.

because he would be dead by the time he gets whats owed to him in full.

 

[crimilde]

Kotaku and io9 are great, really sad to see this happen. And for all the people in that company who did nothing wrong, damn. Must be a hard day.

 

[Ivory Samoan]

Good news.

People losing their jobs and putting families at risk of poverty is good news?
SMH.

 

[AwakenedCloud]

Well, Hulk Hogan ins't a TERRIBLE racist according to everyone he's worked with.
He's just an old guy who is maybe slightly racist when it came to his daughter that one time. Its like my dad. Exactly the same. So is my dad RACIST? kind of.....But no more than anyone else from around that time.

It's been a while since I heard the sound byte, but describing him as being "maybe slightly" racism is taking a euphemism three steps too far. That's not what this thread is about, but don't pretend that what he did was anything less than racist.

 

[...Scatter...]

Wish Kotaku the best. Some good people there. Glad the Hulkster has some good news coming his way for once. He's been through a lot of shit over the past few years.

 

[border]

because he would be dead by the time he gets whats owed to him in full.

I don't know how much money Gawker can afford to pay every year (probably millions, maybe ten million). I think it's pretty obvious that Hogan would get more money if he lets them survive rather than immediately bleeding them out. That said, it remains to be seen if Hogan is more interested in money or revenge.

Chances are that these huge penalties will get reduced when Gawker appeals anyway.

 

[Lionel Richie]

This reminds of the similar thing that happened to Joystiq. I loved Joystiq, it was for whatever reason the only place along with Eurogamer that I trusted the reviews somewhat and loved reading them. Shit was great.

I'm not as big a fan of Kotaku, but I know a lot of people are. I hope they survive this and keep doing their jobs.

 

[Corpekata]

Well, Hulk Hogan ins't a TERRIBLE racist according to everyone he's worked with.
He's just an old guy who is maybe slightly racist when it came to his daughter that one time. Its like my dad. Exactly the same. So is my dad RACIST? kind of.....But no more than anyone else from around that time.

This is less a defense of Hogan and more making your dad seem like an asshole.

 

[Gator86]

So hypothetically speaking, lets say that Rick Snyder loses his job tomorrow. How much compassion are you going to have for him?

Even for a banned person, this is a profoundly stupid comment. Jesus.

 

[mercenar1e]

I don't know how much money Gawker can afford to pay every year (probably millions, maybe ten million). I think it's pretty obvious that Hogan would get more money if he lets them survive rather than immediately bleeding them out. That said, it remains to be seen if Hogan is more interested in money or revenge.

Chances are that these huge penalties will get reduced when Gawker appeals anyway.

hes going to have to wait another year for the appeal process to conclude.. will Gawker even be around in 10 years? are they guaranteed to make another 30 million next year? its riskier for him to sit it out and get paid slowly over the course of the next 20 years. He should leg drop them now and have the ref pin to 3.

 

[Japanmanx3]

Yeesh. Well, let us see where this goes.

 

[Ban Puncher]

Gawker should of known that Hulk Hogan doesn't put anyone over.

 

[gamechanger87]

I don't know how much money Gawker can afford to pay every year (probably millions, maybe ten million). I think it's pretty obvious that Hogan would get more money if he lets them survive rather than immediately bleeding them out. That said, it remains to be seen if Hogan is more interested in money or revenge.

Chances are that these huge penalties will get reduced when Gawker appeals anyway.

Gawker makes around 7m a year after expenses according to their financials that were disclosed.

For Gawker to appeal they need to put the cash in escrow for $50M in Florida. They will likely need to find some outside source of capital for the escrow. Maybe a policy with a couple of million premium.

Gawker thought they would lose but they figured it would be low enough of a penalty to make the appeal escrow palatable.

 

[Ape]

Summoning

 

[Mattenth]

I really doubt Kotaku is going anywhere, though I could see the site being sold off. Regardless, Kotaku is profitable (I imagine), so even if the company is sold, wouldn't they continue operating for that profit?

 

[nekkid]

For Christ's sake. Kotaku isn't going anywhere.

If Gawker folds, they'll get sold. They have a value on the market, a big following and they do good work. All that value is wasted if they just close it down and sell the office supplies.

I feel like selling Kotaku (and others) may be a necessity.

 

[Nephtis]

I really doubt Kotaku is going anywhere, though I could see the site being sold off. Regardless, Kotaku is profitable (I imagine), so even if the company is sold, wouldn't they continue operating for that profit?

The (in)famous reputation they have will likely make it so they won't be bought by anyone. And if they do get bought out, a lot of the staff will likely get kicked out. As a business, it's just not really worth purchasing something that has so much animosity towards it.

I think they will be better off starting from scratch. The kotaku entity is most likely dead now.

 

[casinoman921]

Sucks for Patrick and the good ones having to deal with this, especially after they all fought to be unionized and get good pay.

Selling individual sites may be tricky with the whole union thing, but I'm not an expert on that. Working in the industry, though, unions are something media companies don't really want to deal with. Pretty much for money reasons.

If someone bought them there could be layoffs, pay cuts, etc. Lots of scary unknowns. I've been through multiple owners and mergers at my place, and it sure isn't fun.

 

[SparkTR]

I really doubt Kotaku is going anywhere, though I could see the site being sold off. Regardless, Kotaku is profitable (I imagine), so even if the company is sold, wouldn't they continue operating for that profit?

I have no numbers here, but with so many gaming-focused sites being shut down these days who would want to buy them? Even if they're profitable now the growth of game streaming and Twitch/Youtube personalities has not even began to peak yet, there doesn't seem like much of a future there.

 

[dreamcastmaster]

Well, Hulk Hogan ins't a TERRIBLE racist according to everyone he's worked with.
He's just an old guy who is maybe slightly racist when it came to his daughter that one time. Its like my dad. Exactly the same. So is my dad RACIST? kind of.....But no more than anyone else from around that time.

Everybody is a little bit racist, even if they are not aware of it. There have been numerous studies and reporting on this.

 

[BocoDragon]

For Christ's sake. Kotaku isn't going anywhere.

If Gawker folds, they'll get sold. They have a value on the market, a big following and they do good work. All that value is wasted if they just close it down and sell the office supplies.

Could have said the same about Joystiq or 1up...

 

[Sparkedglory]

Despite what people may think of gawker, this sucks for kotaku, jalopnik, and a few of their other smaller sites. They really are some enjoyable places. It just sucks that the company that owns them isn't exactly the best in the world. I'm sure the last thing anybody wants to see is people losing their jobs over this.

 

[icespide]

For Christ's sake. Kotaku isn't going anywhere.

If Gawker folds, they'll get sold. They have a value on the market, a big following and they do good work. All that value is wasted if they just close it down and sell the office supplies.

uh video game blogs/websites aren't exactly raking in the dough lately, illustrated by the fact they will basically throw everything against the wall to get clicks with any non-video-game related article

 

[Foffy]

Everybody is a little bit racist, even if they are not aware of it. There have been numerous studies and reporting on this.

But not me, said I!

I have the free will to not be! To be influenced not be influenced by influence!

 

[Nephtis]

uh video game blogs/websites aren't exactly raking in the dough lately, illustrated by the fact they will basically throw everything against the wall to get clicks with any non-video-game related article

Yeah. The thing is that Kotaku et al aren't video game blogs. If I want news, or articles about the industry, or even game reviews, I go to GameInformer for that. Which isn't saying much, but they provide far more than these so called blogs do.

Kotaku is good for the occasional Bashcraft Japan and Faheys Adventure. Other than that as a video game blog it doesn't hold much value, if any.

 

[darkinstinct]

For Christ's sake. Kotaku isn't going anywhere.

If Gawker folds, they'll get sold. They have a value on the market, a big following and they do good work. All that value is wasted if they just close it down and sell the office supplies.

Who would want to buy them? For the last couple of months all I've seen is gaming websites being shut down, not bought.

 

[Comfort Jones]

Gawker should of known that Hulk Hogan doesn't put anyone over.

Everyone should have known it's not should of.

I'm sure Kotaku will find some kind of new owner but I wouldn't be totally shocked if they lost some people in the transition.

 

[WhiteRabbitEXE]

For Christ's sake. Kotaku isn't going anywhere.

If Gawker folds, they'll get sold. They have a value on the market, a big following and they do good work. All that value is wasted if they just close it down and sell the office supplies.

It's tempting to say that, but who will buy them? They're huge, so they won't be cheap. Many of the networks that could afford them and would potentially be interested probably own one or multiple gaming sites, so they might find them redundant. They're a blog, so they inherently won't mesh well with many networks. Even if they find a buyer, the culture would probably have to change significantly, so many of the staff may not want to come over. Plus, even if they are willing to come over, many would be shed anyway, and again the culture would have to change so even a successful purchase may just lead to a Kotaku-in-name-only scenario.

 

[ramoisdead]

I hope not. Even if Kotaku does shut down, I wish the staff especially Totilo, Scherier, and Klepek bounce back and do something on their own. Some great stories came out of Kotaku thanks to those three.

uh video game blogs/websites aren't exactly raking in the dough lately, illustrated by the fact they will basically throw everything against the wall to get clicks with any non-video-game related article

It's been stated that Kotaku has been doing well with hits in regards to their exclusive stories and reviews, which they helped pioneered by not giving a game a grade just so it can be shown up as a statistic on Metacritic.

 

[geomon]

It's tempting to say that, but who will buy them? They're huge, so they won't be cheap.

Oh I think they'll be really cheap once the court seizes all of their assets and sells them off piece by piece for peanuts at auction.

 

[WhiteRabbitEXE]

Oh I think they'll be really cheap once the court seizes all of their assets and sells them off piece by piece for peanuts at auction.

Can a branch of a company be auctioned off like that? I'm honestly asking, but I feel like it wouldn't work like that. Maybe the physical building, other physical/digital assets, and the name of the company, but not like, the actual staff, which is most important.

 

[AgeEighty]

Its not as simple as that.

Of course it isn't, but what I said is a lot closer to the truth than "If Gawker goes bankrupt, Kotaku shuts down". Kotaku and the other sites are brand assets, worth a lot as functioning entities and practically nothing as shut-down sites. There are complications, but a site like Kotaku can and will be sold before it's just shuttered.

Who would want to buy them? For the last couple of months all I've seen is gaming websites being shut down, not bought.

That kind of market consolidation makes the sites that are left worth more, not less. It's not as if gaming isn't still a huge industry.

"Other game sites were shut down, therefore all game sites are worthless poison" is not how it works.

 

[jesu]

Divided loyalties, Jason on here is good, Gawker are a bit shit though.

 

[dh4niel]

If it all goes to shit I'm sure many Kotaku writers will land on their feet at BuzzFeed.

 

[geomon]

Can a branch of a company be auctioned off like that? I'm honestly asking, but I feel like it wouldn't work like that. Maybe the physical building, other physical/digital assets, and the name of the company, but not like, the actual staff, which is most important.

No you cannot buy the staff. Though I suppose if they're unionized you could bargain with the union to rehire them.

 

[GravityInsanity]

HOLY SHIT MY SIDES HAHA

 

[Iced Arcade]

115 million is a pretty rough nuke to survive, I haven't like kotaku in a few years now but I feel bad for those who will be affected from job loss.

 

[UrbanRats]

Hadn't even thought of this.
Gawker is foul, and I can't believe they out-dirtbagged Hogan in that trial, but I hope everything goes well for Kotaku and they don't end up suffering for someone else's fuckery.

 

[Staf]

Don't read Kotaku but if this increases the likelihood of Patrick returning to GB, good.

P.S. Fuck Gawker.

 

[JackDT]

Are there any other sites than Kotaku that do good long form games writing that require lots of research? Jason's stuff is what I'm thinking of:

http://kotaku.com/the-messy-true-story-behind-the-making-of-destiny-1737556731

http://kotaku.com/crunch-time-why-game-developers-work-such-insane-hours-1704744577

 

[Aztechnology]

There's some good people at Kotaku. I hope whatever happens they end up alright.

 

[WhiteRabbitEXE]

Are there any other sites than Kotaku that do good long form games writing that require lots of research? Jason's stuff is what I'm thinking of:

http://kotaku.com/the-messy-true-story-behind-the-making-of-destiny-1737556731

http://kotaku.com/crunch-time-why-game-developers-work-such-insane-hours-1704744577

I don't think most editorial departments would even allow stuff like Jason's reporting on Bungie/Destiny. Would be too afraid of harming relations with the dev/publisher.

 

[JackDT]

I don't think most editorial departments would even allow stuff like Jason's reporting on Bungie/Destiny. Would be too afraid of harming relations with the dev/publisher.

I feel the same way. Kotaku's stubborn independence and willingness to get blacklisted to do reporting, as well as their actions in actually funding long writing with lots of research (months even!)... I don't think that is replaceable.

It was last real gaming journalism I used to see. It's all youtubers making millions now.

 

[guggnichso]

To some white dude celebrity wrestler who already has more than he needs?

So it's ok to invade the private life of people and post their damn naked pictures and sex tapes as long as they are white? The fuck is wrong with you?