Ziff Davis Media Acquires Game Website FileFront.com

Ziff Davis Media, the publishing company whose U.S. print magazine portfolio includes Electronic Gaming Monthly, Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine, and Pocket Games, has acquired video game download website FileFront.com for an undisclosed sum. The new site will be integrated into Ziff Davis' online network, which includes its major editorial game site 1UP.com and PCMag.com. The new acquisition currently hosts more than 600,000 files, which generate 30 million downloads per month. With FileFront.com as part of its network, Ziff Davis can count 10 million unique monthly visitors and 120 million monthly page views in its audience. Ziff plans to integrate the service into 1UP.com's social networking system, "providing the means for users to upload and store content and access user-generated content." FileFront is the second addition Ziff Davis has made lately to its online portfolio, following its September acquisition of GameTab, a gaming review score and news aggregator. The acquisitions reflect similar holdings of rival websites, such as IGN's FilePlanet and C|Net's GameRankings, and fill holes in the company's array of services to readers. "FileFront now significantly increases our scale online in terms of traffic and functionality, and allows us to better serve our advertising partners, loyal magazine readers, and 1UP.com users," commented ZD Media Game Group president Scott McCarthy with regard to the acquisition.