| Static Media | |
| Type: | Private |
| Industry: | Internet |
| Location City: | Indianapolis |
| Location Country: | United States |
| Products: | Contextual advertising |
Static Media Inc., the business name of 7Hops.com Inc.,[1] is an American internet company established in 2012, incorporated in Delaware, and based in Indianapolis. It operates ZergNet, a content recommendation business that promotes paid content across their network of brands.[2] [3] Each site the company owns uses the same website model and design, sometimes dubbed "infinite scroll", whereby content is loaded continuously as the user scrolls down.[4] For example, scrolling down on the homepage loads more articles in perpetuity (until the user reaches the very first article written for the site). Scrolling down on individual articles also does not reach the page footer, instead loading a different, related article, so the user can continue reading content from the site indefinitely without needing to click a new link. This is also called "infinite-content pages" or "endless pages". The title of one of the brands, Looper, refers to this design.
Established around 2011,[5] ZergNet's business model, being paid to place links in third-party online articles at the bottom of ZergNet pages, has been compared to the business model of Outbrain, Taboola, and others.[6]
The company's investors include Mark Cuban and Greycroft Partners.[7]
Static Media owns and promotes the following entertainment websites:[8]
Looper was the first site acquired by Static Media, in 2015.[9] Mashed, Nicki Swift, Grunge, and the List are original Static Media brands, and all four launched in 2016.[10] [11] [12] [13] The next site Static Media added was SVG, an original brand, in 2017.[14]
SlashGear was launched in 2005 and was acquired by Static Media sometime after the company's debut, in 2015.[15]
Health Digest is a Static Media original site, and it debuted in the third quarter of 2020.[16] Alongside general health reporting, many of the brand's early articles covered the COVID-19 pandemic.
Tasting Table was launched in 2008 and was acquired by Static Media in 2021, the same year as /Film, which began in 2005.[17] [18] House Digest is one of the site's newer homegrown brands, launching as a Static original site in 2021.[19]
Wrestling Inc. is the second-oldest of Static Media's branded sites, founded in 1996. Wrestling Inc. and Glam, the latter of which was started in 2003, were both acquired in 2022.[20] [21] The Daily Meal launched in 2011 and was acquired by Static in 2022.[22]
Explore, a travel-focused brand, launched as a Static Media original site in November 2022.[23]
Women.com is the oldest brand that Static Media owns, having been founded in 1995, but it wasn't acquired by Static until early 2023.[24] Also acquired in 2023 is Food Republic, founded in 2010 but launched in 2011.[25]
In September 2023, Static Media launched another food site, Foodie, bringing its total food brands to four.[26]
On October 3, 2023, Static Media launched its first financial journalism site, Money Digest.[27] [28]
On October 26, 2023, the company launched its second homegrown travel and outdoors brand, titled Outdoor Guide and focused on outdoor living, including camping, gear, travel, and wildlife.[29] [30] The company followed this several days later with the relaunch of Chowhound, in early November 2023; the site was originally founded in 1997 and had been shut down in 2022.[31]
In early 2024, the company launched its third travel and outdoor brand, titled Islands and more focused on exotic destinations, cruises, and travel than Outdoor Guide. The print publication of Islands had been around since 1981, owned by Bonnier LLC alongside Outdoor Life, Popular Science, Marlin, and Salt Water Sportsman. The website was originally launched in 2000. Though the print publication shuttered in 2014 and the publication shifted exclusively to digital, the site continued operating through the pandemic, growing to include its own Islands-brand "All-Inclusive Awards"[32] for resorts. These annual awards ran in 2019 and 2020 and recognized resorts that had the best food, bar, rooms, pool, overwater bungalow, spa, butler service, and amenities, among other categories. The award system was not brought back in 2021, and it has not returned to the brand under Static Media's purview, either. Editor Allaya Cooks-Campbell, who previously worked at Health Digest, was appointed lead editor of Islands and Explore in 2023 and led Islands through its acquisition and relaunch under Static ownership.[33]
In 2024, Static Media acquired its sixth food brand, The Takeout, which originally launched in 2016.[34] Later that year, the company acquired Jalopnik, an automotive blog that was a sister site to the Takeout.[35]
In October 2024, Static Media announced Hunker, a home brand it had acquired that same year, with a focus on cleaning, home improvement, garden, and lifestyle reporting. The same month, Static launched Cuteness, a website geared toward pet owners, which it had also purchased that year.[36]
On November 3, 2024, the company officially launched Sciencing, its first site oriented around science, math, and technology, which had been operating since 2006.[37]
