Gawker said to be exploring sale following Hulk Hogan lawsuit
US news and gossip website Gawker Media is said to be exploring a sale after losing a court battle with wrestler Hulk Hogan.
Gawker has reportedly hired investment bank Houlihan Lokey to explore options after it was ordered to pay out $140m (£95.6m) to Hogan.
Read more: Media and entertainment execs want deals – and they're targeting the UK
Gawker Media founder Nick Denton has begun soliciting bids for the sale of the company, the New York Post first reported.
It reported that one unnamed party has already expressed an interest in a deal valuing Gawker at between $50m and $70m.
Gawker, which City PM has contacted for comment, said in a statement to Reuters: "We've always said we expect to prevail on appeal and we've always said we're exploring contingency plans of various sorts, so that's not new."
Read more: Warren Buffett eyes Yahoo
An EY report out yesterday found a hunger among media and entertainment executives for mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activity in the next year.
In the US, newspaper publisher Gannett is currently in the process of attempting to take over Tribune.
Companies, including possibly Daily Mail owner DMGT, are also currently battling it out for Yahoo's core assets.