THE WELL TO STAY WITH SALON
San Francisco, CA (November 14, 2006) — The WELL (https://www.well.com), the ground-breaking online discussion community known for literate conversations and widespread cultural influence, will remain a division of Salon Media Group, Inc., publisher of the award-winning Salon.com website (http://www.salon.com), the company announced today.
In 2005, Salon announced that a sale to an appropriate buyer would be considered. In a regulatory filing today, the company said: “As Salon has not found a suitable purchaser, it has determined that it is currently in the best interest of the company to retain this business and has therefore suspended all efforts to sell The WELL.”
“We saw interested and interesting parties during the sale period, but no dream match for a successful transition,” said Gail Ann Williams, Director of Communities at Salon and 15-year veteran of The WELL management team.
This week The WELL also begins a test run of a program offering interested visitors free trial memberships.
The WELL was founded as the “Whole Earth ‘Lectronic Link” on April 1, 1985 by Whole Earth Catalog publisher Stewart Brand in partnership with philanthropist and technology pioneer Larry Brilliant. Salon acquired The WELL in 1999, and has continued to run it as a subscription service.
The WELL today is a members-only gathering place dedicated to intelligent conversation. A quirky assembly of writers, technologists, artists and experts exchanges information and opinions on a vast variety of topics. The subject matter ranges from news and media to culture and parenting to whatever else WELL members decide to explore today — from anime to zymurgy.
Membership in The WELL, which includes unlimited participation in hundreds of members-only forums, costs $10 or $15 per month depending on the account features, with discounts offered for ongoing annual subscriptions. The WELL is also marked by a policy of requiring members to disclose their real names to one another, which encourages the development of deeper relationships and ongoing ties.
About Salon Media Group, Inc.:
Founded in 1995, Salon is an Internet media company that produces an award winning, original-content Web site of news, opinion and culture, and hosts two ongoing discussion communities, Table Talk and The WELL.
“Safe Harbor” Statement under the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: This press release contains certain “forward-looking” statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements are based on management’s current expectations and are naturally subject to uncertainty and changes in circumstances. Actual results may vary materially from the expectations contained herein. The forward-looking statements contained herein include statements about future financial and operating results of Salon. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described herein include: the economic environment of the media industry; the difficulty in securing on-line advertising; growth in subscription revenue programs; uncertain revenue sources and the general economic environment. More detailed information about these factors is set forth in the reports filed by Salon with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Salon is under no obligation to and expressly disclaims any such obligation to update or alter its forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. We do not believe that our reported results should be considered predictive of future period or full year results.
Note: Salon and The WELL are registered trademarks of Salon Media Group, Inc. All other company and product names mentioned are trademarks of their respective owners.
Press Contact:
Gail Ann Williams
Director of Communities, Salon.com (home of The WELL)
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