LAM Publishing

Assets

For January, 2015 the following websites are among company assets:

• The Village,
• Wonderzine,
• FurFur (it is closed in January, 2017),
• Look At Me (it is closed since January 1, 2016).

History

2017

Three franchizes The Village — to Kiev, Minsk and Kazakhstan are sold

In February, 2017 Alexey Ametov sold the first 3 franchizes of the The Village edition — to Kiev, Minsk and Kazakhstan and assured the Ukrainian media managers that "no kopek from the international franchizes Look At Media will come to Russia".

Debts before tax 59.6 million rub

In January, 2017 inspection of the Russian Federal Tax Service within the case of bankruptcy of operating company of Look At Media holding of Lam rasha LLC stated requirements to the debtor for 59.6 million rubles.

Furfur updating termination

In the middle of January, 2017 the edition for male audience of Furfur entering into Look At Media holding actually ceased to be updated. The project board explains that this calm before the future updating.

Judging by the homepage of the website, the latest news appeared on Furfur on January 17 (the corresponding heading of the menu issues the empty page). At the same time on February 1 on the website there was an interview, but it was not announced in social networks of the project.

The last announcements of materials are dated on January 23. Links to the project devoted to yachting are published in the microblog of the magazine since January 24.

On January 30 one of readers of the edition asked in Club Furfur why the project is not updated within two weeks. Any answer to his question did not follow.

On November 23, 2016 the Chief Editor of Furfur Alexander Skolkov wrote that the project team tried "recover it after the period of a total zakison" by means of a series of author's reports. After that on Skolkov's page there were only records devoted to yachting. On pages of other employees of the edition there are no declarations of job search or news of the project.

In a conversation with TJ the publisher of Look at Media Alexey Amyotov told that the project team is going to restart it^[1].

We will update it slowly in the coming month. In general efforts of a command are directed to development of the new concept and new formats therefore [website] is updated so inertly.

Skolkovo in a conversation with TJ also explained that the project team discusses its further development, and promised to tell in more detail about it a week later.

The holding continues to develop the The Village edition, having started a franchize for regional media: the first such project is going to be opened in Yekaterinburg on February 27, 2017. In addition, Look At Media includes the edition for female audience of Wonderzine.

2016

Esmanov, one of founders, leaves the company

At the end of October, 2016 one of founders of Look At Media Vasily Esmanov announced the leaving the company after 10 years of work. The American visa of Esmanov will expire only in a year which he was going to spend in New York or on the Western coast, it will depend on development of its new projects what — he specifically does not tell — "okolomediyny".

Esmanov about paid content:

People forgot to pay. They think that a format of articles on the Internet — free. But it will pass too. [… model of Elephant, Vedomosti, Rain] Unambiguously correct. […] Because if [people] do not pay, then "sell" them, and those who try to sell to readers something become clients of media. […] Even if something seems free, it only because we already or paid for it, or someone else pays, and it someone can have own purposes. […] Any edition which uses native advertizing acts as the promotion agent […] And media and that could any be not built, and to be engaged only in native advertizing, actually media are kind of voluntary expenditure of the edition. […] But just it is advertizing, it is not the market of media — there clear who the client.

About bankruptcy and sale of the survived parts of business to Deripaska:

Our bankruptcy and talk around it — the objective investigation of the fact that we had no opportunity to be credited and to us was more questions. […] In media business the most part of money is earned in four-five months in a year, and in other months income quite low. […] in Russia crisis began […] And all began to pay more slowly. […] you have no stock: winter money came to an end, and summer did not begin. There is a cash gap — for specific day at you debt. It is technical: you have no money, but there are tens of payment orders. […] Rambler in pledge at Opening — they borrowed at bank which has in them a share. We have no "" bank [Alexander Mamut the co-owner, both Rambler, and Opening] therefore we had no money — for those two times in a year when there was such problem. Children [from Forward Media Group] helped to solve it.

LAM Publishing of Polina Deripaski receives control over the company

In January, 2016 it became known that after reorganization of Look At Media media holding its Russian-language projects appeared under control of the LAM Publishing company created together with Forward Media Group under the leadership of Polina Deripaski, the wife of the businessman Oleg Deripaska.

The Look At Media holding assigned the rights to management of the company assets of LAM Publishing which obtained licenses for the projects FurFur, The Village, Wonderzine, the website Look At Me and also the rights to data management projects in Russia. It was reported in the press release of The Village.

This transaction was carried out within reorganization of LAM which selected three separate divisions:

• GRID is the platform and services for production and distribution of content,
• Hopes and Fears is media assets in the USA,
• LAM Publishing is Russian-language media.

Soosnovatelnitsa and the managing director of Look At Media holding Ekaterina Bazilevskaya said that reorganization of LAM was carried out for increase in management efficiency of the companies:

"In the second half of 2015 the Look At Media holding structured the assets on activities. It will allow to manage more effectively development of activity of each of the companies and to attract investments on next rounds"^[2].

The co-founder of LAM Alexey Ametov says that operational control of Forward Media did not receive, it will remain the publisher of holding. Chief Editors of editions are not going to be changed too.

Claim for bankruptcy of the company

On December 31, 2015 it became known that LAM closes the Look at me edition, on January 2, 2016 — that LEM Rasha LLC submitted a claim for the bankruptcy.

The LEM Russia company (operating company of Look At Media holding which includes The Village, Furfur, Look At Me and Wonderzine editions) submitted a claim for own bankruptcy. Alexey Amyotov, the CEO of Look At Media publishing house said that, except Look At Me, nothing threatens editions of holding.

Look At Me will cease to be updated since January 1, 2016 — The Village with reference to Amyotov wrote:

Most of employees will remain in publishing house in editions The Village, Wonderzine and FURFUR. The Chief Editor of LAM Rita Popova will hold a position of the director of the products Hopes & Fears. And site editors Anton Mukhatayev, Grisha Prorokov and Artyom Makarsky made the decision to leave publishing house.

The Village is quoted by Amyotova:

LAM is a strong brand which will begin new life, it is simple not at this historical moment.

2014: Rita Popova head of Look At Me

Rita Popova headed the website in 2014.

2013: Look At Me became the edition about the creative industries

In 2013 under the leadership of Daniil Trabun Look At Me became the edition about the creative industries.

2012: Start of the website Furfur

The Furfur magazine appeared in 2011 as one of subsections of the Look At Me portal which then covered a broad spectrum of subjects — from a fashion to social and political life. In 2012 Furfur was started on the separate website. Afterwards the project gradually changed the concept: from purely men's subjects like style and women the edition began to touch upon security subjects on the Internet, protests, media, LGBT and technologies.

2007: Expansion of subject Look At Me

In the 2007th the website was restarted, and it became UGC media about culture, a fashion, music and events.

2006: Creation of Look At Me as blog about a street fashion

Look At Me was created in 2006 as the stritstayl-blog.

Notes