GamesBeat Leaves VentureBeat and Becomes an Independent Outlet

On April 22, GamesBeat announced that the publication is going independent. It departed from the VentureBeat umbrella and is currently backed by industry strategic advisors, including the co-founder and managing director of Griffin Gaming Partners.

In this new version of GamesBeat, Gina Joseph will act as CEO. She was the former chief strategy officer at VentureBeat. Dean Takahashi, on the other hand, will take on the mantle of the editorial director.

Takahashi is one of video gaming’s most respected journalists. He started his journalism career in the late 1980s and joined VentureBeat in 2008. He was assigned as the editor of GamesBeat, the video game vertical of VentureBeat.

Joseph mentioned in a press release that the current setup of GamesBeat allows for its continued growth and innovation. “We are excited about this powerful new chapter for GamesBeat and the industry we are serving,” she said.

Takahashi commented that the industry needs more thoughtful reporting than ever. “Our goal is to deliver the kind of insightful journalism that offers our audience contextual insights needed to understand how gaming interacts with other high-growth sectors.”

In an interview with Variety, Joseph mentioned that she wants to create opportunities for the industry. She explained that they don’t want to just cover news; they also want to focus on the community and the needs of the industry.

In the past year, gaming media have been hit by a lot of layoffs. From big publications like IGN and others that fall under the Ziff Davis umbrella to smaller ones like those under the Gamurs banner. Related to this, Game Informer was also taken down last year and was revived recently as an independent outlet after years under GameStop’s wing.