Bleacher Report, Online Sports Site, Sold to Turner Broadcasting

By RICHARD SANDOMIR

Bleacher Report, a voice-of-the-fans sports site that is focused intensely on local professional and college teams, was acquired Monday by Turner Broadcasting to expand its portfolio of digital sports properties.

The companies would not discuss the sales price, but a person briefed on the deal but not authorized to speak publicly said it was $180 million.

“We've looked at it for the past three years, just watching it grow, and in the last two years doubling its unique users, which was a telltale sign that I felt it would be a great part of our organization,” said David Levy, the president of Turner Sports. According to comScore, the Web measurement service, Bleacher Report's monthly unique users have grown from 5.6 million to 10.1 million since 2010, ninth among sports sites.

“They've established a position in the smartphone and tablet areas,” Mr. Levy said, “and their coverage of team sports truly a ttracted us. I saw nothing like this in the marketplace.” He cited its alert services that let fans receive news alerts and other information about their favorite teams.

Brian Grey, the chief executive of Bleacher Report, said, “You don't get too many opportunities to get on a platform like this, and get into a big ecosystem like Turner's.”

Mr. Grey and Mr. Levy would not discuss whether Bleacher Report, which started in 2008, is profitable.

Bleacher Report will be used in tandem with the other sports sites, like nba.com, ncaa.com and pga.com, that Turner manages. “Think of the coverage that Bleacher Report does for the N.C.A.A. tournament,” Mr. Levy said. “There are 68 teams and when something dramatic happens, it can not only send out alerts that Syracuse won on a game-winning shot, it can also send out clips.”

Turner will also use its sportscasters, like Charles Barkley and Cal Ripken, to help Bleacher R eport.

The site's content is written primarily by about 2,000 passionate fans, most of whom do not have journalistic training or attend games. They all must be approved to write for the site and receive training and evaluations. Recently, it has added about 25 writers with traditional journalistic credentials.

The rise of Bleacher Report can be traced in part to the enormous success of Bill Simmons, a once-obscure Boston sports blogger who did not want to cover games from the press box. He eventually became a major force in sports commentary and podcasting at ESPN where he now has a separate site, grantland.com.

“It's a good analogy,” Mr. Grey said. “For us, it's lawyer by day, Giants fan by night. People have a passion and want their voices heard.”