Vice Media misses 2017 revenue target by $100 million: report

Vice Media missed its 2017 revenue target by more than $100 million, according to a Wall Street Journal report.

The Journal, citing sources familiar with the matter, reports that the underperforming Viceland cable TV channel is the primary cause for the media organization’s shortfall.

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The news comes just weeks after the Brooklyn-based media company suspended two of its senior executives, President Andrew Creighton and Chief Digital Officer Mike Germano, in response to a Dec. 23 New York Times report detailing a toxic environment at the company.

Germano has since been fired while Creighton was placed on unpaid administrative leave as an investigation continues into a $135,000 payment made in 2016 to a former Vice employee. The employee alleged she was terminated for rejecting his suggestion of a romantic relationship.

The December Times investigative piece involved interviews with hundreds of current and former employees alleging an environment of harassment toward women, along with several past settlements paid due to sexual misconduct and defamation that occurred at Vice, which was founded in 1994.

Vice also recently saw its joint venture with Canada’s Rogers Communications come to an end in January shortly after forming the partnership for $100 million.

Rogers, the largest cable company in Canada, had offered Viceland a broad distribution arm for its content north of the border.

New media companies have struggled this year. The Journal also reported in November that BuzzFeed is expected to miss its 2017 revenue target by $50 million to $70 million.

Such a miss makes a planned IPO for the company in 2018 more “remote,” sources told the financial paper.