Laurel Touby turned her popular cocktail parties into a high-traffic Web site for job-seeking media and creative professionals. Yesterday, she sold Mediabistro.com, the company that sprang from those mixers, for $23 million.
The Jupitermedia Corporation, an Internet research company that also sells photos and art, agreed to pay $20 million in cash and an additional $3 million over two years for the company, which is based in New York City.
“This company is a true Internet success story,” Ms. Touby said. “This started as an offline community, a cocktail party, that turned into this Web site that actually makes money.”
Employers pay to post jobs on the site, which also offers premium content to users who pay subscription fees. Last year, the site had 600,000 unique visitors, and many signed up for offerings like seminars and courses in freelance writing.
“Mediabistro provides our Jupiter- Online Media division with another diversified and fast-growing revenue stream through its vertical online job board,” said Alan M. Meckler, chairman and chief executive of Jupitermedia.
In 1993, Ms. Touby started arranging after-work mixers for editors, writers, television producers and graphic designers, inviting professionals as well as job seekers.
Ms. Touby compiled a list of job postings and, in 1996, opened Mediabistro.com. Four years later, Ms. Touby received investor financing, and the Web site was incorporated.
Jupitermedia, based in Darien, Conn., approached Ms. Touby in March about acquiring the company. Jupitermedia owns Internet.com and Graphics.com, which provide services similar to those of Mediabistro.com.
Ms. Touby will remain with the company as a senior vice president.
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