WebProNews

If you ask someone about it, HotOrNot may get called sexist, silly, or a complete waste of time.  But "someone" - meaning almost everyone - is likely to know what HotOrNot is, and it's probably this ubiquity that led Avid Life Media to acquire the site.

What's more - a lot more, really - HotOrNot reportedly sold for $20 million.  Given the site's somewhat crude design, this has caused a few eyeballs to bug out.  Bubbles, recessions, possible advertising pullbacks - they're all as present a threat as ever.

Still, Michael Arrington states that HotOrNot's "annual revenue is estimated to be around $5 million, with $2 million in profit."  Also, "According to Comscore, the site has around 5 million monthly unique visitors and 200 million page views."  And then there's the whole cultural omnipresence thing.

Toronto-based Avid Life Media, like most companies, seems to enjoy experiencing popularity; it boasts about owning several "brands with highly engaged users."  HotOrNot could mesh well with at least one of them, too, as Avid Life Media's AshleyMadison.com also focuses on issues of attraction and dating.

But we don't expect to see any major changes occur at HotOrNot as a result of this acquisition; makeovers and alliances may be nice, yet it's the sort of site that now relies more on an addicted user base than corporate partnerships or flashy layouts.