[gonzo]

LOS ANGELES – General Media Inc., the company behind Penthouse Media Group, is reportedly turning to Wall Street in an effort to raise $250 million to fund its expansion.


According to Penthouse chief executive officer Marc Bell, the company will file a registration statement sometime during the next few months, with plans for an initial public offering to sell common shares, with a goal of paying down the company's debt.

The popular men's magazine has been reinvented as a "lad" magazine, similar to Maxim, in an effort to halt its dwindling subscription sales.
"We put the magazine back to its roots, where it used to be," Bell told Reuters. "We made it a young man's magazine, slightly edgier pictorially than Playboy."

Penthouse has been working to extend its brand's reach online, with recent acquisitions such as its December, 2007, purchase of Adult FriendFinder parent Various Inc., its two dozen websites and affiliate base.
Following the Various deal, Penthouse estimated its 2007 revenue at $340 million, which roughly matches rival Playboy Enterprises' reported 2007 revenue of $339.8 million.

Bell sees the online space as a growth sector for the company, with "plans on leveraging the brand as we move forward."
"The magazine is where we want it," Bell said. "As far as the website, you'll have to read about it."