UGO and 1UP now officially part of IGN Entertainment

News Corporation has officially announced its acquisition of Hearst's UGO Entertainment.

The purchase will see IGN Entertainment operate its existing properties along with UGO, 1UP, and UGO's entire network of owned and affiliated properties, which according to the firm's internal numbers, will reach "a global audience of more than 70 million monthly visitors."

Under the terms of the agreement, Hearst Corporation will become a shareholder of IGN and will be an active participant in the development of the business.

Here's some quotes on the matter:

"This instantly catapults us to another level and positions us to serve and entertain tens of millions more fans. We look forward to providing an even richer service for users and advertisers. We are now actively considering a range of options to maximize IGN's long-term value," said Roy Bahat, president, IGN Entertainment.

"The combination of IGN and UGO will create the complete 'go to' online destination for video game enthusiasts. The breadth, depth and quality of the content available through these sites will be unparalleled. This is a terrific combination for our viewers and our advertisers," said Ken Bronfin, president of Hearst Interactive Media.

"With ign entertainment's uk reach and revenue continuing to grow, this is an exciting development that positions us at the heart of men's entertainment media online, with new opportunities in gaming and men's lifestyle complementing our existing market-leaders IGN and AskMen," said Ian Chambers, international VP and managing director, IGN Entertainment. "Delivering a combined UK audience of almost 5.5 million users aged 18 to 35 in March 2011, we look forward to welcoming the UGO sites into our extended portfolio."

IGN along with the UGO properties will now encompass: IGN.com, GameSpy, FilePlanet, Direct2Drive, TeamXbox, AskMen, GameStop.com and more.

1UP, which was at one time owned by Ziff Davis, was sold to Hearst back in 2009.