NEW YORK - Friend Finder/Penthouse CEO Marc Bell has denied an Internet rumor that Penthouse magazine is ready to fold.
Posted on Gawker.com, the report by writer Owen Thomas used FriendFinder COO Anthony Previte as a source to insinuate that the long-running Penthouse would not continue.
Bell personally called AVN.com to dispute the blog and set the record straight. According to Bell, the online rumor-monger never spoke to Previte.
"He's an idiot blogger," Bell told AVN. "No, we are not ceasing publication. If we were ceasing publication, we would have to tell the SEC.That's the rule. I tried to explain it to this guy."
Friend Finder/Penthouse filed with the U.S. Securities last December for an IPO.
"This is a guy just vying for the attention, and unfortunately he's getting it - but there's neither fact nor basis in anything he's writing," Bell said.
