NEW YORK, New York - HuffPost, formerly The Huffington Post, has been taken over again.

After being bought up by AOL in 2011 for $315 million, AOL was acquired by Verizon Media in 2015 for $4.4 billion.

BuzzFeed is now HuffPost's fourth owner in the last nine years, having picked up the online news originator and aggregator for an undisclosed figure from Verizon.

The two digital group's plan on syndicating each other's news content and pooling some of it's advertising inventory. Verizon simultaneously is taking a stake in BuzzFeed so will retain a minority interest in the group, and by default, HuffPost.

BuzzFeed CEO Jonah Peretti will now head both businesses. He coincidently co-founded HuffPost in 2005 in company with publisher Arianna Huffington. He started BuzzFeed in 2006.

Both companies have slimmed staff in recent years and closed affiliate sites in Australia and the UK.

BuzzFeed says it plans to retain the HuffPost brand.

"Verizon Media's strategy has evolved over the past two years to focus on our core strengths- ads, commerce, content and subscriptions," Guru Gowrappan, CEO, Verizon Media said in a joint statement issued in conjunction with BuzzFeed on Thursday. "We've created a powerhouse ecosystem, built on a trusted network, that delivers an end-to-end experience for consumers and advertisers. The partnership with BuzzFeed complements our roadmap while also accelerating our transformation and growth."

Jonah Peretti, Founder and CEO, BuzzFeed added: "We're excited about our partnership with Verizon Media, and mutual benefits that will come from syndicating content across each other's properties, collaborating on innovative ad products and the future of commerce, and tapping into the strength and creativity of Verizon Media Immersive."

"I have vivid memories of growing HuffPost into a major news outlet in its early years, but BuzzFeed is making this acquisition because we believe in the future of HuffPost and the potential it has to continue to define the media landscape for years to come," Peretti said. "With the addition of HuffPost, our media network will have more users, spending significantly more time with our content than any of our peers."