Fandom usesMediaWiki, the same open-sourcewiki software used by Wikipedia. Unlike theWikimedia Foundation, thenonprofit organization that hosts Wikipedia, Fandom, Inc. operates as a for-profit company and derives its income from advertising and sold content, publishing most user-provided text undercopyleft licenses.[12] The company also runs the associated Fandom editorial project, offering pop-culture and gaming news.[13] Fandom wikis are hosted under the domainfandom.com, which has become one of thetop 50 most visited websites in the world, rapidly rising in popularity beginning in the early 2020s. It ranks as the 50th as of October 2023, with 25.79% of its traffic coming from theUnited States, followed byRussia with 7.76%, according toSimilarweb.[14]
History
2004–2009: Early days and growth
Fandom was launched on October 18, 2004, at 23:50:49 (UTC) under the name Wikicities (which invited comparisons to Yahoo'sGeoCities),[15] byJimmy Wales, co-founder ofWikipedia, and Angela Beesley Starling—respectively chairmanemeritus and advisory board member of theWikimedia Foundation. Wales' original idea was to use his Wikipedia idea for a place where people from the same city or other geographical place could come together.[16]
The project's name was changed to Wikia on March 27, 2006.[17] In the month before the move, Wikia announced aUS$4 millionventure capital investment fromBessemer Venture Partners andFirst Round Capital.[18] Nine months later,Amazon.com invested $10 million inSeries B funding.[19] By September 2006, Wikia had approximately 1,500wikis in 48 languages.[20] Over time, Wikia has incorporated formerly independentfan wikis such asLyricWiki,Nukapedia,Uncyclopedia, andWoWWiki.[21]Gil Penchina described Wikia early on as "the rest of the library and magazine rack" to Wikipedia's encyclopedia.[22] The material has also been described as informal, and often bordering on entertainment, allowing the importing of maps,YouTube videos, and other non-traditional wiki material.[23]
2010–2015: New management
By 2010, wikis could be created in 188 different languages.[12] In October 2011, Craig Palmer, the former CEO ofGracenote, replaced Penchina as CEO.[24] In February 2012, co-founder Beesley Starling left Wikia to launch a startup called ChalkDrop.com.[25] At the end of November 2012, Wikia raised $10.8 million in Series C funding fromInstitutional Venture Partners and previous investors Bessemer Ventures Partners and Amazon.com.[26] Another $15 million was raised in August 2014 for Series D funding, with investors Digital Garage, Amazon, Bessemer Venture Partners, andInstitutional Venture Partners. The total raised at this point was $39.8 million.[27][28]
On March 4, 2015, Wikia appointed Walker Jacobs, former executive vice-president ofTurner Broadcasting System, to the new position ofchief operating officer.[29] In December 2015, Wikia launched the Fan Contributor Program.
2016–2018: Fandom brand
Former Fandom logo used until May 2017
FANDOM logo from 2017 to 2021
On January 25, 2016, Wikia launched a new entertainment news site named Fandom.[30] On October 4, Wikia itself was rebranded as "Fandom powered by Wikia", to better associate itself with the Fandom website. The parent company Wikia, Inc. remained under its then-current name until 2019, and the homepage of Wikia was moved towikia.com/fandom and later tofandom.com.[8] In December, Wikia appointed Dorth Raphaely, former general manager ofBleacher Report, aschief content officer.[31]
On May 18, 2017, Fandom updated their branding with a refreshed logo, all-uppercase lettering, and aflat design instead of the previous green-blue gradients.[citation needed]
2018–present: Further acquisitions and changes
In February 2018, formerAOL CEOJon Miller, backed by private equity firmTPG Capital, acquired Fandom.[1] Miller was named co-chairman of Wikia, Inc., alongside Jimmy Wales,[32] and TPG Capital director Andrew Doyle assumed the role of interim CEO.[33] In July, Fandom purchasedScreen Junkies fromDefy Media,[34] and in December of that year, they had acquiredCurse Media which included wiki farmGamepedia and websites part of the Curse Network such asD&D Beyond, Futhead, Muthead, and StrawPoll.me.[35]
In February 2019, formerStubHub CEO Perkins Miller took over as CEO,[33] and Wikia fully changed its domain name tofandom.com.[36] Various wikis had been tested with the new domain during 2018, with some wikis that focused on "more serious topics" having their domains changed towikia.org instead.[37] In June, Fandom began an effort to rewrite its core platform, which was written based onMediaWiki version 1.19, to base it on a newer version of the software.[38] On March 11, 2020, Fandom released the Unified Community Platform (UCP), based on MediaWiki 1.33,[39] for newly created wikis.[40]
In 2020, Fandom sold Curse Network properties to Magic Find which includes communities and news websites.[41] In November, Fandom began to migrate Gamepedia wikis to afandom.com domain as part of theirsearch engine optimization strategy, with migrations continuing into 2021.[42][43]
In February 2021, Fandom acquiredFocus Multimedia, the retailer behindFanatical, an e-commerce platform that sells digital games, ebooks and other products related to gaming.[44] In late March, Fandom updated itsterms of use policy to prohibitdeadnaming transgender individuals across their websites.[45][46] This policy was in response to a referendum on theStar Wars wikiWookieepedia to ban deadnaming, which triggered a debate around an article about the non-binary artist Robin Pronovost.[47] In response to the deadnaming controversy, Fandom also introduced newLGBT guidelines across its websites in late June 2021 which include links to queer-inclusive and trans support resources.[48]
In June 2021, Fandom began to roll outFandomDesktop, a redesigned theme for desktop devices,[49] with plans to retire its legacyOasis andHydra skins once the rollout was complete.[50] Two months later on August 3, Fandom rolled out a new look, new colors, new logo, and introduced a new tagline, "For the love of fans."[51] In late November/early December, all remaining wikis under thewikia.org domain migrated to thefandom.com domain.[52]
In early 2023, Fandom began laying off some of the team responsible for GameSpot, Metacritic and Giant Bomb.[57][58][59] In January 2024, the company would begin another round of layoffs for part of GameSpot's editorial team.[60] Later in October 2024, it was reported that Fandom had laid off approximately 11% of their staff,[61][62] including some of the team behind GameSpot UK and Honest Trailers as well as Fandom staff in charge of sales and management, this was prompted by the company's failure to hit revenue goals in 2024.[63]
In February 2025, Fandom launched a new product called "FanDNA Helix", an AI model trained on all the pages hosted on the site as well as users' social media posts in order to allow advertisers to serve ads to readers based on their interests and consumption habits on the site.[64] In May 2025, Fandom later sold Giant Bomb to the site's staff.[65]
In July 2025, Fandom announced that it was going to translate entire wikis usinggenerative AI for non-English speakers.[66] In October 2025, Perkins Miller resigned as CEO of Fandom. An article published byThe Verge stated that the company was struggling to meet revenue targets, leading to a massive restructuring and the layoff of a large percentage of Fandom's staff. The newspaper also clarified that although the IP-focused wikis hosted by the platform are popular, the ads and interface are quite invasive and cause the page to become unstable and "nearly unusable" when loading on certain devices.[67]
The main purpose of articles in a Fandom community is to cover information and discussion on a particular topic in a much greater and more comprehensive detail level than what can be found in Wikipedia articles.[68]
Other examples of content that is generally considered beyond the scope of Wikipedia articles include Fandom information about video games and related video game topics, detailed instructions, gameplay details, plot details, and so forth. Gameplay concepts can also have their own articles. Fandom also allows wikis to have a point of view, rather than the neutral POV that is required by Wikipedia (although NPOV is a local policy on many Fandom communities).[69][70]
Wikis are also not owned by their founders, nor does the founder's opinion carry more weight in disagreements than any other user's opinion. Consensus and cooperation are the primary means for organizing a community on Fandom.[74] However, Fandom may make decisions affecting the community even if there is no consensus at all.[75]
Technology
As of May 2023,[update] Fandom uses a heavily modified version[76] of theMediaWiki software, based on the version 1.39 of MediaWiki.[77] It has several customextensions installed to add social features like blogs, chat, badges, forums, and multimedia,[78] but also remove features like advanced user options[79][80] or skins. The personal choice[81] of using the Monobook skin instead of the default custom skin was removed on May 25, 2018, alluding toGDPR compliance.[82]
In August 2016, Fandom announced it would switch to aservice-oriented architecture.[83] It removed many custom extensions and functionality for specific wikis, and has created certain replacement features to fill those needs.[84]
Entertainment news
In 2016, Wikia launched Fandom, an online entertainment media website. The program utilizes volunteer contributors called "Fandom Contributors"[85] to produce articles, working alongside an editorial team employed by Wikia. In contrast to the blogging feature of individual wiki communities, Fandom focuses on pop culture and fan topics such as video games, movies, and television shows. The project features fan opinions, interviews with property creators, reviews, and how-to guides. Fandom also includes videos and specific news coverage sponsored or paid for by a property creator to promote their property.
In the same year, it was also announced that the entire Wikia platform would be rebranded under the Fandom name on October 4, 2016.[8] A leak from Fandom's Community Council was posted to Reddit's /r/Wikia subreddit in August 2018, confirming that Fandom would be migrating all wikis from thewikia.com domain, tofandom.com in early 2019, as part of a push for greater adoption of Fandom's wiki-specific applications on both iOS and Android's app ecosystems. The post was later deleted.[86]
Wiki partnerships
Fandom has created several official partnerships to create wikis, vetted by the corporation as being the "official" encyclopedia or wiki of a property. In 2012, Fandom partnered withSony Online Entertainment to create the first "Wikia Official Community" forPlanetSide 2, with the game's wiki slated to receive exclusive content and support.[87][88] In 2014, Fandom partnered with Roddenberry Enterprises to create the Trek Initiative, a Fandom hosted wiki community site that features video interviews, promotions, and other material about Star Trek to celebrate its 50th anniversary.[89] Fandom made similar partnerships with2K Games during the launch ofCivilization: Beyond Earth[90] andWarner Bros Interactive forShadow of Mordor.[91] Fandom also has partnerships withLionsgate Media to promoteStarz and Film franchises through wiki content, fandom articles, and advertisements.[citation needed]
With Fandom's acquisition ofCurse Media, theCurse Entertainment YouTube channel was renamed toFandom Games. Fandom Games publishesHonest Game Trailers, which was previously published on theSmosh Games YouTube channel untilScreen Junkies was acquired by Fandom.[93]
Past services
OpenServing
OpenServing was a short-livedWeb publishing project owned by Fandom, founded on December 12, 2006,[94][95] and abandoned, unannounced, in January 2008.[96] Like Fandom, OpenServing was to offer free wiki hosting, but it would differ in that each wiki's founder would retain any revenue gained from advertising on the site.[94][97][98] OpenServing used a modified version of theWikimedia Foundation'sMediaWiki software created byArmchairGM, but was intended to branch out to other open source packages.[94][99]
According to Fandom co-founder and chairmanJimmy Wales, the OpenServing site received several thousand applications in January 2007.[100] However, after a year, no sites had been launched under the OpenServing banner.[96]
Armchair GM
ArmchairGM was a sports forum and wiki site created by Aaron Wright,Dan Lewis, Robert Lefkowitz, and developer David Pean. Launched in early 2006, the site was initially US-based but sought to improve its links to sports associated with Britain over its first year. Its MediaWiki-based software included aDigg-style article-voting mechanism, blog-like comment forms with "thumbs up/down" user feedback, and the ability to write multiple types of posts (news, opinions, or "locker room" discussion entries).[citation needed]
In late 2006, the site was bought by Fandom for $2 million.[101] After the purchase was made, the former owners applied ArmchairGM's architecture to other Fandom sites.[102] However, Wikia had "dropped support" for the custom software innovations by ArmchairGM by January 2010. From September 2010 to February 2011, Fandom absorbed ArmchairGM's encyclopedia articles and blanked all of its old blog entries, effectively discontinuing ArmchairGM in its original form.[citation needed]
Wikia, Inc. initially proposed creating acopyleftsearch engine; the software (but not the site) was named "Wikiasari" by a November 2004 naming contest.[d] The proposal became inactive in 2005.[citation needed] The "public alpha" of the Wikia Search web search engine was launched on January 7, 2008,[citation needed] from the USSHC underground data center.[108] This roll-out version of the search interface was roundly panned by reviewers in technology media.[109]The project was ended in March 2009.[110] Late in 2009, a new search engine was established to index and display results from all sites hosted on Fandom.[citation needed]
Questions and answers site
In January 2009, the company created aquestion and answer website named "Wikianswers" (not to be confused with the preexistingWikiAnswers).[111] In March 2010, Fandom re-launched "Answers from Wikia", where users could create topic-specializedknowledge market wikis based upon Fandom's own Wikianswers subdomain.[112]
In the 2000s, Fandom, then called Wikia, was accused of unduly profiting from a perceived association withWikipedia.[113][114] Although Fandom has been referred to in the media as "the commercial counterpart to the non-profit Wikipedia",[115][116] Wikimedia[117] and Fandom staff[118] call this description inaccurate.
In 2006, theWikimedia Foundation sharedhosting and bandwidth costs with Wikia, and received some donated office space from Wikia during thefiscal year ending June 30, 2006. At the end of the fiscal year 2007, Wikia owed the foundation $6,000. In June 2007, two members of the foundation'sboard of directors also served as employees, officers, or directors of Wikia.[119] In January 2009, Wikia subleased two conference rooms to the Wikimedia Foundation for theWikipedia Usability Initiative.[120] According to a 2009 email byErik Möller, deputy director of the Wikimedia Foundation:
We obtained about a dozen bids... We used averaging as a way to arrive at a fair market rate to neither advantage nor disadvantage Wikia when suggesting a rate. The averaging also resulted in a rate that was roughly equivalent to the most comparable space in the running.[121]
Advertising controversies
Fandom communities have complained of inappropriate advertisements, resource-intensive advertisements, or advertising in the body text area. Users have also complained that the advertisements are so resource-intensive and hindering, that they have no choice but to use anad-blocker to continue using the website.[122] The massive amount of ads alters the performance of the website, especially on mobile where the insertion of autoplay videos causes the page to refresh.[123] In a report published byEmarketer in mid-2025 about the marketshare of Fandom noted the presence ofmalvertising within the platform, where there were occasions when ads embedded in wiki pages could redirect to suspicious sites.[124]
The excessive monetization model of user-generated content has been criticized by several newspaper outlets, such as the British newspaperThe Guardian, who argue that editors do not receive any benefits or rights in return for the content they contribute to the platform.[125] Likewise, theJournal of Student Research has called Fandom exploitative and argued that its practices have formed an informational monopoly, making it harder for other sites to compete with them.[126] Other concerns were also raised about Fandom's extensive commercialization of user-generated content, where the use of a for-profit model has undermined the quality of part of its database as well as trust in online spaces.[127]
In August 2024, the publishing companyAdalytics released a report indicating the presence of major brand advertisements in wiki articles containing obscene material including articles containingracial slurs towards Black people andwhite supremacist material, as well as content promotingsexual assault[128] on several small wikis hosted by Fandom.[129][130] The AI system used by Fandom supplemented byDoubleVerify andIntegral Ad Science was criticized for displaying ads on malicious content.[131][132]
Editorial interference
Fandom can alter user-generated content by incorporating obstructive elements without prior consultation with users, such as adding popups to customize ads, promoting unrelated articles, which may have questionable topics, and incorporation of unrelated quizzes to boost engagement.[133] In addition, Fandom may arbitrarily remove content without prior consultation with the editors involved.[134]
In 2017, Fandom started to incorporate autoplaying to different wikis about video game franchises such as Runescape[135] and Fallout,[136] this feature was implemented without prior consultation of the editors responsible for the maintenance of the wikis, these videos were criticized for undermining the quality standards of the site.[137]
In 2021, Fandom began removing and censoring adult material, including the deletion of entire wikis dedicated to documenting pieces of media with adult content. These measures were criticized by users as well as editors following the implementation of these guidelines without prior notice from the company.[138][139]
In 2022, Fandom merged several wikis specializing in documenting sexuality and gender, including the deletion of several pages without prior consultation by users. These actions were criticized after the incorporation of material offensive to intersex identities and changes in editorial direction to make it more “corporate friendly”.[140] Additionally, critics who voiced their disapproval after the merge of the LGBTQIA wikis were blocked on both social media as well as on the Fandom wiki following the controversy.[140] In the same year, the editorial team behind theZeldaWiki clarified that one of the reasons they decided to move to an independent host was due to concerns about “corporate consolidation” and how their experience at Fandom had limited some of their editorial independence. In addition, the team of editors urged other communities to migrate some of their content and the creation ofwriters' union.[141]
In 2023, Fandom introduced AI Generated Content in the form of “Quick Answers” to different wikis, such content consisted of grammatical mistakes as well as factual errors[142][143] and was subsequently removed after public backlash by editors and users. In an article published byGame Developer, the editorial team behind theHollow Knight Wiki explained that one of the reasons they chose to migrate their content was due to Fandom's attempts to introduce generative AI into their articles, causing them to contain misinformation with the aim of increasing revenue, as well as concerns that the company is opting to use Generative AI to replace human writers and artists.[144]
In May 2025, Fandom introduced “brand safety” guidelines to GiantBomb, such measures were criticized and mocked by the website staff in a podcast, which would later be removed by Fandom.[145][146]
Privacy concerns
Fandom has been subject to several lawsuits in the State of California following data collection in violation of theVideo Privacy Protection Act, where the website shared user information without prior consent such asIP addresses[147][148][149] and viewing habits[150][151] to third party companies such asMeta. Lawsuits regarding privacy violations against Fandom began in 2022 following reports that the company was selling sensitive information to external platforms.[150] Later in 2023, a federal judge in California clarified that Fandom cannot evade lawsuits regarding data sharing filed by consumers.[152]
Copyright infringement
The company had previously been sued in several district courts in California for copyright infringement regarding the unauthorized use of images created from professional photographers on its website, including lawsuits by photographer Linda Matlow for the use of material from her professional catalog[153] and film directorMichael Grecco for the use of promotional imagery taken forThe X-Files.[154][155]
Paid promotions
In June 2023,McDonald's paid Fandom an undisclosed amount to temporarily replace the McDonald's Wiki's main page and exhaustive article onGrimace with an advertisement promoting theGrimace Shake and the character's 52nd anniversary. The article's primary contributor, Nathan Steinmetz, complained that the decision undermined his research and efforts and considered Fandom to have set a "really bad precedent" of IP holders' ability to suppress user-generated content with press releases.[156][157][158]
Wiki departures
A number of wikis have migrated away from Fandom, citing issues such as intrusive advertising and branding, a non-user-friendly site design, a lack of customizability and company cross-promotion which is often irrelevant to wiki content.[135][159] One of the earliest examples was theTransformers Wiki, which migrated in 2008 due to disagreements with Fandom—then Wikia—staff regarding intrusive advertising.[160] Other communities, such as theZelda Wiki andMinecraft Wiki, have named the increasing "corporate consolidation" of wikis, allegedcensorship, Fandom's "degraded" functionality and the Grimace controversy among their reasons for migrating.[159][161][162] Covering the Minecraft Wiki's departure forPC Gamer, Rich Stanton stated that most of the migrations began after the 2018 acquisition and Gamepedia's move to Fandom. He noted that the Minecraft Wiki would have to compete with Fandom's bettersearch engine optimization (SEO) and would have a struggle to establish a wider audience after moving.[159] In 2023, Fandom CEO Perkins Miller toldThe Verge that he takes wiki migration "very seriously".[163]
There is no easy way for individual communities to switch to conventional paid hosting, as Fandom usually owns the relevant domain names. When a community leaves Fandom for new hosting, Fandom typically continues to operate the abandoned ("forked") wiki using its original name and content for advertising revenue as long as editing and viewership remains. This can adversely affect the new wiki'ssearch rankings,[160] potentially also resulting in outdated or incorrect information being present and viewed more often than the information on the new wiki. Fandom allows only a message directing viewers to a discussion about whether to fork for as long as the discussion is active before the message is removed, and any administrators involved in the new wiki have their rights on the Fandom wiki removed.
Fandom has technical staff in the US, but also has an office inPoznań, Poland, where the primary engineering functions are performed.[20]
Fandom derives income from advertising. The company initially usedGoogle AdSense[172] but moved on toFederated Media before bringing ad management in-house.[173] Alongside Fandom's in-house advertising, they continue to use AdSense as well as Amazon Ads and several other third-party advertising services. Fandom also gains income from various partnerships oriented around various sweepstake sponsorships on related wikis.
Fandom has several other offices.[174] International operations are based in Germany, and Asian operations and sales are conducted inTokyo. Other sales offices are located in Chicago, Latin America, Los Angeles (marketing programming and content), New York City, and London.[175]
^Beesley, Angela (February 8, 2012)."Leaving Wikia".Community Central. Wikia, Inc.Archived from the original on April 27, 2019. RetrievedApril 27, 2019.
^Sinclair, Brendan (December 13, 2018)."Twitch sells Curse Media".GamesIndustry.biz.Archived from the original on February 21, 2023. RetrievedMay 5, 2023.
^Grayson, Nathan (October 30, 2024)."Fandom Lays Off 11 Percent Of Staff, GameSpot Affected - Aftermath".Aftermath. RetrievedJuly 18, 2025.Chalking the layoffs up to a broader restructuring of the company in the face of market changes, as well as a failure to hit revenue goals
^Garczewski, Lucas (June 12, 2012)."MediaWiki Upgrade".Community Central Wikia. Wikia, Inc.Archived from the original on April 27, 2019. RetrievedApril 27, 2019.
^"Wikia's new look – FAQ".Community Central Wikia. Wikia, Inc. September 15, 2010.Archived from the original on June 13, 2018. RetrievedApril 27, 2019.
^"Wikimedia". Wikia, Inc.Archived from the original on April 27, 2019. RetrievedApril 27, 2019.
^Wikimedia Foundation 2006-2007 AuditArchived February 17, 2008, at theWayback Machine page 9 says "The Organization shared hosting and bandwidth costs with Wikia, Inc., a for-profit company founded by the same founder as Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. Included inaccounts receivable at June 30, 2007, is $6,000 due from Wikia, Inc. for these costs. The organization received some donated office space from Wikia Inc. during the year ended June 30, 2006, valued at $6,000. No donation of the office space occurred in 2007. Through June 30, 2007, two members of the organization's board of directors also serve as employees, officers, or directors of Wikia, Inc."
^Gach, Ethan (May 1, 2025)."Giant Bomb Escapes Fandom, Goes Independent".Kotaku. RetrievedAugust 30, 2025.Fandom's ad business faced scrutiny following a 2024 analytics report that questioned the brand safety of some of the content the company was running ads against across its user-generated wiki pages.
^Patel, Nilay (August 23, 2023)."Fandom runs some of the biggest communities on the internet — can CEO Perkins Miller keep them happy?".The Verge.Archived from the original on October 6, 2023. RetrievedNovember 1, 2023.I'm actively engaged. I take it very seriously. I work very hard every day to try to make sure that we build a good platform that people can use, that's stable and has great tools. And I think we're someplace that I think is really community-focused, and I think we've got the right values. So I really take it seriously if a community says, "Look, we're going to go somewhere else."
