Cnet Networks Inc. today said it's buying competitor Ziff Davis Media Inc. and its subsidiary, ZDNet, in an all-stock transaction valued at $1.6 billion. The deal is subject to shareholder approval.

The buyout would provide Cnet, an online, broadcast, and cable-TV publisher of computer-industry news, with a stake in print media. Besides its Zdnet.com and Smart Planet sites, Ziff Davis publishes several industry magazines, including Computer Shopper and the Ziff-Davis share of venture capital magazine Red Herring.

Ziff owners would receive 0.34 shares of Cnet stock for each of their shares. ZDNet shareholders would receive 0.59 shares of Cnet stock for each of their shares.

Ziff's trade show and conference division is not part of the deal. It will be spun off from Ziff Davis in mid-August.