By Reuters

Wired magazine, the publication that helped popularize the Internet during the 1990’s, is poised to recover the online business it lost when the company was divided eight years ago.

Lycos Inc. said Tuesday that it had agreed to sell its Wired News online properties for $25 million to Condé Nast Publications, owner of Wired magazine, the print publication that is equal parts technology-culture trend-spotter and glossy product catalog.

Lycos acquired Wired News for a reported $83 million as part of the Wired Digital acquisition that closed in June 1999. The deal came a year after Advance Publications, owner of Condé Nast, paid $75 million to buy Wired from Louis Rosetto and Jane Metcalfe, the co-founders, and other investors. The sale followed two failed efforts at an initial public offering.

The current transaction includes the sale of the Wired.com domain name and Wired News assets. Lycos will retain other original Wired online properties including Hotbot, Hotwired and Webmonkey.