PageSix.com, the entertainment gossip site that gained independence from its original home as part of the NYP.com in December, has been shuttered, Gawker reported. A rep for the News Corp.-owned tabloid told Gawker that it decided to pull the plug on the standalone PageSix.com due to the tanking economy. Apparently, the site had difficulty getting a toe hold in a market already saturated with established gossip sites, like TMZ and PerezHilton.

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The PageSix site is now redirecting back to the main NYP.com page. As a result of the closing, a mix of 18 editorial and other staffers have been laid off, while three PageSix employees have been given other assignments at NYP.