Celebrity Celebrity Family Celebrity Family Dynamics Hugh Hefner's Son Cooper Leaving Playboy Enterprises to Launch His Own Media Brand Currently the chief of global partnerships at Playboy Enterprises, Cooper is leaving the company to launch his own digital media platform By Melody Chiu Melody Chiu Melody Chiu is an Executive Editorial Director at PEOPLE overseeing Entertainment, Books and Events. With the brand since 2009, she has written cover stories on Taylor Swift, Selena Gomez, John Legend, Sandra Oh, House of Horrors survivor Jordan Turpin and more. Chiu oversees all of PEOPLE's entertainment verticals, as well as events strategy and live red carpet coverage for awards season. She graduated from the University of Southern California and has appeared on Today, The Talk, Good Morning America and more. People Editorial Guidelines Published on April 15, 2019 03:13PM EDT Cooper Hefner is forging his own path nearly two years after the death of his father Hugh Hefner. Cooper, 27, who is currently the chief of global partnerships at Playboy Enterprises, is leaving the company to launch his own digital media platform, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Called Hefner Media Corporation, the brand will include a digital content platform called HefPost “that will feature everything from news to adult content,” reports the outlet. “Stepping away from my executive position at Playboy Enterprises was a difficult decision to come to, though it is the right decision to make,” he told THR in a statement. “The spirit and values of our Rabbit will remain with me always, as I with it, and I look forward to continuing to provide support in a board capacity as an advisor to the company’s CEO.” Cooper (left) and Hugh Hefner in 2013. Paul Archuleta/FilmMagic Hugh Hefner and Son Cooper Look Near-Identical in Decades-Apart Playboy Photos — See the Images In 1953, Hugh Hefner founded Playboy magazine, which has expanded into a global brand including lounges, apparel and an iconic mansion in the 60-plus years since. On Sept. 27, 2017, the Playboy magazine founder and star of E! reality show The Girls Next Door died at the age of 91. RELATED VIDEO: The Playboy Mansion: What Happens to the Famed Party Palace and Hugh Hefner’s Beloved Home Now? Following his father’s death, Cooper also released a statement and shared multiple black-and-white photos of the late icon on Twitter. Taylor Hill/FilmMagic “My father lived an exceptional and impactful life as a media and cultural pioneer and a leading voice behind some of the most significant social and cultural movements of our time in advocating free speech, civil rights and sexual freedom,” Cooper wrote. “He defined a lifestyle and ethos that lie at the heart of the Playboy brand, one of the most recognizable and enduring in history. He will be greatly missed by many, including his wife Crystal, my sister Christie and my brothers David and Marston, and all of us at Playboy Enterprises.”