Not long after being named one of the fastest-growing magazine publishers in the U.S., 944 Media said it is expanding its brand further by launching editions in Detroit and Atlanta in October.

The launches—which will carry circulations of 20,000—bump 944’s portfolio to nine fashion/lifestyle titles.

As part of the expansion, 944 said it will cease publication of monthly culture and style magazine Six Degrees, which the company acquired [0] this spring. Six Degrees published editions in Atlanta, Detroit, Miami and Las Vegas.

According to 944 Media CEO Marc Lotenberg, acquiring Six Degrees “gave us the opportunity to measure unfamiliar markets and decide the best method to introduce 944 among our target demographic." 944 publishes editions in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Miami, Las Vegas, Phoenix, San Diego and Orange County, California.

This month, Inc. magazine ranked 944 Media number 768 on its annual ‘5000’ list of the fastest-growing, privately held companies in the U.S. 944 ranked number 11 in the media category, making it the second fastest-growing magazine publisher [0] on the list.

Earlier this year, Lotenberg was named to the 2009 FOLIO: 40 [0], under the C-level visionaries category.