Playboy Enterprises Inc. has agreed to be taken private by founder Hugh Hefner in a private equity backed deal valued at about $207 million.

The Chicago publisher of Playboy magazine and related media, which has significant Los Angeles-area operations, said Monday that Hefner-controlled Icon Acquisition Holdings LP is offering to pay $6.15 a share for Playboy, an 18 percent premium over Friday’s closing price. Icon said that it has equity commitments from an affiliate of Los Angeles’ Rizvi Traverse Management LLC and a debt commitment from affiliates of Jefferies & Company Inc.

The 84-year-old Hefner, who lives in Holmby Hills, is Playboy’s largest shareholder, controlling 70 percent of voting shares and 28 percent of nonvoting stock. Plainfield Asset Management LLC and certain of its affiliates, which together own about 19 percent of voting shares, have agreed to tender their shares.

“I believe this agreement will give us the resources and flexibility to return Playboy to its unique position and to further expand our business around the world,” said Hefner, who serves as the magazine’s editor-in-chief and chief creative officer, in a statement. “With the completion of this transaction, Playboy will come full circle, returning to its roots as a private company.”

Hefner had been in a bidding war for the company he founded. In July, he made a $5.50 per share offer, but a group lead by the owners of rival Penthouse magazine countered with a bid valued at $210 million.

Playboy said that a group of board members evaluating Hefner’s offer and decided to recommend his deal to stockholders Sunday night. The tender offer is expected to begin by Jan. 21 and the deal is expected to close by the end of the first quarter.

Playboy Chief Executive Scott Flanders said he will remain with the company in his current position and maintain a significant equity investment in the company. “Our strategy is to transform Playboy into a brand management company,” he said.