PORTLAND — In the latest twist in what has been a short — but heated — rivalry between two alternative weekly newspapers in Maine’s largest city, the Portland Phoenix has purchased and discontinued Dig Portland.

Officials with the two newspapers announced the deal jointly around midday Monday.

“It was unfortunate timing that we both started at the same time, because both of us now know that Portland can support only one alternative newspaper,” Mark Guerringue, publisher of the Portland Phoenix, said in a statement. “It eventually came down to who would buy whom and it made more sense for the Phoenix to continue because it is an established brand.”

According to Monday’s announcement, Dig Portland LLC agreed to sell its weekly newspaper to Portland News Club LLC — the parent company of the Phoenix — and Dig will cease publishing immediately.

“Portland is a fantastic market and one I am personally invested in, but in the end, it became clear that if there was only one paper in the market, they’d have a better chance of investing in quality journalism than if there was two,” Marc Shepard, co-owner of Dig Portland and a former associate publisher of the Portland Phoenix, said in a statement.

The sale and disbanding of Dig Portland comes about three months after Shepard and Lawrence — top officials with the longer-standing sister paper Dig Boston — announced their foray into the Portland market.

That move came at a time when the Portland Phoenix’ future was uncertain, as sister Phoenix publications in Boston and Providence had in recent years closed and a proposed sale of the Portland version to local buyers fell through.

But as Dig Portland prepared to launch — and hired most of the Phoenix’ most recognizable staff members and columnists to do so — the ownership behind the former daily Portland Sun emerged to buy and revive the Phoenix.

By late December, the Sun announced it would cease publication and its editor David Carkhuff would join the Phoenix staff.

Guerringue hired journalist Dan MacLeod, formerly of the New York Post, to serve as the Phoenix’ editor.

In early December, the Phoenix ownership group sued the Dig Portland team, arguing the newer paper’s hiring of former Phoenix writers and conversion of former Phoenix advertisers were signs of illegal use of trade secrets, among other claims.

The filing of the lawsuit spurred a heated exchange in the media between the heads of the rival newspapers, but the dispute went quiet in recent weeks.

Monday’s announcement broke the silence and indicated the two parties have resolved their differences, and that only one will continue on.

According to the announcement, both sides will work together on a transition plan for the publications.

“It was a tough decision but it was the right one,” Dig Portland co-owner Jeff Lawrence said in a statement. “When we entered the Portland market, we were committed to providing quality journalism and arts and entertainment coverage, and in a very short period of time, we achieved that and are extremely proud of it.

“That said, it takes a lot of resources to provide that kind of journalism, and this buyout will allow the Portland Phoenix to invest more than we can in the market,” he continued.