US cable and entertainment giant Comcast’s (NASDAQ:CMCSA) NBCUniversal has agreed to invest US$200m in digital media company Vox Media.
The deal could help Comcast to counteract ‘cord cutting’ among customers (cancelling cable connections)…
US cable and entertainment giant Comcast’s (NASDAQ:CMCSA) NBCUniversal has agreed to invest US$200m in digital media company Vox Media.
The deal could help Comcast to counteract ‘cord cutting’ among customers (cancelling cable connections) driven by the growing popularity in online video services. According to a report by research firm SNL Kagan released yesterday, cord cutting caused US cable, satellite and telecom pay-TV providers to lose a collective 625,000 subscribers during Q2 this year – the largest decline ever.
Commenting on the strategic equity investment in a company statement, NBCUniversal CEO Steve Burke said Vox Media “has strong leadership, top editorial talent and a unique technology platform”.
“We are excited to be making this investment and building a collaborative partnership involving editorial content, advertising and technology,” he added.
Vox Media CEO and chairman Jim Bankoff noted that the companies will collaborate in areas including video programming, brand advertising, cross-promotion and platform technology to grow existing properties and launch new franchises.
Vox says its eight websites – SB Nation, Polygon, The Verge, Vox.com, Eater, Racked, Curbed and Re/code – have a combined audience of 165 million “affluent and educated young adults” worldwide. Its other investors include Accel Partners, Khosla Ventures and General Atlantic. The sites cover topics including news, sport, gaming, technology and culture, shopping, real estate and business technology.
According to several media reports, the investment values Vox at about US$1bn.
Buzzfeed announcement expected shortly
Comcast is also reportedly also set to announce a similar-sized investment in news site Buzzfeed.
Late last month, the Wall Street Journal cited people familiar saying NBCUniversal, which owns TV channels including USA, Bravo, E! and MSNBC, was close to agreeing a US$250m investment in Buzzfeed.
More recent reports have suggested that an agreement has been reached, with an announcement expected shortly.
In June, Comcast agreed to buy targeted TV advertising firm Visible World, in which its venture fund had been an investor, for an undisclosed sum.
Comcast took full control of NBCUniversal in February 2013, paying US$16.7bn for General Electric’s 49% stake in the company.
