AT&T - Chernin Group JV Otter Media buys majority stake in Full Screen
23 Sep 2014
Otter Media, a joint venture between AT&T and the Chernin Group, announced yesterday its acquisition of a majority stake in Fullscreen, a digital media company that connects popular online personalities and brands.
According to people with knowledge of the deal, the deal valued Fullscreen at about $200 million to $300 million. The advertising conglomerate WPP too had invested in the company and would hold on to its stake.
Those over the age of 30 may not have heard of Fine Brothers, Connor Franta and Our2ndLife, but each of these internet stars count millions of YouTube subscribers, leaving in the dust, classic youth entertainment brand MTV, which has a mere 214,000 subscribers in comparison - and old media is paying attention, The New York Times reported.
According to Jesse Jacobs, president of the Chernin Group, the company did not see anything more exciting in the media industry than what was happening with online video, over-the-top video and television increasingly migrating online.
He added, what Fullscreen was doing in terms of redefining entertainment and media for young adults was powerful on a global scale.
About four years ago, former YouTube executive George Strompolos quit the company to start Fullscreen based on the idea that the next generation of creators would percolate on social media and speak engage in direct talk with fans.
Fullscreen has emerged as one among several leading entertainment companies in the YouTube-dominated digital video landscape. In addition to the Fine Brothers, Connor Franta and Our2ndLife, the company worked with over 50,000 content creators who counted in excess of 450 million subscribers and four billion monthly views.
''What felt like the future of media four years ago has quickly become the new reality,'' Strompolos said in an online post. ''It's a new world. Both Hollywood and Madison Avenue have recently taken notice and truly started to embrace this change.''
Under the deal, Fullscreen CEO and founder George Strompolos would continue as CEO and maintain a material ownership stake in the company, Advanced Television reported.
''Our relationship with George started over three years ago when he launched Fullscreen in our offices. Since then, George and the Fullscreen team have achieved something remarkable – they have built one of the largest online content distribution networks, as well as created a leadership position in youth-oriented video programming,'' said Peter Chernin, chairman and CEO of The Chernin Group.
''We're thrilled to be working with him and his management team in this next chapter for the company. Fullscreen's support for content creators, its relationship with YouTube and its passion for delivering entertainment to youth audiences around the world are extremely appealing to us.''
