NBCUniversal has made an additional $200 million investment in digital media company BuzzFeed.
The two companies plan to expand their strategic relationship. NBCU will now exclusively represent the BuzzFeed portfolio to advertisers. BuzzFeed will collaborate on production and social distribution for material from NBCU’s content studio, which creates content for advertisers.
NBCU and BuzzFeed will also work together on new digital consumer experiences tied to NBCU shows and movies.
Traditional media companies are making investments in digital companies in order to reach younger audiences and keep abreast of the technological changes affecting the industry. In addition to BuzzFeed, NBCU has investments in companies including Vox. Time Warner, Viacom, Disney are among the other major media companies buying stakes in digital media companies.
NBCU said the additional investment in BuzzFeed will help the company build on its data science and technology, create cross-platform ad products, and build digital networks like Tasty, which focuses on food. BuzzFeed will also expand its journalism operations.
“Over the past year, BuzzFeed has proven to be a valuable partner across our business. From the Olympics to the record-breaking launch of Secret Life of Pets, BuzzFeed has helped us engage millennial audiences with our content and extend the reach of our clients’ campaigns to new platforms,” said Maggie Suniewick, president of NBCUniversal Digital Enterprises. “We are looking forward to using the power of our brands to collaborate in more innovative ways that drive value for both companies.”
NBCUniversal and BuzzFeed have already partnered on successful initiatives including the 2016 Rio Olympics on Snapchat, co-selling advertising deals across linear and digital, and content partnerships like Tasty on NBC News’ Today.
“NBCUniversal has been a tremendous partner this past year and we can’t wait to do more with them. Our collaboration has allowed us to focus on our respective strengths, learn from each other, and serve our combined audience better with compelling news, entertainment, and advertising offerings that neither company could do on our own,” said Jonah Peretti, BuzzFeed CEO and founder. “The investment allows us to remain a fully independent company but have access to and resources from the strongest and best media company there is.”
