21st Century Fox leads investment round for millennial news service


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Joseph O'Halloran

| 02 June 2016




In a move hinting strongly at the pay-TV firm’s ambitions to grow its offer for millennials, pay-TV giant 21st Century Fox has led an $8 million series B funding round for theSkimm.



theSkimm 2 June 2016Founded by entrepreneurs Danielle Weisberg and Carly Zakin, the multi-platform audience company curates the news, events and information millennial market and currently reaches over 3.5 million active subscribers with its core product, the Daily Skimm newsletter. It also boasts of ‘powerful’ brand engagement and of thousands of brand ambassadors in the US. The company recently expanded its product offering to include Skimm Ahead, a paid subscription app, which debuted as leader in the News category and ninth overall in the app store.

Joining 21st Century Fox in the funding round were existing investors RRE Ventures, Greycroft Partners and Homebrew. Yet what may be of most interest to the Rupert Murdoch-led company is that theSkimm’s future plans include original video content, produced and distributed under a new umbrella called Skimm Studios.

“We were immediately impressed with theSkimm's unique editorial voice, and by its ability to drive meaningful engagement with its community of users," remarked Randy Freer, president and chief operating officer for 21st Century Fox’s Fox Networks Group. "Carly and Danielle have mastered the art of building community and have quickly proven they can effectively expand their suite of products to serve their ever growing audience. We look forward to supporting theSkimm's growth, and are confident that this investment marks the beginning of a long and successful creative partnership."

“21st Century Fox had an immediate understanding of the power of our community and our commitment to build a multi-platform audience company," added Weisberg and Zakin. "When it comes to building brands with a singular focus on audience engagement, 21st Century Fox is the best in the game. We are thrilled to take theSkimm to the next level with their support.”