The E.W. Scripps Co., which owns 19 local TV stations and newspapers in 13 markets, has acquired digital-video news provider Newsy for $35 million as part of its strategy to build a national brand, the company announced.
Newsy, founded in 2008, produces and curates video news reports for web, mobile, tablet and connected TV platforms. Its distribution partners include AOL/Huffington Post, Microsoft and Mashable.
“Newsy adds an important dimension to our video news strategy,” Rich Boehne, Scripps chairman, president and CEO, said in a statement. “It’s a next-generation news network designed and built exclusively for digital audiences.”
Scripps said it plans to incorporate Newsy as a source for local markets across the country. Newsy will be operated as a wholly owned subsidiary of Scripps, with the acquisition expected to close Jan. 1, 2014.
Newsy’s 35 full-time employees as well as its part-time employees will remain based in Columbia, Mo. “Leveraging the power of Scripps and Newsy together means reaching more consumers with the quality journalism they expect on a larger variety of platforms,” Newsy founder and CEO Jim Spencer said in a statement.
Privately held Newsy had raised a total of $3.5 million in funding from investors.
