Discovery Invests in Chinese MCN

LONDON: Discovery Communications has taken a minority stake in VS Media, a Chinese multi-channel network (MCN) founded in 2013.

With more than 55 million subscribers and 320 million video views a month, VS Media is the first and largest MCN that focuses on Chinese content creators. The outfit was set up by media entrepreneur Ivy Wong.

Through recent investments, VS Media is setting up a $4 million content-development fund, which will be used to collaborate with creators to produce local formats.

Arthur Bastings, the president and managing director of Discovery Networks Asia-Pacific, said, “I admire the strong community spirit Ivy has fostered with local creators and their followers. As Discovery looks to build deeper traction in the Chinese-speaking markets, VS Media’s robust following is incredibly valuable to us. Through their advanced analytics, we can get fully plugged into the Chinese Millennial zeitgeist.

“This group of digital natives is the most mobile-connected generation in history with a huge thirst for online content. Discovery’s great track record in innovative and immersive storytelling, coupled with VS Media’s cutting-edge community, presents a creative and unique content ecosystem to meet this ever-growing demand.”

Wong said, “This partnership is a significant milestone in our company’s evolution. We believe that everyone can be an influencer as well as a digital entrepreneur. We continue to uncover, nurture and present the next generation of talent, raising the bar and setting industry best practices. Our creators are instilled with a deep sense of professionalism and we help fulfill their dreams by maximizing opportunities in and outside of China. VS Media is fortunate to have investors who support our mission. Last month, we received the backing of CMC Holdings and today, Discovery Communications. Leveraging on Discovery’s expertise, we are driven, more than ever, to propel our growth by empowering creators to come up with more high-quality and addictive content.”