TF1 Takes Majority Stake in Social-Media Platform

BOULOGNE: TF1 has picked up a majority stake in MinuteBuzz, a French social-media platform with 9 million subscribers and 2 billion videos viewed this year.

The French broadcaster says the deal will “unlock editorial and commercial synergies” between the two companies as TF1 seeks to “address the demand from major brands which are looking for powerful and original video content to enhance their marketing push on social-networking platforms.”

Gilles Pélisson, TF1’s group chairman and CEO, said, “This deal generates a new momentum for the TF1 group, combining the pulling power of our TV audience ratings with the street cred of MinuteBuzz on social media. It will also help our advertising sales operations at TF1 Publicité to offer advertisers ever more innovative and varied solutions, as we continue our push to become France’s leading content marketplace.”

Laure Lefevre and Maxime Barbier, founders of MinuteBuzz, said, “This strategic step change will give us the strength to deliver on our ambitions: continuing to win over French millennials, innovate in new entertainment technologies, and build tomorrow’s world. We are proud to associate ourselves with the new digital momentum of an iconic French company like TF1.”

MinuteBuzz bills itself as France’s leading platform for millennials and generates 250 million video views every month.