SoftBank has acquired stake in Indian media startup ScoopWhoop for an undisclosed amount
Bharti SoftBank, a joint venture between business group Bharti Enterprises and SoftBank Corp, announced today that it has acquired a 36.5 per cent stake in ScoopWhoop, an Indian-focussed media startup. The amount of the deal is undisclosed.
The format of ScoopWhoop is similar to Buzzfeed and 9GAG. Started in August 2013, the website claims 20 million monthly page views and over eight million unique visitors per month across its website and mobile app.
Madhu Nori, CEO of Bharti SoftBank Portal said, “About half of India’s population is under 25 years old and the use of social networks with smartphones is growing rapidly among this segment. As a result, media consumption patterns are rapidly evolving and this space is ready for disruption.”
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“We believe the partnership offers immense synergies for both parties to create great content experience for India’s mobile internet population,” he added.
This is the latest in the series of investments done by SoftBank in India which aims to invest about US$10 billion in India over the next few years. Last week, SoftBank Group announced that it would invest US$627 million in Indian online retailer Snapdeal and led US$210 million funding of Ola.
SoftBank Group aims to further strengthen its presence in India and leverage synergies with its network of Internet companies around the world.
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