A funding round led by 21st Century Fox has secured a $100 million dollar investment for rising streaming platform, Caffeine.
Other contributors included existing Caffeine investors Andreessen Horowitz and Greylock Partners. The investment introduces a new venture called Caffeine Studios, which is joint-owned by Caffeine and FOX. The amount given by each investor was not disclosed.
FOX hopes to bring its expertise in live programming to Caffeine's existing platform, creating new opportunities for esports, gaming and sports creators. FOX Executive Chairman Lachlan Murdoch will also join Caffeine's board, as well as serving as CEO of Caffeine Studios.
In addition to the investment, Caffeine also announced a partnership with Live Nation, in order to bring music concerts and events to the platform.
Streaming with the mainstream
“We want to bring the world together around friends and live broadcasts,” said Ben Keighran, CEO of Caffeine.
“It's an ambitious goal, but one we believe is attainable with the support of our amazing new partners, our awesome and ever-growing community, and the content that together, we can bring onto the platform."
Murdoch added: “The combination of the Caffeine platform with a content studio that benefits from Fox Sports' expertise in live events and programming will help position Caffeine to deliver compelling experiences in esports, video gaming, and entertainment,”
"We are excited to partner with Caffeine and build something special for fans in the growing live social streaming esports and gaming space."
Significant growth
Caffeine has had a stellar year. After unveiling the platform back in January this year, the company has grown to become a significant player in the streaming space.
The platform released monetisation options in May to enable creators to make money from their content. It also bagged a number of execs from the likes of Apple and Evernote ahead of its expansion in to Europe.
"Caffeine is not just another normal streaming or video watching platform, but rather, a whole new product and community." Keighran told InfluencerUpdate.biz back in July, just before the company opened its EU office.
