Future Today, the company that operates ad-supported streaming channels, including HappyKids and Fawesome, said it’s terminated its merger agreement with Cinedigm.
Cinedigm announced about one year ago that it intended to buy Future Today for $45 million in cash and $15 million in Cinedigm common stock. Future Today has instead entered into a content licensing arrangement with Cinedigm to expand its offering.
The company’s decision comes as AVOD peers like Xumo and Pluto TV have been snapped up by media giants Comcast and ViacomCBS, respectively. The company said its independence makes it a better potential partner for distributors and device makers.
"The acquisition of streaming services by the big studios, which are focused on harnessing those assets to launch their brands, has made us a better fit and partner for large OEMs and entertainment companies looking for an entity to activate and monetize their video content," said Vikrant Mathur, co-founder of Future Today, in a statement. "An OEM seeking to launch 50 or even 100 channels on short order could do that quickly by using our assets, which are also already proven to attract audiences."
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Future Today, which recently added linear streaming capabilities to its technology stack, reported that February marked the best performance of its channels in its history, with users up almost 60% year over year, and streaming hours up almost 70% year over year.
Future Today recently announced an expansion of its distribution footprint with the launch of its channels – HappyKids, FilmRise, Fawesome and ifood.tv – on Comcast Xfinity and LG. Comcast is Future Today’s first deal with a traditional video distributor but Mathur told FierceVideo that his company is in conversation with other MVPDs.
The company launched its first OTT channel in 2011 and has since then grown to operate more than 700 content channels with over 70 million app installs, and manages a library of more than 200,000 film, television and digital content assets.