Shine Group Acquires Leading Online Producer and Broadcaster ChannelFlip
6th Jan 2012
Shine Group today announced the acquisition of market-leading online broadcaster and original content producers, ChannelFlip.
Founded in 2008 by Justin Gayner and Wil Harris, the company has grown to become the largest creator of quality short form online video programming in the UK. (1) In so doing, ChannelFlip have successfully created a stable of original productions with a broad range of established TV talent - including Harry Hill, Richard Hammond and David Mitchell – which are distributed on 3rd party content platforms. Currently one of Europe’s largest premium YouTube Networks with over 500m aggregate views, ChannelFlip attracts up to 30
million monthly views to more than 7 million viewers globally. (2)
As part of Shine Group, the existing ChannelFlip team will continue to produce original content for online platforms. ChannelFlip’s expertise in building brand partnerships and online communities will in turn complement Shine’s traditional production businesses, and bolster the group’s existing multi-platform and direct to consumer offerings.
Elisabeth Murdoch, CEO and Chairman, Shine Group said: “Wil and Justin are true like-minded creative entrepreneurs and we welcome them and their team to Shine Group. They have built ChannelFlip into its leadership position through creative and commercial excellence, producing compelling and innovative online productions whilst persuading advertisers of the deeper relationships they can play within these. Following our entry into Social Gaming with Bossa Studios, this acquisition further underlines Shine Group’s relentless commitment to delivering excellence across all platforms and our determination to develop powerful direct to consumer models and connections to audiences, wherever they may be.”
Justin Gayner, Creative Director and Wil Harris, Managing Director, ChannelFlip said: “From our first conversations with Shine, we knew we had found our new home with a company that shared our creative, commercial and technological ambitions for ChannelFlip. The opportunities in our market are currently limitless, with audiences rapidly changing their viewing habits to the web, the increased penetration of internet
enabled smartphone and TVs, and online video now the fastest growing advertising market globally. It is an incredibly exciting time to enter the next phase in ChannelFlip’s story, and we are delighted to be doing so with such a creative group of companies as our new colleagues and collaborators.”
Based in London, with a team of 16, ChannelFlip specializes in the creation and broadcasting of high quality short form video (average length just under 3 minutes), most notably through in house productions, including David Mitchell’s Soapbox, Richard Hammond’s Tech Head and Harry Hill’s Little Internet Show and partnerships with some of the UK’s established YouTube talent such as Alex Day, Harry Partridge and Stuart Ashen, all of which can be viewed here http://www.youtube.com/channelflip
The company also works with rights holders to license and re-package content for online, including the recent deal with Studio Canal for short form access to 2,500 classic titles from films as diverse as Terminator 2, Spinal Tap, Rambo and the Ealing comedies, seen here http://www.youtube.com/classicclipstv.
ChannelFlip is the second business acquisition or investment identified by Shine Digital, the division that initiates and incubates new digital ideas for Shine Group, its companies and properties. The deal follows September 2011’s acquisition of social gaming company Bossa Studios, whose debut game recently launched on Facebook at www.monstermindgame.com, and also the announcement of the forthcoming launch of START, one of the recently announced new channels on You Tube, to be run in partnership with IGN Entertainment.
Headed by Yoel Flohr, Shine Digital has previously produced successes such as the MasterChef Academy app for iPhone and iPad, The Biggest Loser online club, and multi-platform commissions including The Magicians for the BBC.
Before meeting and founding ChannelFlip in 2008, Gayner produced QI with John Lloyd and co-wrote the global bestseller The Book of General Ignorance; whilst after graduating in Law in 2004, Harris created Bit-Tech, an online-only publication for computer enthusiasts later acquired by Dennis Publishing.
