US-based entertainment network Cheddar raised $22m on Monday in a series D round that included media company Antenna Group, marketing firm Dentsu and mass media group Liberty Global.
Raine Ventures, the venture capital branch of merchant bank Raine, led the round, which also featured investment banking firm Goldman Sachs, 7 Global Capital, the family office of Kelly Loeffler and Jeff Sprecher, and all Cheddar’s existing backers. Dentsu took part through its Dentsu Ventures unit.
Cheddar operates an online-focused television channel covering technology and business. It is available on platforms including Amazon, Twitter and Facebook as well as the majority of smart televisions in the US.
The funding precedes Cheddar’s launch of Cheddar Big News, a channel that will cover national business, political and sports news with what the company describes as “the style and sentiment of local news,” and its new investors intend to form partnerships covering its existing output.
Antenna Group chairman Theo Kyriakou said: “We believe that the Cheddar brand and content will resonate with the young audiences around the world who are consuming news in a new way.
“As an investor, we are excited to partner with its outstanding management team and fast track Cheddar’s European expansion, starting with our TV and digital assets across our footprint.”
Simon Freer, chief commercial officer of Liberty Global’s content investments subsidiary, added: “Our investment in Cheddar is the first step in what will be our international collaboration with the company.
“Cheddar is the leader in live digital news video, and owns all its intellectual property. We believe Cheddar can go global, and we are excited to collaborate with the company to make that a reality.”
The round took Cheddar’s total funding to $54m, including $10m in a 2016 round led by existing backer Lightspeed Venture Partners that included mass media group Comcast’s corporate venturing arm, Comcast Ventures, and Ribbit Capital.
Raine Ventures led a $19m round for Cheddar in May 2017 that featured Comcast Ventures, Lightspeed, Ribbit Capital, telecommunications group AT&T, e-commerce firm Amazon, broadcaster Altice USA, exchange operator New York Stock Exchange and entertainment producer Broadway Video’s Broadway Video Ventures unit.