Contagious Online Media, the parent of original video content platform The Viral Fever (TVF), has raised close to USD 5 million in fresh funding from New York-based investment firm Tiger Global Management, Mint reported.
This follows Tiger Global’s USD 5.8 million investment in the startup last June. TVF’s post-round valuation grew by at least 13.8% in the new round to USD 82 million, compared to its previous fundraise, according to Paper.vc, which tracks funding in startups.
TVF has a wide range of high-profile startup founders as its backers, including Ola’s Bhavish Aggarwal, FreeCharge and Cred co-founder Kunal Shah and Flipkart co-founder Binny Bansal.
The startup has had a string of successful web shows targeted at India’s young demographic, including Pitchers, Permanent Roommates, Qtiyapa and Kota Factory, a satirical comedy series about students aspiring to get into the prestigious Indian Institutes of Technology. While it initially used YouTube as its primary channel, it has built its own website and app, TVF Play.
In March 2017, a former employee had accused co-founder Arunabh Kumar of molestation and sexual harassment, forcing him to step down as CEO in June the same year. Kumar was arrested and later let out on bail.
According to India Brand Equity Foundation, the Indian media and entertainment (M&E) industry grew at a CAGR of 10.90% in FY17-18 and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 13.10% to touch USD 39.68 billion by FY 2023 from USD 22.28 billion in FY 2018.
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