#fame raises $10 million from TTN Ventures

The infusion will be used to scale up the company's original digital video business, ramp up technology and expand regionally in Asia.

Mumbai-based digital entertainment service provider, Famebox Network, which runs under the brand #fame, has raised $10 million in second round financing from To The New Ventures (TTN Ventures). This round follows the $3 million investment TTN Ventures had made when the business began in beta, in early 2014.

Since its launch in September 2014, #fame has emerged as one of the fastest growing digital entertainment networks in India. #fame will use the funds to scale up its original digital video business, grow its emerging talent network, invest in technology and expand regionally in Asia.

Catering to mobile millennials (also known as Gen Y) through an integrated 'talent-first' strategy, #fame is building a pan-Asian digital video network that will straddle over 5,000 channels and 50,000 content creators over the next three years. Since launch, the network has seen rapid growth and traction for its original digital video content. The company claims that with over 150 videos being produced every month, #fame is India's largest original content creator for web and mobile platforms.

The firm focuses on emerging and established talent to build digital video channels and communities and has identified six key markets in Southeast Asia, including Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia and the Philippines. TTN Ventures has a strong strategic presence in these markets where it has built businesses in the SMACK space (Social, Mobile, Analytics, Content & Knowledge).

Over the next few months, #fame will ramp up its monthly content output to over 1,000 original videos and expand its emerging talent network to over 500 emerging content creators. #fame's digital video network spans several digital and social platforms including YouTube, Facebook, WeChat, Daily Motion and leading content publishers. #fame strategically focuses on emerging and established talent to build digital video channels and communities around them.

Puneet Johar, CEO, TTN Ventures, says, "We are extremely bullish about video on mobile disrupting and re-defining entertainment, and the opportunity is ripe to build an impactful consumer internet business. #fame is showing the trajectory of a market leader and we would like to back it to market leadership across India and South East Asia." Saket Saurabh, CEO, #fame, states, "We are well-poised for the next exciting leap in our growth story as we scale-up our capabilities in original digital content, grow our talent network further and expand across markets."

Earlier, TTN had also acquired Delhi-based Tangerine - a company that creates and manages content on the web, mobile and social media platforms - and Intelligrape, a mobile and web application development company. In 2011, the firm had bought Mumbai-based digital marketing service company, Ignitee Digital Services. TTN is backed by Four Cross Media Services, a firm started by former chief of Coca-Cola India, Sanjiv Gupta and backed by Malaysian media group Astro.