CINCINNATI, Dec. 9, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- The E.W. Scripps Company (NYSE: SSP) has acquired Columbia, Mo.-based digital video news provider Newsy, a five-year-old startup that has built its early success on a multi-source, multi-platform approach to storytelling.
"Newsy adds an important dimension to our video news strategy. It's a next-generation news network designed and built exclusively for digital audiences," said Rich Boehne, Scripps chairman, president and CEO. "Newsy's uncommon approach to curation and storytelling has helped it build a strong national brand, which fits well with both our current media assets and our ambitions to further develop digital media businesses.
"This acquisition fits our digital strategy to run a national news brand that both enhances our local content offerings and gives us more access to the fast-growing digital news audiences and revenues on national platforms," Boehne said.
Newsy produces and curates video news reports for web, mobile, tablet and connected TV, allowing its audience easy access to a variety of news and information sources. Its revenue comes from advertising on its digital products; selling news and original content to major digital journalism brands that include AOL/Huffington Post, Microsoft and Mashable; and syndicating its content. Newsy will become an important news source on the Scripps digital products in local markets across the country.
Newsy will be operated as a wholly owned subsidiary of Scripps, which has entered into an agreement to buy Newsy and will pay $35 million in cash for the growing brand. The deal is expected to close Jan. 1.
"Scripps is committed to participating in the future of digital media," said Adam Symson, senior vice president and chief digital officer for Scripps. "Newsy is built for the digital audience, especially on the platforms we're seeing emerge now with highly connected consumers."
Newsy Founder and CEO Jim Spencer says Scripps shares the Newsy mission to provide value to audiences by informing, engaging and empowering the communities and audiences they serve.
"Leveraging the power of Scripps and Newsy together means reaching more consumers with the quality journalism they expect on a larger variety of platforms," he said. "We are proud to be joining with Scripps, which shares our values of innovation and editorial integrity."
Newsy's 35 full-time employees as well as its part-time employees will remain in Columbia.
About Scripps
The E.W. Scripps Company (www.scripps.com) serves audiences and businesses through a growing portfolio of television, print and digital media brands. It owns 19 local television stations and daily newspapers in 13 markets across the United States and an expanding collection of local and national digital journalism and information businesses. Scripps also produces television programming, runs an award-winning investigative reporting newsroom in Washington, D.C., and serves as the long-time steward of one of the nation's most successful educational programs, Scripps Spelling Bee. Founded in 1879, Scripps is focused on the stories of tomorrow.
About Newsy
Promising to make you smarter and faster, Newsy (www.newsy.com) is a multisource video news service that highlights unique perspectives from across the media spectrum — providing what you need to know about the day's events. Through engaging video news bites available on the web and mobile devices, Newsy offers a broader view in a concise format. Newsy has won two Appy Awards, a Davey Award and a W3 Award. Its highly rated free apps are available from the Apple App Store, Google Play, the Windows Phone Marketplace and the Nokia Store.
SOURCE The E.W. Scripps Company