Murdoch's new News Corp buys social media agency Storyful for £25M.
News Corp has bought Dublin-based Storyful, described as a "social news agency," for about £15 million - $25 million.It is the first acquisition by News Corp since separating from 21st Century Fox.
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Five-year-old Storyful discovers, verifies and distributes user-generated news and video content to its partners using both technology and journalistic tools.
The Wall Street Journal said the agency also provides social media dashboards, real-time discovery tools, feeds and analytics to customers, “allowing them to integrate video into their news or advertising efforts and to monitor social conversations and sentiment.”
News Corp said that so far in 2013, verified user-generated videos managed by Storyful generated 750 million views for its partners.
Storyful will still be based in Dublin and operate as a stand-alone unit within News Corp, owner of The Wall Street Journal , the Sun and The Times.
News Corp CEO Robert Thomson said,"We've entered an era in which user-generated content must be verified if it's to be trusted, and that's precisely what Storyful does best.”
News Corp, publisher of newspapers in the U.S., the U.K. and Australia, split from movie and television company 21st Century Fox earlier this year.
Following the split, News Corp has faced the challenge of adapting its array of traditional media assets for audiences demanding content in digital formats.
Thomson said the Storyful acquisition was "replete with global and digital strategic significance for the company.” He said Storyful will help News Corp develop its video capabilities.
Storyful's Chief Executive Mark Little and Executive Editor David Clinch will continue to oversee the company's operations. Rahul Chopra, senior vice president of video for News Corp, will join the Storyful management , taking on the additional role of chief revenue officer.
Extra development and advertising sales staff will be hired and based in New York.
"By joining forces with News Corp, Storyful can quickly transform its vision into a global reality," said Little. "News Corp is a natural fit for a company which wants to help reinvent the news industry."