VC Funding Is Drying Up for Media Startups
ByEven as funding rounds hit 4-year low, some VCs remain bullish. ‘The media landscape is being transformed,’ says Eric Hippeau
As venture capitalists exercise more caution and place fewer bets, they’re leaving media startups behind.
Venture funding to media-tech companies slid for the third consecutive quarter to $91.7 million, the lowest amount since mid-2013, according to data from industry researcher CB Insights. Investment activity followed a similar trend, declining to the fewest number of deals since the second quarter of 2012.
While U.S. venture deals were down overall in the first half of the year, the drop in funding to media companies has outpaced declines in other sectors, said Garrett Black, an analyst at researcher PitchBook. Investors worry the businesses are expensive to run compared with software makers and struggle to keep readers’ attention…