Jukin Media now has a little more financial wiggle room. The viral video network has raised $2 million in funding from Samsung Venture Investment Corporation (Samsung Ventures).
Jukin Media’s entire business is based on monetizing and licensing viral, user-generated video clips. However, the new funds from Samsung will provide Jukin greater flexibility to grow some of its developing departments and original projects. Jukin’s President and COO Lee Essner said in a release that the company has “several profitable and expanding business units, which is rare for a company at this stage.”
“Although we have always funded the company solely from operations and have not yet touched any previously raised investor capital, the Samsung Venture investment gives us maximum flexibility to expand our investment in tech and original production, both of which have been pivotal factors in our sustained growth,” Essner explained.
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Jukin Media raised roughly $1 million from Maker Studios and Launchpad LA back in 2014. With additional investments from partners like Karlin Ventures, BDMI, Peter Guber, Allen DeBevoise, Canyon Creek Capital, and Kombo Ventures, Jukin finished out 2014 with over $2.2 million in raised funds.
“Jukin is extraordinarily unique for a digital-first entertainment company in that it’s profitable, expanding, and has amassed a significant intellectual property portfolio in the form of its owned-and-operated brands and its impressive video library,” added Thomas Jueng, Sr., Manager of Samsung Venture.
Jukin’s viral video expertise has landed the company a TV show deal with FOX, who took the brand’s FailArmy property and turned it into a linear show with impressive viewership stats. Jukin also launched its own viral video feed service for publishers to embed clips onto their sites. The company also co-manages The Pet Collective YouTube channel from FremantleMedia’s Tiny Riot! studio.
Jukin currently claims over one billion monthly video views across all its platforms.
