Verizon wants to buy Vessel, the video startup founded by former Hulu CEO Jason Kilar

#Verizon is in advanced discussions to acquire mobile video startup #Vessel, according to people familiar with the talks. Vessel is best known as the company founded by former #Hulu CEO Jason Kilar. Vessel launched in March 2015, and wanted to become a hub for #YouTube stars to reach super-fans. But the company was unable to sign many of YouTube’s biggest stars, who stayed on with #Google ’s video site, and the company has struggled to find traction with users. Video industry insiders have speculated for months that Vessel, which has raised more than $130 million from backers including #Benchmark and #Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, would find a buyer.

http://www.recode.net/2016/9/21/13009714/verizon-buying-vessel-video?mkt_tok=eyJpIjoiTXpJek1tWmpObVUxTjJGbSIsInQiOiJaSDF0ZkN5eHVYZlFmdDQwNmJnY2h3bzhOS1U0U2dSdVV2eTFuNnlITHVoVWVQR1BqWklhbEtLWFh4QzdZTG10SUx1N0ZUSWhuZk9FdWNnUWtYZHN6dFRrNmVoWjhLT0FyY1I0aVwvNWJnc1U9In0%3D

Time Warner is buying 10 percent of Hulu for around $600 million, and will join Hulu’s new pay TV service

After months of talks, #TimeWarner is buying a chunk of #Hulu, the web TV service. The deal means Time Warner will be partners with existing owners #Disney, 21st Century Fox and #Comcast ’s NBCUniversal*, and that Time Warner’s channels like Turner and CNN will be part of a new pay TV service Hulu wants to launch next year. Time Warner says it is buying a 10 percent stake in Hulu; a person familiar with the deal says it is putting in around $580 million (Update: Make that $583 million, per Time Warner’s CFO, during the company’s earnings call this morning) for that stake, which values the entire company at $5.8 billion. Hulu, which industry sources estimate is losing hundreds of millions of dollars a year, had originally wanted Time Warner to buy as much as 25 percent of the company.

http://www.recode.net/2016/8/3/12366680/time-warner-hulu--580-million?mkt_tok=eyJpIjoiTVRsbFlUUTFOVEV4TkRneSIsInQiOiJpb3FTdXdXRU81WXQ4Nng5c3E2ckNDekE2Y1YxZG9xalBiRVFUenNMckxZcmFXaFpDbzlNb1JMUVhmcHp3eEFyTmlWXC8weUZPWlpsd0RvY2RqMVZWWFwvbjVjV1RVNitVdE41Uk1IU25FXC9zMD0ifQ%3D%3D