Blue Ant Media, the streamer, production studio and rights-management business, has acquired MagellanTV, a digital streaming company that delivers factual content to consumers across the globe, for $12 million (€10.2bn).

Founded in 2018 by Greg Diefenbach and Thomas Lucas, veterans of National Geographic, PBS and Discovery, MagellanTV operates an SVoD service and a portfolio of AVoD and FAST channels across genres including history, nature, science, space and true crime. With distribution partnerships spanning Roku, Amazon, Apple, Samsung, LG, Comcast, Vizio, Pluto TV, and Google, MagellanTV reaches audiences in 13 countries across more than 20 platforms.

“This acquisition of MagellanTV increases Blue Ant’s scale and adds audiences and distribution capabilities that are highly complementary to our business,” commented Michael MacMillan, CEO, Blue Ant. “MagellanTV’s business model is primed for optimization within our global infrastructure, and we’re thrilled to welcome the talented team to Blue Ant.”

Diefenbach will join Blue Ant as Executive Vice President, Streaming, overseeing the company’s direct-to-consumer and subscription video businesses. He will report to Carlyn Staudt, President, Global Channels and Streaming. Co-founder Thomas Lucas will remain involved for several months to support the transition and ensure continuity for partners and audiences.

“Joining Blue Ant creates new opportunities to scale MagellanTV’s platform, while contributing to Blue Ant’s expansion as a leading factual content provider,” added Diefenbach and Lucas. “We look forward to working closely with the Blue Ant team to expand our offerings, unlock synergies, and connect with audiences around the globe.”

This transaction marks Blue Ant Media’s first strategic acquisition following its recent RTO,

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Tags: Blue Ant Media, Magellan TV, natgeo, streaming, svod