{"id":840,"date":"2026-05-27T21:08:52","date_gmt":"2026-05-27T21:08:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=840"},"modified":"2026-05-27T21:08:52","modified_gmt":"2026-05-27T21:08:52","slug":"byron-allen-closes-buzzfeed-acquisition-says-company-is-now-officially-chasing-youtube","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=840","title":{"rendered":"Byron Allen Closes BuzzFeed Acquisition, Says Company Is Now \u2018Officially Chasing YouTube\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n\tMedia entrepreneur and stand-up comedian Byron Allen now is the majority owner of BuzzFeed \u2014 the struggling digital media player that Allen plans to use to launch a free-streaming platform that he imagines will rival video colossus YouTube.<\/p>\n

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\n\t\u201cOur vision is to build on the iconic foundation of BuzzFeed and HuffPost by expanding into free-streaming video, audio and user-generated content,\u201d said Allen, who is now chairman and CEO of BuzzFeed after buying approximately 51% of its outstanding shares in a $120 million deal. \u201cAs of this moment, with the power of AI, BuzzFeed is officially chasing YouTube to become another premier free-streaming video service.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tWith Allen taking over the company, BuzzFeed founder and former CEO Jonah Peretti has taken on the newly created role as \u201cpresident of BuzzFeed AI.\u201d The company said that in the new role, Peretti \u201cwill bring his strategic focus to applied AI research, product innovation and the development of new technology-driven media formats.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tPeretti called Allen \u201ca force of nature and an incredible media mogul\u201d and said his skills \u201care very complementary to mine.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tAllen\u2019s \u201cdeep relationships with advertisers, partners and sources of capital free me to focus on what I\u2019ve always loved most: the intersection of tech and media,\u201d Peretti said in a statement. \u201cI\u2019m thrilled to pass him the baton, and even more excited about what comes next. AI is going to create a new medium for content that wasn\u2019t possible before, and I\u2019m convinced the opportunity is enormous.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tPeretti had previously said BuzzFeed Studios and the company\u2019s Tasty brand would be set up as a new independent entity separate from the BuzzFeed and HuffPost operations that are controlled by Allen. <\/p>\n

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\n\tSo how is BuzzFeed going to challenge YouTube?<\/p>\n

\n\tAllen previously told Variety<\/em> that BuzzFeed will build on the foundation of BuzzFeed and HuffPost by expanding into free-streaming video in conjunction with Allen Media Group\u2019s Local Now, a free streaming platform that curates, aggregates and streams \u201chyperlocal\u201d news, weather, traffic, sports and entertainment based on a user\u2019s ZIP code. Allen\u2019s company also operates a network of 650 free, ad-supported television (FAST) channels and approximately 400 local TV broadcast affiliates.<\/p>\n

\n\tWith those assets, combined with BuzzFeed\u2019s monthly visitors, \u201cthe company sees a significant opportunity to bring a new kind of free-streaming experience directly to consumers,\u201d BuzzFeed said. \u201cAI will accelerate content creation, distribution and discovery across both organizations as BuzzFeed builds toward becoming a premier free-streaming video destination.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tBuzzFeed on Wednesday (May 27) announced the closing of its previously announced transaction with Allen Family Digital, an affiliate of Byron Allen\u2019s family office. Under the terms of the agreement, Allen Family Digital acquired 40 million shares of BuzzFeed common stock at a price of $3\/share, representing a total transaction value of $120 million for a total purchase price of $120 million. The transaction was funded with $20 million in cash at closing and a $100 million promissory note due five years from closing, accruing interest at 5% annually. BuzzFeed said it used $12.5 million of the cash proceeds from the transaction to pay down existing debt.<\/p>\n

\n\tSeparately, Allen has leased a two-hour nightly comedy block on CBS and has taken over the time-slot previously occupied by \u201cLate Night With Stephen Colbert\u201d (which aired its final show on May 21). \u201cComics Unleashed With Byron Allen\u201d now airs in back-to-back episodes in the 11:35 p.m. time slot on CBS, followed by two episodes of his comedy show \u201cFunny You Should Ask.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Byron Allen now is the majority owner of BuzzFeed — the struggling digital media player that Allen plans to use to launch a free-streaming platform that he imagines will rival video colossus YouTube.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":839,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[848,849],"class_list":["post-840","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-digital","tag-buzzfeed","tag-byron-allen-2"],"yoast_head":"\nByron Allen Closes BuzzFeed Acquisition, Says Company Is Now \u2018Officially Chasing YouTube\u2019 - Relocation Observer<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=840\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Byron Allen Closes BuzzFeed Acquisition, Says Company Is Now \u2018Officially Chasing YouTube\u2019 - 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