This report is a partnership between WrapPRO and PitchBook, the go-to financial data and software platform that provides detailed information on private and public capital markets.
Pop quiz: What do DreamWorks Animation CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg and former NFL quarterback and Hall of Famer Joe Montana have in common?
Answer: An interest in artificial intelligence.
The two former titans of their respective fields are making bets through their respective investment firms on AI, taking a $145 million stake in a marketing firm called Alembic, which led The Funding File’s list of top VC plays in November, according to PitchBook data. AI-related firms accounted for 10 of the top 15 raises in media and entertainment for the month that saw more than $700 million invested in startups. The stampede into AI is not just a stock market phenomenon but in early seed investing as well.
In the world of mergers and acquisitions in November, the buzz was all about a deal that has not yet been announced, as in the escalating bidding war for Warner Bros. Discovery.
But back in the more modest realm of deals that were announced in November, according to PitchBook, buyers showed interest across sectors. This included Belgium-based Kinepolis Group continuing to lean in to U.S. theaters — yes, the sector that has struggled to recover from the pandemic five years on.
And two areas that seem to always drive interest: food and creators. That manifested in a deal by Amaze Holdings to buy The Food Channel, not the TV network but a digital platform that has been a stalwart in the space for 35 years.
While November did not deliver any blockbuster, big-name deals, M&A did underscore a theme seen all year: Buyers are opportunistically looking at distressed properties across all sectors, from exhibition to digital media to local broadcast. In many ways, the kinds of deals being announced are reflection of the struggles many are seeing in media and entertainment
Here are a few M&A highlights followed by our venture capital report.
Emagine
Kinepolis Group, a theater group based in Gent, Belgium, continued its U.S. shopping spree on Nov. 4, announcing it was buying 14 U.S. theaters from Emagine Entertainment. The price tag was $105 million and the deal is expected to be completed by the end of the year.
The theaters included in the agreement are located in Saginaw, Hartland, Macomb, Canton, Novi, Saline, Birch Run, Rochester Hills, and Royal Oak in Michigan; and in Geneva, Wisconsin, Noblesville and Portage in Indiana, and in Frankfort, Illinois.
“The location and size of the cinemas make them a valuable addition to the Group’s portfolio, allowing us to expand our presence in the U.S. market and strengthen our national structure,” said Eddy Duquenne, CEO of Kinepolis Group.
Kinepolis, which owns and operates 109 cinemas worldwide with 10 of those prior to the deal in the U.S., 35 in Canada and 64 in Belgium, the Netherlands, France, Spain, Luxembourg, Switzerland and Poland.
Kinepolis also acquired Landmark Cinemas out of Canada and American chain MJR.
TuneIn
Internet radio service TuneIn, which some once saw as a rival to SiriusXM, sold for $150 million to music tech company Stingray, the companies announced Nov. 11.
Founded in 2002, San Francisco-based TuneIn built its model on streaming radio stations while also attempting a subscription business. TechCrunch said the company struggled in a crowded streaming market, particularly where listener preferences shifted from talk radio to podcasts.
Stingray is a Montreal-based company that owns radio stations and provides music tech and advertising services.
The buyer noted that TuneIn’s content is distributed across more than 200 platforms and connected devices, including over 50 in-car audio systems, in over 100 countries.
“This acquisition marks a pivotal moment in Stingray’s journey to further strengthen its position as a global leader in audio entertainment and digital advertising sales,” stated Eric Boyko, co-founder, president and CEO of Stingray. ”We are crafting an unmatched audio ecosystem by merging Stingray’s extensive technology infrastructure and content distribution capabilities with TuneIn’s expertise in monetization, advertising technology and diverse content offerings.”
Following the acquisition, the TuneIn platform will continue to operate under its existing brand.
The Food Channel
Amaze Holdings, a creator-powered commerce company, said Nov. 7 that it was acquiring for $650,000 all of the assets of The Food Channel, a digital platform dedicated to foodies with its own culinary content that was originally founded in 1989 as a print publication. It is not to be confused with the larger Food Network, owned by Warner Bros. Discovery.
The companies expect to complete a definitive asset purchase agreement by year’s end when The Food Channel will become a subsidiary of Amaze.
The Food Channel, owned by Noble Communications of Springfield, Mo., offers original articles, infographics, videos, recipes and photography and original video programming from the International Guest Chef Network. Original video programming includes the popular “:90 Seconds In The Kitchen” and the short-form “Time Crunchers.”
The acquisition will allow Amaze to combine its own network of food creators with The Food Channel’s assets to power a next-generation social commerce and entertainment platform. Amaze will provide The Food Channel’s roster of content creators with access to its full suite of e-commerce and merchandising software, helping it grow its fan bases and build sustainable businesses.
“Working with The Food Channel allows us to reach a new subset of creators in a market that has quickly become one of the most popular on social media,” said Aaron Day, chairman and CEO of Amaze. “As we continue to solidify our position as the leading e-commerce solution for creators, we’re excited to welcome an established group of culinary creators to the platform and elevate their content for both new and returning audiences.”
November in Startup Funding
Artificial intelligence continued to drive venture capital activity in media and entertainment in November, with 10 of the top 15 raises being investments in AI-related ventures. As with the public markets, AI is dominating startup activity, particularly with seed and early venture capital round investing.
Across all sectors, 51 companies raised more than $700 million in November, outpacing the revised level of investing for October as calculated by PitchBook of $512 million.
For the year so far, raises exceed $7 billion but that figure may be misleading since it was thrown off by a single raise in January of $3 billion by Infinite Reality.
Here are two highlight companies from that November list of 10 AI plays — with a full chart of the top 15 financings below (Note: When an investor is not listed, it indicates they were not disclosed by the companies, PitchBook says.).
Alembic
Alembic, a startup that offers AI-powered data analytics for marketers, said on Nov. 13 it raised $145 million that values the company at $645 million.
Among those putting in money was WndrCo, an investment firm co-founded by Katzenberg. WndrCo led an early round of investment in 2024 that valued Alembic at $49 million.
Prysm Capital and consulting giant Accenture led the latest Series B round. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang was also an investor.
Alembic’s software, by conducting billions of AI-driven queries regarding the relationships “between data points drawn from television, podcasts and other media platforms, the company says it can connect events like ad buys or social media mentions to individual consumer actions or purchases,” The Wall Street Journal reported.
Also participating in the investment round was former NFL QB Montana’s investment firm Liquid 2. “In sports and in business, it’s difficult to predict outcomes, but Alembic enables enterprises to accurately predict revenue and ROI from all the components of their marketing mix,” Montana has said of Alembic.
Fifth Door
Fifth Door, an AI platform that allows anyone to play and co-create games, raised $20 million on Nov. 24. Fifth Door was founded by Daniel Kan, who was also founder of the autonomous vehicle company Cruise.
A Y Combinator LinkedIn post described Kan’s strategy: “It’s a big swing at a moment when people are craving more connection and shared experiences. And it feels like exactly the kind of space where Daniel’s track record of building category-defining products gives Fifth Door a real shot at leading a new era in gaming.”
The investor included Aydin Senkut, Garry Tan and George Bousis, according to PitchBook.
How the year is looking for VC deal activity
And in media …
