That said, it might be Toutiao’s first attempt to tap into longer videos, but it’s not the first time that the Beijing-based unicorn thrusting itself into the space of ACGN, meaning animation, comic, game and novel. The potential injection in troubled AcFun, will mark the company’s first foray into the market of long videos, a relatively new territory for Toutiao. Toutiao, started out as a news aggregator, has successfully launched a slew of video-based app services, including Xigua Short Video and the sensational Tik Tok, in recent years. Toutiao is interested in investing in the troubled anime-streaming platform and the two companies have been in talks for several times, the source said. However, the deal eventually went sour as Jack Ma’s Yunfeng Fund kept pushing down AcFun’s valuation and wanted more control with more shares, according to local financial media Caijing citing a source familiar with the matter.Īnd local news aggregator Toutiao, one of the Chinese unicorns, emerged to be the eventual life-saver for endangered AcFun, according to the source who spoke with Caijing on anonymous condition. In last December, rumor has it that Yunfeng Fund, a PE firm founded by Jack Ma, was mulling over a capital injection into AcFun. In stark contrast, Bilibili’s archrival AcFun, is struggling to land a life-saving investment. On March 28, B site, or Bilibili, held its Nasdaq debut, though had a rocky start as its stock price dropped below offer price.
AcFun and Bilibili, known as A site （ A 站） and B site （ B 站） amongst Chinese anime fans for their initials, are the two flagships anime streaming sites in China with their own cult followings.Īnd just as many other startups in China, they each chose one of the two largest internet powerhouses – namely Alibaba and Tencent – as their backers.ĪcFun sided with Alibaba whilst Tencent backed the B site.
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