Over-the-top video platform ALTBalaji has acquired 17.5% stake in the online celebrity digital engagement platform Tring in order to further its content growth. According to the company, Tring is the market leader in the celebrity video shoutout space, and this investment values Tring at about Rs 100 crores since its launch in February 2020. As part of this transaction, ALTBalaji will be entitled to appoint one board member to represent them on the board of Tring’s parent company, BD Inno Ventures Pvt Ltd.
Balaji Telefilms has always believed in investing ahead of the curve and this investment in Tring allows the company to better connect with audiences across India, Shobha Kapoor, managing director, Balaji Telefilms Limited, said. “The team at Tring has done a tremendous job in such a short period, and we are confident that with our investment and support, they will scale much faster, bringing audiences closer to the celebrities they adore. We look forward to growing our businesses, given the numerous synergies that exist between Balaji Telefilms and Tring across target markets and customers,” she added.
ALTBalaji has witnessed a rise in viewership, with the direct subscription revenue nearly doubling year-on-year with 65% of its consumers coming from the non-metro and tier 2 / tier 3 towns and cities. Since its launch in 2017, ALTBalaji consistently remains one of the Top 5 paid apps in the country reflective of its strong brand affinity with the Indian internet audiences. As per Ekta Kapoor, joint managing director, Balaji Telefilms Limited, both ALTBalaji and Tring work with talent and try to bring them a step closer to their fans and vice-versa. “We believe this synergy will work in favour of both the brands and help each other widen our reach,” she opined.
Started in February 2020, Tring has over 2000 celebrities offering a wide range of services such as personalised video shoutouts / messages, live video calls, DMs on Instagram for personalised two-way engagement with their fans, among others. For Akshay Saini co-founder, Tring, Balaji Telefilms’ investment in the company shows the potential of celebrity commerce space in India. “Having them as partners in this journey provides valuable and key strategic inputs for Tring as we continue our market penetration and reach the masses,” he stated.
Tring’s existing investors include photographer and movie producer Atul Kasbekar, along-with industry-leaders and angel investors Kalyan Krishnamurthy (CEO of Flipkart) Sujeet Kumar (CEO of Udaan) Gaurav Munjal (CEO of Unacademy) Roman Saini, Hemesh Singh, Sumit Jain, Dinesh Godara (Founding team Unacademy), Keshav Sanghi (Ventureworks India), Dalbir Saini (Chairman BDI Group), amongst others.
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