Earlier this month Russian billionaire Mikhail Fridman took part in a $24 million funding round for French OTT TV service Molotov. The UK media group Sky and the French infrastructure operator TDF also participated in the deal in undisclosed proportions.
Molotov will use the resources to expand its footprint internationally, said Molotov’s co-founder Jean-David Blanc, as reported by online publication Variety.
TDF will also bring hybrid broadcast feeds to Molotov on smart TVs.
Launched in July this year by media industry veterans Jean-David Blanc, Pierre Lescure and Jean-Marc Denoual, Molotov claims to provide a “radically new way of watching TV.”
Fridman, whose net worth is currently estimated at some $16 billion, co-founded Alfa Group in the early days of Russia’s transition to capitalism. Having become a leading financial and industrial investment group in Russia, the was involved in oil joint venture TNK-BP, mobile operators VimpelCom, and retail group X5.
Fridman also controls Letter One (L1), an investment vehicle operating in 32 countries with $25 billion in assets under management as of December 31, 2014. Earlier this year, L1 invested $200 million in Uber, then $50 million in FreedomPop, a “disruptive” US mobile service provider.
