Comcast to acquire Fandango, Fancast coming soon

Cory Bergman April 11th, 2007

The cable giant Comcast has agreed to acquire the movie ticketing site Fandango for an undisclosed amount. At the same time, Comcast said it will launch a new site this summer called Fancast.com — “a national entertainment site where people can search and discover television and movie content, while managing their viewing experience across multiple devices.” A message on Fancast.com explains further:

With Fancast, you will be able to search for your favorite shows, movies, actors, or simply enjoy videos on the site. Fancast will provide you with a place to discover when your favorite shows or movies are on, and where you can watch them via television, video-on-demand, online or on other devices.

Comcast said it will “leverage its experience as the nation’s largest buyer of video content” to bring a wide variety of video to Fancast. Comcast has been busy building new sites: Ziddio, Game Invasion and Fearnet are recent launches. It will be interesting to see how Fancast comes together. (Thanks, Louis!) Press release follows…

PRESS RELEASE — April 11 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ –
Comcast Corporation (Nasdaq: CMCSA, CMCSK), the nation’s leading provider
of cable, entertainment and communications products and services, today
announced that it has reached an agreement to acquire Fandango, the
nation’s premier destination for movie information, showtimes and
ticketing, and one of the Web’s top entertainment sites. The company also
announced plans to launch Fancast.com, a new national online destination
that will enable consumers to search, discover, manage and enjoy their
entertainment experience across many devices and channels, including
television, computers, DVDs and wireless services.

Comcast has a major Internet presence, through Comcast.net, which is
now a top 10 site with more than 2.5 billion page views, more than 80
million videos viewed and 15 million unique visitors per month. Comcast
will leverage its experience as the nation’s largest buyer of video
content, serving nearly 25 million cable customers and 11.5 million
broadband customers, to expand its existing video-centric websites and
create a new online destination, Fancast.com.

Fandango, which is a top online brand and destination where millions of
people visit every month to learn about movies and purchase theater
tickets, will be an integral component of the Fancast user experience.
Fandango.com is already a top entertainment site and one of the nation’s
largest movie sites with between 4 and 5 million unique visitors each
month. Fandango has long- term, exclusive relationships with many national
theater chains that provide it a consistent, unique and dedicated audience
of entertainment-oriented consumers. Working closely with these exhibitor
partners, Fandango will continue to pursue its core mission of being the
leading online destination for movie theater information, showtimes and
ticketing at Fandango.com.

Fancast, which will launch this summer, will be a national
entertainment site where people can search and discover television and
movie content, while managing their viewing experience across multiple
devices. With Fancast, consumers will be able to search for their favorite
shows, movies, actors and actresses, or simply enjoy the video content on
the site. Fancast will provide consumers with a place to discover when
their favorite shows or movies are “on,” and where they can view them via
television, video-on-demand, online or on other devices.

Both Fandango and Fancast will be managed by Comcast Interactive Media
(CIM), a division of Comcast which develops and operates Internet
businesses focused on entertainment, information and communication.
Fandango will provide key commerce capabilities for CIM sites and will be
an additional source of traffic and revenue. CIM sites, including
Comcast.net and Fancast.com, will prominently feature Fandango, which will
significantly expand Fandango’s current audience.

“Fandango is one of the strongest entertainment brands online as well
as a dynamic, profitable business with a superb management team and rapidly
growing advertising revenue,” said Amy Banse, President of Comcast
Interactive Media. “Adding Fandango to Comcast Interactive Media and
creating Fancast.com will enable us to leverage our combined assets to
offer consumers an outstanding entertainment experience.”

“Comcast will enable us to expand our reach with moviegoers, enhance
our product, and grow Fandango into an even bigger brand and stronger
business,” said Chuck Davis, Chairman and CEO of Fandango. “Fandango is all
about helping consumers with their entertainment decisions - and we’re
excited that Comcast will enable us to deliver our content and services to
an even wider audience.”

Fandango will continue to be led by CEO Chuck Davis who will work with
Comcast Interactive Media to grow Fandango’s online entertainment and
ticketing business and expand the Fandango e-commerce experience across
platforms and brands. Fandango will remain headquartered in Los Angeles.

Fandango’s major investors include Accretive Technology Partners and
Technology Crossover Ventures and the nation’s leading theater chains. Banc
of America Securities LLC acted as financial advisor to Fandango in
connection with this transaction. The deal is expected to close in the
second quarter.