The New York Times Company is currently engaged in exclusive negotiations to purchase the film-centric social network Letterboxd, with the deal estimated to be worth around $330 million USD, as reported on Thursday by the New York Times, citing two individuals familiar with the situation.
This acquisition would mark an expansion of the media company’s strategy beyond its traditional news operations, following previous purchases such as the sports website The Athletic, the product-review platform Wirecutter, and the popular game Wordle.
In the third quarter, the company reported an increase of 420,000 digital-only subscribers, bringing its total paid subscriber count to 13.8 million.
Although no final agreement has been made, the discussions could still collapse, according to the report. The valuation being considered would place Letterboxd’s worth at over 20 times its anticipated earnings for this year, estimated at about $15 million USD, as per the newspaper’s findings.
The New York Times Company chose not to comment, while Letterboxd has yet to reply to a request for comment outside of regular business hours.
Favored by Gen Z film enthusiasts
Founded in 2011 by Matthew Buchanan and Karl von Randow, Letterboxd has experienced significant growth since 2020, amassing 30 million users, and has become particularly favored among Gen Z movie aficionados.
Discussions between The Times Company and Letterboxd have included the possibility of keeping Buchanan and von Randow at the helm of the platform, with the founders reporting to an executive from The Times Company, according to the report.
Letterboxd’s parent company has been collaborating with the investment bank LionTree to explore a potential sale, as noted in the report. Film studios such as A24 and Sony had shown interest as potential buyers, but A24 ultimately withdrew as the price expectations escalated, according to the report.
The New York Times Company plans to merge its advertising technology with Letterboxd’s systems, the report stated, and it is expected that the film platform will likely remain operational as an independent site for the foreseeable future.