I’m excited to announce a new chapter for Lost Remote. WebMediaBrands, the parent company of Mediabistro, has acquired Lost Remote with plans to grow our social TV footprint. Don’t worry, we’re not going anywhere: I’ll continue to play an active role, and Natan Edelsburg will keep covering stories for the site.
Nearly two years ago, Lost Remote became the first site dedicated to covering social TV. Few people had heard of social TV back then, but it quickly graduated from an experiment to a full-blown revolution. Today, social TV and the “second screen” have sparked over one hundred startups, and Lost Remote has grown leaps and bounds.
Meanwhile larger publishers have started to cover social TV, and I realized we needed help growing Lost Remote — especially into the events side of the business. After exploring a few options, I agreed to sell to WebMediaBrands, a network of TV and social media sites that includes the likes of TVNewser and AllFacebook. The deal preserves my involvement while they leverage their network, resources and events expertise to take Lost Remote to the next level.
While I love reporting on the social TV space, I enjoy living it, too. Since I founded Lost Remote 13 years ago — one of the first blogs on the web! — I’ve simultaneously worked in the TV business. Today I’m general manager of Breaking News, one of the largest social teams in media, and I’m having a blast. I’m an entrepreneur at heart, and while I love writing about innovative products, I have just as much fun making them.
This isn’t goodbye by any stretch, but I’d like to thank Natan for helping elevate Lost Remote to where it is today — and Steve Safran for his invaluable contributions in the early days. Also, a big thanks to Charlie Tillinghast, my incredible boss at NBC News Digital (which owns Breaking News). Along with the larger NBC News organization, he’s been supportive of Lost Remote over the years. I wish more companies were this progressive in allowing employees to pursue meaningful side projects and turn themselves into experts in emerging fields.
Most of all, I can’t thank our readers enough for your continuing support. The business is changing today more than ever, and I’m convinced that social TV will usher in the next generation of television. Keep it tuned here to Lost Remote as we watch it unfold together.
– Cory (@corybe)
Plus: Press release on the acquisition | TVNewser story about it