Cable operator Comcast has announced it has reached an agreement to acquire online ricket broker Fandango. Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but Comcast plans to use Fandango’s services and technologies to help drive Fancast.com, a forthcoming service which will enable users to tap into online video, search for local movies and television programs featuring their favorite actors, and tap into video-on-demand services via the Internet, television, and even mobile phones.
“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, in a release. “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 plans to launch Fancast this summer, and describes it as 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.” Both Fandango and Fancast will be part of Comcast Interactive Media, a group which already includes Ziddio.com, thePlatform, and GameInvasion.net. The move is generally seen as a way for Comcast to diversify its offerings and extend its reach beyond its existing 25 million cable television and over 11 million broadband users to other arenas, including online video and mobile services.
The Fandango acquisition is expected to close in the second quarter of 2007.
