Web Video Channel Guide PlutoTV Raises $13 Million

Lots of people have tried to build TV guides for the Web-video era, and no one has succeeded so far.

But PlutoTV has convinced investors that it’s onto something. The company, which presents “channels” of Web video in a format that looks similar to a conventional TV guide, has raised a $13 million Series A round led by U.S. Venture Partners. Earlier investors, including satellite TV operator Sky, Chicago Ventures, Great Oaks Venture Capital and Luminari Capital are also back.*

As I’ve written before, I understand why Web video owners, distributors and advertisers want to make it easier to find and watch Web video. But I’m not sure this is a problem that bedevils Web video watchers, who are already watching a ton of Web video. Earlier this month we saw Fan TV, another company that tried to tackle the problem, throw in the towel, via a fire sale.

PlutoTV CEO Tom Ryan says his company has been encouraged by its growth since launching last spring. He won’t share metrics, but says that in general, “people are using it more like TV, instead of just Web video,” which is the company’s thesis.

Ryan also says that the service, which works on multiple devices and platforms, including iOS, Android and Amazon’s Fire TV, generates more engagement on bigger screens: “People are viewing it for longer periods of time as the screen size increases.”

PlutoTV is also announcing a new set of advisers: Former Yahoo CEO Ross Levinsohn, Spotify executive Ken Parks and King Digital COO Stephane Kurgan have all signed on.

* One of PlutoTV’s other investors is Terry Semel’s Windsor Media, which is also a minority investor in Revere Digital, which owns Re/code.

This article originally appeared on Recode.net.

Will you support Vox’s explanatory journalism?

Most news outlets make their money through advertising or subscriptions. But when it comes to what we’re trying to do at Vox, there are a couple reasons that we can't rely only on ads and subscriptions to keep the lights on.

First, advertising dollars go up and down with the economy. We often only know a few months out what our advertising revenue will be, which makes it hard to plan ahead.

Second, we’re not in the subscriptions business. Vox is here to help everyone understand the complex issues shaping the world — not just the people who can afford to pay for a subscription. We believe that’s an important part of building a more equal society. We can’t do that if we have a paywall.

That’s why we also turn to you, our readers, to help us keep Vox free. If you also believe that everyone deserves access to trusted high-quality information, will you make a gift to Vox today?

One-Time Monthly Annual

$5/month

$10/month

$25/month

$50/month

Other

$

Yes, I'll give $5/month

Yes, I'll give $5/month

We accept credit card, Apple Pay, and Google Pay. You can also contribute via