AMC’s IFC network has bought a piece of Funny or Die

One for the “big TV programmer invests in digital video” file: AMC’s IFC network is buying a stake in Funny or Die, the humor video hub best know for its affiliation with Will Ferrell.

AMC/IFC is paying an undisclosed amount for a minority stake in Funny or Die, and says the two companies will collaborate on both programming and sales projects.

If that structure sounds familiar, there’s a reason: We’ve seen a slew of programmers putting money into digital in the last few years, including Comcast (Vox Media, Buzzfeed twice), Turner (Refinery29, Mashable) and Discovery (Thrillist, Dodo, NowThis).

Big thesis: TV networks are strong but weakening, digital startups are on the rise but still needs lots of help and/or an exit.

This one also sounds familiar since a big programmer had already invested in Funny or Die: Turner bought a chunk of the site in 2012. Funny or Die CEO Mike Farah says Turner will keep its stake in the company, but that its strategic involvement in Funny or Die has tapered off after an ad sales pact expired in 2015.

Funny or Die, like many humor sites, had also been up for sale in the last couple years. But so far the only one of those that has traded hands is The Onion, which sold a substantial stake in itself to Univision earlier this year.

Funny or Die and IFC “will find two ways to take sensibilities that are distinctive but complimentary, and find ways to work together,” said IFC President Jennifer Caserta, who will join Funny or Die’s board.

The two companies have already worked together. Next year, IFC will start running “Brockmire,” which stars Hank Azaria as “a famed Major League Baseball announcer who suffers an embarrassing and very public meltdown”; the show started as a digital series on Funny or Die.

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 of big issues with relying 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. And we can’t do that if we have a paywall.

So even though advertising is still our biggest source of revenue, we also seek grants and reader support. (And no matter how our work is funded, we have strict guidelines on editorial independence.)

If you also believe that everyone deserves access to trusted high-quality information, will you make a gift to Vox today? Any amount helps.

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