GB News has secured £60m of new investment as part of a change of ownership in which Hollywood titan Warner Bros. Discovery has sold its stake in the new news network.
Sir Paul Marshall and Dubai investment firm The Legatum Group have bought US entertainment giant and GB News co-founders Andrew Cole and Mark Schneider.
The departure of high-profile sponsors just over a year after the launch of GB News is the latest upheaval at the news station, which has suffered a rocky start caused by technical problems, an advertising boycott and the exit of key talent, including the president and leader. presenter Andrew Neil.
However, the cash injection from two of its current shareholders will boost the broadcaster’s attempts to build up an audience large enough to turn a profit and become a credible challenger to the BBC’s 24-hour news channel.
Chairman Alan McCormick, partner at Legatum, said the investment was “testament to our confidence in the momentum and trajectory of GB News after a very strong first year”.
“Our additional investment means the channel will embark on strong and exciting plans for the next stage of its growth and development.”
The £60m fundraising, which is set to be completed in the coming weeks, comes as GB News looks to toughen its challenge to the BBC and Sky News by pouring cash into its flagship programming.
Camilla Tominey, the associate editor of The Telegraph, and Andrew Pierce of the Daily Mail have been snapped up from Global’s LBC radio station. Ms Tominey will become a political presenter, while Pierce will launch his own show later this year.
Michael Portillo, the former Tory cabinet minister, is also joining Rupert Murdoch’s Times Radio to support GB News’ political coverage and present a new program in the autumn.
The Telegraph revealed last week that GB News had outbid Murdoch’s TalkTV in a bidding war to secure more prominent channel space on Virgin Media.
It is set to move from channel 626 to the top 604 slot in the pay TV operator’s channel guide this month, according to Virgin Media’s website.
Commenting on the new fundraising, Angelos Frangopoulos, chief executive of GB News, said: “We have already employed more than 200 journalists and will now invest more deeply in a number of areas, including a new suite of digital products, our technology. and studio, subtitles, additional distribution platforms and exciting new talent.”
All Perspectives, the owner of GB News, has funded the station’s expansion with £46.5m of cash since spring last year.
GB News has slowly built up an audience to challenge Sky News, while fighting a challenge from TalkTV which has struggled for viewers.
TalkTV’s The News Desk with Tom Newton Dunn and Piers Morgan Uncensored attracted an average audience of 2,500 and 33,900 at 7pm and 8pm on 28 July.
GB News’ 7pm program hosted by former UKIP leader Nigel Farage achieved 64,000 viewers, while its 8pm program attracted 46,000 viewers. BBC News achieved an audience of 72,000 and 58,000 at 7pm and 8pm.
GB News averaged 81,300 in the evening primetime slots this week, with Sky News attracting 66,100 over the same period, according to TV ratings compiler BARB.
In a statement, Warner Bros. Discovery said it sold its stake in GB News after evaluating the group’s investments in a number of news brands following the merger of Discovery and WarnerMedia earlier this year.
The owner of CNN Worldwide said GB News had built a “growing and loyal audience” in its first year and brought “another voice to British broadcasting”.