Verizon’s AOL Buys Virtual Reality Video Specialist RYOT
Verizon Communications Inc.’s AOL has agreed to acquire virtual reality and 360-degree video company RYOT Corp., the companies announced Wednesday. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
The acquisition comes as marketers and digital media organizations are investing heavily in virtual reality and 360-degree video to publish to platforms such as Facebook, YouTube and Snapchat in addition to their owned-and-operated properties.
RYOT and its 25 staffers will form a new unit under AOL’s The Huffington Post, and will also work with other publications across AOL’s portfolio of properties including TechCrunch, Engadget and Autoblog. RYOT’s capabilities and services will also be offered to clients of AOL’s Partner Studio division, which creates branded content for marketers.
“RYOT will work on big editorial projects, but also with brands. It will work across everything we’re doing at The Huffington Post,” said Arianna Huffington, co-founder and editor-in-chief of The Huffington Post.
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