Amazon buys part of MX Player’s assets in deal worth $100 million

Amazon on Wednesday agreed to buy some of the assets of video streaming platform MX Player from Times Internet, a report said. The first mention of the deal reportedly surfaced in 2023 when the e-commerce giant entered talks with the Tencent-backed company, but nearly fell through. In May, it was reported that talks between the two sides had resumed and that a potential deal was in the works. The deal is now said to be worth less than $100 million.

Amazon buys some assets of MX Player

TechCrunch, citing a source familiar with the matter, reported that Amazon and Times Internet had struck a deal that would see the retail giant buy some assets, but not the entire video streaming platform. After the deal, Amazon would gain a “distribution and marketing partner” that could potentially make the company “more popular and reliable” for people in smaller cities.

MX Player was originally developed by South Korean developer J2 Interactive (now MX Media and Entertainment) as a video player for the mobile platform. However, it later became a full-fledged but ad-supported video streaming platform with options such as offline streaming, background playback, and more.

In 2018, Times Internet bought a majority stake in the platform for a reported $140 million.

According to an Inc42 reportthis is a cash transaction for a reported $100 million, which is even less than the $110.8 million it received in a financing round led by Chinese conglomerate Tencent in 2019. At the time, MX Player was reportedly valued at $500 million.

“We are always looking for ways to introduce new products and services that improve customers’ lives,” the release quoted an Amazon spokesperson as saying. “We are excited to continue entertaining India with the great local originals and exclusive content available through our Prime Video and miniTV services in India.”

Inc42 further reported that after the completion of this deal, MX Player’s senior management will join Amazon. It is speculated that a formal announcement of the deal will arrive within a week.