So this is how Babelgum will burn through the considerable cash multimillionaire backer Silvio Scaglia has put in to the company? Last month, the Dublin/Nice/London/Milan-based P2P video platform prompted head-scratching when it unveiled a $15.7 million (10 million euro) commissioning fund to buy itself original content. Variety reports the first production – a feature-length documentary about the threat faced by a oil-rich area of Alberta, Canada – will get investment “in the mid six figure dollars range” and will be published in 15/20-minute chunks.
So Babelgum is paying big bucks for long-form content it will then cut up in to short clips. New content director Mark Cranwell: