Tencent’s $150 Million Investment in Reddit Sparks Censorship Worry

Advertisement
By Agence France-Presse | Updated: 12 February 2019 10:53 IST
Highlights
  • Reddit raised a total of $300 million at a $3 billion valuation
  • Reddit said it planned to use the money for international expansion
  • The company also wants to enhance its digital ad platform
Tencent’s $150 Million Investment in Reddit Sparks Censorship Worry

Reddit confirmed Monday a new funding round that included a $150 million investment by Chinese technology behemoth Tencent, prompting concerns that "the front page of the internet" might wind up censored.

San Francisco-based Reddit raised a total of $300 million (roughly Rs. 2,100 crores) at a $3 billion (roughly Rs. 21,000 crores) valuation, with investors including Andreessen Horowitz, Fidelity, Sequoia, and Tencent, the company's CEO told CNBC.

The TechCrunch website reported about the funding round last week, but that information was unconfirmed until now.

Reddit said it planned to use the money for international expansion and to enhance its digital ad platform to better compete in a market where Facebook and Google currently take in most of the revenue.

Advertisement

"We are the only company at our scale that is still a private company, so we have had a lot of investor attention in the last year," Reddit chief executive Steve Huffman told CNBC.

News of Tencent buying into the popular social news website, which is banned in China, prompted concerns by some users that the platform could be vulnerable to the kind of online censorship that takes place in that country.

Advertisement

Reddit users protested, some posting pictures known to be banned in China, such as cartoon character "Winnie the Pooh."

A "Pooh" picture voted to near the top of the Reddit home page bore the caption: "Since Reddit took a $150 million investment from Chinese Censorship company Tencent, please welcome our leader President Xi."

Advertisement

Images of the storybook bear were reportedly banned online in China after bloggers used them to represent President Xi Jinping in posts.

Reddit was co-founded by Alexis Ohanian, husband of tennis superstar Serena Williams. Reddit is ranked among the most visited US websites, and has more than 138,000 "communities" for discussions on various topics.

The site boasts that, on average, more than 330 million people use it each month, contending that half of those users range in age from 18 to 24 years old.

Reddit is also known for ask-me-anything (AMA) sessions with well-known people such as Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates and former US president Barack Obama.

Tencent has invested in a broad array of companies, including Tesla, Snapchat-parent Snap, and Epic Games - the maker of popular video game Fortnite.

 

For the latest tech news and reviews, follow Gadgets 360 on X, Facebook, WhatsApp, Threads and Google News. For the latest videos on gadgets and tech, subscribe to our YouTube channel. If you want to know everything about top influencers, follow our in-house Who'sThat360 on Instagram and YouTube.

Advertisement

Related Stories

Popular Mobile Brands
  1. Vivo X200 FE Global Launch Confirmed; Design Teased
  2. Poco F7 Launch Date, Price in India, Design and Key Features Leaked Online
  3. WhatsApp Is Finally introducing Ads on Its Messaging App
  4. OnePlus 15 May Get a Big Design Overhaul
  5. Tecno Pova 7 5G Series Confirmed to Launch in India Soon
  6. Google Pixel 10 Series May Get a Tele-Macro Camera: All Details
  7. Hisense U7Q Mini-LED TV Launched in India With These Features
  1. Samsung Galaxy Watch to Get Bedtime Guidance, Vascular Load Features With One UI 8 Watch Update
  2. OnePlus Nord 5 and Nord CE 5 Colour Options, Key Specifications Leaked
  3. Ace Now Streaming on Amazon Prime Video: What You Need to Know About Vijay Sethupathi Starrer Movie
  4. Dear Uma Now Available for Streaming on Sun NXT: What You Need to Know About Poetic Drama
  5. Blind Spot Starring Naveen Chandra Now Streaming on Amazon Prime Video
  6. Echo Valley Now Streaming on Apple TV+: Everything You Need to Know
  7. Rematch OTT Release Revealed: Know Where to Stream it Online
  8. OnePlus 15 Tipped to Get Refreshed Design, Lower Resolution Display, and Different Camera Layout
  9. OpenAI Improves Web Search Tool in ChatGPT, Can Now Handle More Complex Queries
  10. Samsung Galaxy Watch 8 Series New Renders Leaked; Classic Variant Shown With Rotating Bezel
Gadgets 360 is available in
Download Our Apps
Available in Hindi
© Copyright Red Pixels Ventures Limited 2025. All rights reserved.