Tastemade has raised $25 million to become the YouTube for foodies

Food Network owner Scripps Networks Interactive is buying a piece of Tastemade — a YouTubemultichannel network building a stable of food-centric programming for online audiences. Tastemade announced $25 million in series C funding, led by Scripps Networks Interactive with participation by John Malone’s Liberty Media, bringing the startup’s total funding to about $40 million. The latest round also included existing investors Redpoint Ventures, Raine Ventures and Comcast Ventures. “We have some great financial investors, and we thought it was a good time to bring in strategics,” said Tastemade co-founder Larry Fitzgibbon, who oversees the MCN’s operations. The new funding will let the company “accelerate our vision to create a global community of food lovers” revolving around video. The investments by Scripps and Liberty Media in two-year-old Tastemade continue the trend oftraditional media firms investing in or acquiring digital-video startups, specifically in the YouTube MCN space. The biggest move on this front was Disney’s recent purchase of Maker Studios in a deal worth up to $950 million. Scripps is “absolutely a leader in the food space,” with a big digital presence already, Fitzgibbon said. Tastemade plans to work with the programmer to collaborate in different areas, like cross-platform promotion, ad campaigns and content, with details yet to be determined.