Passionflix, a romantic streaming service led by Elon Musk’s sister, raises $ 9.4 million from AMC Networks and others

Passionflix, the romance-focused streaming service run by Elon Musk’s sister Tosca Musk, raised $ 9.4 million in a funding round led by AMC Networks.

The inflow of funds was disclosed Wednesday in a SEC filing, but individual investors were not named.

AMC Networks’ multi-million dollar minority stake was confirmed by a person familiar with the transaction, but AMC Networks did not disclose this in a statement. The company did not comment when Deadline contacted it. Under SEC rules, investments that qualify as “material” must be reported by public companies, so AMC’s failure to disclose indicates the modest size of the transaction in the larger scheme of things. However, AMC Networks previously invested in entities such as RLJ Entertainment and the Acorn streaming division, continuing to gain full control over time.

Passionflix’s focused approach and modest footprint, with just six employees, are in line with AMC Networks’ niche streaming operations. The company manages a portfolio of targeted services such as Shudder, Sundance Now and Allblk.

In an article on Passionflix in June New York Times The service has been described as “kind of a sexy Hallmark channel”. Since its launch in 2017, the company has raised $ 22 million in the latest round. In addition to being the CEO of Passionflix, Tosca Musk also directs several original films.

Other investors in Passionflix include Norman Leary and First Look Media, producer and parent of Topic Studios and the streaming service Topic.

“We fully understand that we are going to elephant feet,” First Look CEO Michael Bloom told us. First, refers to various mass audience streams, such as Netflix and Disney +, which account for over three-quarters of the total streaming market. “But we’re not trying to be them. There is an opportunity for niche services like Passionflix to cater to a specific audience in a way that large traditional retailers don’t. “