In brief: Philippine livestreaming app nabs $1.2m from magazine publisher, others

Manila-based livestreaming content platform Kumu just raised US$1.2 million in a seed round led by Summit Media, one of the Philippines’ leading magazine publishers. The fresh injection comes after Summit owner Lisa Gokongwei-Cheng made a recent angel investment in the platform.

Gokongwei-Cheng belongs to the family that owns JG Summit Holdings, a Philippine conglomerate which backs Singapore-based Sea.

Investors from Foxmont Capital Partners and Two Culture Capital as well as tech author Scott Hartley and Mandala Spa and Resort Villas owner Jove Schrottmann also joined the round.

Photo credit: Kumu

The investment is a strategic move for Summit, which announced this year that it would shift to online and stop printing magazines amid slowing sales. Betting on Kumu and its over 100,000 users would expand the publisher’s digital footprint.

Investments in livestreaming apps are more common in the US and China than in Southeast Asia. One of the notable livestreaming platforms from the region is Singapore-based Bigo, which raised US$272 million in a series D round in June.