Sirius XM buys Conan O’Brien's podcast company in deal valued ~$150M
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Sirius XM (NASDAQ:SIRI) has acquired Conan O'Brien's podcast company in a deal valued at around $150M, WSJ reports.
The satellite-radio company bought O'Brien's hit podcast, "Conan OâBrien Needs a Friend," along with his Team Coco digital-media company and its network of ten podcasts.
The vast majority of Team Coco was owned by O'Brien, along with Chief Executive Jeff Ross. Team Coco's podcasts, including OâBrien's flagship show and an existing spinoff, will continue to be distributed across all major podcasting platforms.
The online streaming firm operates out of a Hollywood headquarters that employs around 50 people, now SIRI employees. The deal also comes with a five-year talent agreement with Mr. OâBrien.
Additionally, Sirius now owns a portfolio of social-media channels that Team Coco has fed with content for over a decade. The video clips distributed on these channels generated ~$10M in ad revenue last year. O'Brien is retaining ownership of his namesake content and is licensing the rights to sell ads on those clips to Sirius (SIRI).
The acquisition marks one of the biggest moves yet by Sirius (SIRI) in the race among audio companies to make deals with podcasters with large followings. In 2021, the company acquired 99% Invisible, known for its namesake series on architecture and design.

SIRI shares up ~1% pre-market