Particle.news
Download on the App Store

Tiny Shops Its Majority Stake in Letterboxd, Taps LionTree to Run a Sale

Media suitors eye underused revenue potential under a founder’s veto constraint.

Overview

  • Tiny is marketing the sale of its roughly 60% stake in Letterboxd through investment bank LionTree, with reported talks including Versant and The Ankler.
  • Letterboxd has grown to about 26 million users since 2020, yet most revenue still comes from lower-priced display and programmatic ads.
  • Semafor’s reporting says Tiny’s share price has fallen since the 2023 deal that valued Letterboxd at about $50 million, making a sale a way to raise cash and trim debt.
  • Co-founder Matthew Buchanan reportedly holds veto rights over any buyer, a guardrail meant to protect the platform’s friend-based, non-algorithmic feed and community feel.
  • Users voiced worry on social platforms about heavier ads or feed changes, highlighting the risk that a new owner could chase growth in ways that alienate core film fans.