New Delhi: News Corp., the media and publishing firm owned by Rupert Murdoch, has acquired VCCircle Network for an undisclosed amount.
The acquisition includes VCCircle.com, Techcircle.in, VCCEdge, VCCircle Training and a premium content-driven conference business. The deal is expected to close in March.
The acquisition of VCCircle comes after the company invested in financial advisory start-up firm BigDecisions.com and realty portal PropTiger.com.
Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.
Commenting on the announcement, News Corp Chief Executive Robert Thomson said: "India is an increasingly meaningful part of our portfolio, which is itself increasingly digital and global."
"This important investment is a sign of our faith in India's future and our enthusiasm for working with and building up emerging talents in the country," he added.
VCCircle Network is owned by Mosaic Media Ventures and has about 100 employees across India, with its headquarters in Noida.
VCCircle Network Founder and CEO P V Sahad and the management group will become part of News Corp's India team.
Sahad will report to News Corp Senior Vice President (Strategy) Raju Narisetti, the statement said.
In November 2014, News Corp had acquired 25 per cent stake in Indian realty portal PropTiger.com for $30 million (Rs 185 crore) as part of its strategy to expand presence in digital media.
It had picked up stake in Singapore-based Elara Technologies, the parent firm of PropTiger.com.
In the following month, News Corp announced acquisition of BigDecisions.com for an undisclosed sum. The portal was set up by Manish Shah and Gaurav Roy in early 2013.
