Paramount is selling its creator conference VidCon to the owner of Fan Expo

Hank and John Green at VidCon. Paramount is selling its creator conference VidCon to UK media firm Informa.

Paramount Global is selling its creator conference VidCon to the UK media and events company Informa, according to two people familiar with the matter. They spoke to B-17 on the condition of anonymity as they were not allowed to discuss details around the deal.

Informa owns Toronto Comicon and a few other pop-culture conventions under its Fan Expo HQ division. The company has been acquisitive in its events business this year, offering in July to acquire the owner of the Cannes Lions Festival, Ascential, for around £1.2 billion (about $1.6 billion). Adding VidCon, which centers on social-media stars rather than Hollywood and comic-book talent, could help broaden the fan base and advertiser roster of its events business.

VidCon, Informa, and Paramount did not respond to a request for comment from B-17.

Cofounded by YouTubers Hank and John Green in 2010, VidCon hosts social-media influencers and other creator professionals annually in Anaheim, California. The conference, which has become a flagship event of the creator economy, also has hosted gatherings in other cities like Baltimore, Mexico City, and São Paulo.

Viacom, a division of Paramount, bought VidCon from the Green brothers in 2018.

While VidCon had established itself as creator-economy watering hole, this year’s event in Anaheim was more toned down. Fewer platforms and creator-economy startups were present, as some companies attended conferences like SXSW and Cannes Lions instead.

Creator startups that once invested in big sponsorships were replaced by traditional media companies like Disney, whose branding was on the attendees and speaker lanyards to promote the new Disney+ movie “Descendants: The Rise of Red.”

A third person close to VidCon said they were optimistic about the sale and believed that a smaller, fan-based events company could help revive VidCon to its somewhat faded glory.

“The idea of VidCon sitting inside a company that lives and breathes events all day is probably a good thing,” said the third person, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to protect business relationships.

Paramount hired the bank Oaklins DeSilva+Phillips to explore a sale of the business earlier this year, Adweek reported in April.

Paramount is currently in the process of selling itself to David Ellison’s Skydance Media in a deal valued at $8 billion. B-17 was unable to learn the terms of the VidCon deal between Paramount and Informa.