• by Wayne Friedman , April 27, 2023

Creating a new digital media unit around its free, advertising-supported TV platform, Fox Corp. is creating Tubi Media Group.

The new unit will include Tubi as well as the entire Fox Digital Platforms Group.

Veteran Fox digital executive Paul Cheesbrough is leading the group.

Tubi founder Farhad Massoudi will now step down as its chief executive officer. Fox said Tubi Media Group will announce the new CEO for Tubi Streaming in the near future.

This consists of Blockchain Creative Labs -- which creates and manages non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and Credible, a financial technology company headquartered in San Francisco, as well as digital platform services supporting Fox sports, news and entertainment products and services.

Cheesbrough has been chief technology officer and president of digital for Fox Corp.

He oversaw the $440 million acquisition of Tubi by Fox in 2020. At the same time, Fox has announced that Farhad Massoudi, chief executive officer of Tubi, will depart.

A new CEO will be announced soon.

In the three years since it bought Tubi, Fox says it has now grown by nearly sevenfold. In 2023, it is estimated to reach $1 billion in advertising revenue.

Among other FAST(Free Ad-Supported TV) channels, Tubi is delivered at no cost to consumers through internet-connected TVs. 

The business -- which includes Pluto TV, Roku, and others, is poised to rapidly grow in the coming years as the subscription ad-free video-on-demand service matures.