The leading performance marketing company Catena Media has revealed that it would acquire sports news and betting tips publisher Bettingpro.com as well as its related affiliate assets. The decision of the Malta-based company to do that comes as part of its focus to boost its sports betting division.
The announced takeover price of the deal is estimated to a total of £13.9 million. At the time when the deal is finalised, Catena Media is to pay the amount of £11.9 million, while the remaining £2 million are to be paid six months after completion conditional with all assets of Bettingpro.com being handed over to the acquiring company. The assets transfer as well as the first part of the payment are expected to be finalised until the end of July 2017.
The Chief Executive Officer of Catena Media Robert Andersson commented on the takeover agreement, describing it as the perfect example of an acquisition which was carried out in correspondence to the company’s global expansion strategy.
According to Mr. Andersson, the deal would definitely change the situation within the sports segment of Catena Media. He also shared his belief that the company would get a position that would be even better in the industry, especially with the year 2018 ahead, considering the fact that it is to include both the football World Cup, as well as the Winter Olympics. Catena Media’s Chief Executive Officer further explained that the acquisition deal would result in adding Australia as another geographical market to the company’s assets. Furthermore, Mr. Andersson confirmed the Catena’s future plans to expand its reach to Asia Passific by using Australia to do that.
As mentioned above, Bettingpro.com is a much-respected publisher of sports news and various betting tops across a number of verticals. It is also focused on taking over leads on the regulated UK and Australian online gaming markets for its local partners. Apart from acquiring the assets that are related to content publishing, the takeover deal also includes a great variety of premium domains, which operate as affiliates of Bettingpro.com.
Apart from providing Catena Media with the opportunity to reach new markets and expand its reach on a global scale, the acquisition of Bettingpro.com and its affiliate assets would also be quite beneficial from financial point of view. Currently, the sales that are being generated on a quarterly basis by the acquired assets amount to approximately €1,200,000, and the operating margin is estimated to around 55%. The result for the third fiscal quarter, however, is expected to be a bit lower because of negative seasonality effects.
What is more, approximately 80% of the revenues originates from revenue share contracts, while about 90% of the revenues are generated from sports betting and only 10% come from casino operations. Of course, most of the revenue is generated by licensed operators in regulated markets, which are among the primary focus areas of Catena Media.
- Author
Olivia Cole
