Anthem Publishing acquires Women’s Running magazine

AnthemAnthem Publishing has acquired the multi-award-winning Women’s Running magazine from Wild Bunch Media. The terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Women’s Running launched in 2010, and was named Consumer Magazine of the Year 2011 and Consumer Media Brand of the Year 2015 at the PPA Independent Publisher Awards, as well as winning four other industry awards. It’s the UK’s only running title dedicated to helping women enjoy and improve their running. The deal includes the Women’s Running website which has over 90,000 unique users per month, as well as the Facebook community of some 220,000 followers. The purchase does not affect Men’s Running, which remains a Wild Bunch Media brand.

Anthem CEO Jon Bickley said, “We’re delighted to bring Women’s Running on board at Anthem to join our emerging group of women’s wellness brands. Women’s Running is a title I’ve admired for many years for its powerfully strong editorial proposition and the unique relationship it enjoys with its readers and advertisers. We can’t wait to immerse ourselves in this market and bring the same levels of investment and focus to it that have proved successful with our own titles such as Vegan Food & Living and Colouring Heaven.”

UK, Bath & London

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THQ Nordic acquires German game developer and publisher HandyGames

THQ NordicTHQ Nordic has acquired the game developer and publisher HandyGames, headquartered in Giebelstadt, Germany.

THQ Nordic GmbH is acquiring 100% of the shares for a total cash consideration of 1 million euro. In addition, the parties have agreed a potential performance based earnout of up to 1.5 million euro.

Founded in 2000, HandyGames has released more than 150 games on a multitude of platforms, using a wide range of technologies. Current game development is focused on iOS, Android, Oculus Rift, Samsung Gear VR, HTC Vive, tablet computers, Android TV, Wearables as well as digital-only releases on next generation consoles. The company currently has about 50 employees.

HandyGames will continue operating as a developer and publisher for value-priced projects under the management of THQ Nordic GmbH in Vienna.

THQ Nordic MD Klemens Kreuzer said, “It is a true win-win situation for all parties involved, as HandyGames perfectly complements the setup of the rest of our group as the new ‘go to’-publisher for small- and mid-sized developers and projects and will benefit from our network and infrastructure in return. In joining forces with HandyGames, THQ Nordic is tapping into the VR Games segment, and gains access to one of Europe’s most powerful mobile games distribution network”.

Austria, Vienna & Germany, Geibelstadt

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XLMedia acquires InvestorJunkie.com for $5.8M

XLMediaXLMedia, a provider of digital performance marketing, is to acquire InvestorJunkie.com, a US personal finance website for US$5.8 million.

InvestorJunkie is a website focused on providing information and reviews of various investment channels and financial products, including banking, stock brokers, robo advisors, lending, retirement accounts and more. The acquisition is expected to complete in the second half of 2018.

InvestorJunkieOry Weihs, Chief Executive Officer of XLMedia, commented: “We are delighted to announce the acquisition of InvestorJunkie, a very well known brand in North America. The U.S. personal finance market is a key growth market for our business, and this latest acquisition reaffirms our commitment to further diversify our revenue base. We are continuing to build a strong foothold in the North American market and look forward to accelerating our growth strategy to further leverage both our skillset and technology platform in what is a relatively nascent sector.”

UK, Jersey, St. Helier & USA, Long Beach, NY

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Incisive Media acquires Open Door Media

Incisive MediaInvestment Week’s parent Incisive Media has acquired Open Door Media Publishing Limited, publisher of Investment Europe and producer of market-leading conferences for fund selectors across Europe.

ODMP is an award-winning financial services media company that brings fund selectors and asset management companies together through its publications, digital products, and extensive portfolio of over twenty conferences across Europe. The company also publishes International Investment for the global adviser community and produces the International Fund and Product Awards, now in their nineteenth year.

Founded in 2013 by Nick Rapley (chairman) and Louise Hanna (director) through a management buyout of the Investment Europe brand from Incisive Media, ODMP has grown rapidly in five years to become a pre-eminent provider of business information and networking to the European asset management industry.

Jonathon Whiteley, CEO of Incisive Media, said, “We have known and worked with Nick, Louise and their team for many years and are excited that we are able to bring Investment Europe and International Investment back into the Incisive Media fold. This acquisition strengthens our asset management publishing and event properties and adds real depth and quality to our growing portfolio for the benefit of our readers, delegates and asset management clients.

UK, London

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Acuris acquires Sparkspread

AcurisAcuris, the BC Partners and GIC backed provider of data, research, intelligence and analysis, has acquired SparkSpread, an online news service providing intelligence on M&A and financing in the global energy business. The financial terms were not disclosed.

 

New York-headquartered SparkSpread was founded by journalists Will Ainger and Victor Kremer in 2005. It will become part of Acuris’ Infrastructure division.

“We are excited to welcome the acclaimed SparkSpread team to the growing Acuris family,” said Hamilton Matthews, CEO of Acuris. “We have been considering ways to broaden our energy sector coverage for asset managers, fund investors and advisors alike. We look forward to collaborating with Will and Victor to achieve this.”

 

UK, London & USA, New York, NY

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Informa completes the takeover of UBM

InformaInforma has completed the takeover of UBM. The new Informa Group will employ more than 11,000 people. It will own and operate a portfolio of more than 500 exhibitions brands in 15 industry verticals including Health & Nutrition, Life Sciences & Pharma, and Real Estate & Construction. In addition, it will own a portfolio of confex/conference brands, a range of specialist information and intelligence brands; plus have capabilities in B2B consulting and marketing service.

The board of Informa will be as follows:

  • Derek Mapp (Non-Executive Chairman)
  • Greg Lock (Deputy Chairman)
  • Stephen A. Carter CBE (Chief Executive)
  • Gareth Wright (Group Finance Director)
  • Gareth Bullock (Senior Independent Non-Executive Director)
  • Mary McDowell (Non-Executive Director)
  • David Wei (Non-Executive Director)
  • Helen Owers (Non-Executive Director)
  • Cindy Rose (Non-Executive Director)
  • Stephen Davidson (Non-Executive Director
  • David Flaschen (Non-Executive Director)
  • John Rishton (Non-Executive Director)

Company announcements:

Previous reporting

UK, London

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Informa

UBM

 

 Ascential acquires WARC for £24M

ascentialMedia and events business Ascential plc has acquired WARC Limited for an initial cash consideration of £19.5m, plus deferred consideration of £4.5m payable in 2019.  The acquisition is expected to complete on 2 July 2018.

WARC is a digital subscription business that helps brands, agencies and media platforms assess marketing effectiveness across all channels.  It provides information and insight to understand and measure multi-channel advertising effectiveness.  Founded in 1985, the business offers advertising best practice, evidence and insights from the world’s leading brands.  The business employs approximately 90 people with offices in London, Washington DC and Singapore and serves approximately 1,200 customers globally. 

In the year to 31 March 2018 WARC generated unaudited revenue of £10.8m (a growth of 10%) and EBITDA of £2.2m.  Gross assets at 31 March 2018 were £9.6m

Duncan Painter, CEO of Ascential, commented: “Ascential enables its customers to win in the digital economy.  WARC is an important step forward as we continue to grow our digital offering, adding breadth and depth to our marketing proposition.  Alongside Cannes Lions’ The Work, our recent digital product launch, we will now have a digital subscription product of scale encompassing both creative excellence and marketing effectiveness.”

UK, London

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GoCompare.com acquires energy switching specialist Energylinx for £10M

go-compare-logo-newGoCompare.com Group plc has acquired Energylinx for £10m in cash.

Energylinx is an energy comparison and switching specialist and has commercial relationships 69 domestic energy and 40 business energy suppliers. Customers include Which? and Citizens Advice Bureau. The company operates a white-label proposition, with around 200 active affiliates.

Matthew Crummack, CEO of GoCompare, said: “We are pleased to announce this acquisition, which marks yet another significant milestone for the Group as we continue to build services that work for both our customers and partners. Energylinx has an excellent reputation in the industry among energy suppliers and those who use its white-label services, and we will leverage our strong brand, tech and product capabilities to expand its reach and impact to help save even more people time and money.

Energylinx is headquartered in Alloa, Scotland and employs a team of 20 staff. Following completion, Ken Geddes, founder and CEO will join the Group.

UK, Wales, Newport & UK, Scotland, Alloa

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UBM acquires Expomed and live healthcare events in Latin America

UBMUBM has acquired annual healthcare exhibition ExpoMed from LIVEMED in Mexico and Live Healthcare in Brazil from founders Dr. Vitor Assentuno and Dr. Raphael Gordilho. The terms of the transactions were not disclosed.

ExpoMed connects vendors of medical equipment to buyers and executives from private and public hospitals, clinics and distributors. Held each June in Mexico City, the show is considered the must-attend healthcare event in Mexico. The most recent edition of ExpoMed took place 6-8 June 2018 at the World Trade Center Mexico City, where it drew in more than 8,000 buyers and 342 exhibition companies spanning a more than 44,000 square foot showfloor.

Based in Brazil, Live Healthcare is an event platform that connects major healthcare players to inspire industry change and empower leaders. Live brings with it the Saude Business Forum, which focuses on executive networking and one-on-one meetings for healthcare CEOs and innovative vendors, as well as the Healthcare Innovation Show, a technology and innovation exhibition attended by senior healthcare executives. Live also runs the healthcare portal saudebusiness.com, which drives database and community engagement for the events.

Scott Schulman, CEO of UBM Americas, said, “Healthcare is a strategic vertical for UBM Americas, particularly in Mexico and Brazil, where public and private healthcare spending and service markets are growing rapidly. With ExpoMed’s leading position in Mexico and Live Healthcare’s complementary fit with UBM Brazil’s existing Hospitalar event, we are confident that these two bolt-on acquisitions will greatly contribute to the long-term growth of our healthcare portfolio – and our position as a leader in the Latin America healthcare market.”

Jaime Salazar Figueroa, director general and managing director of UBM México, said, “ExpoMed is by far the largest healthcare event in Mexico and adds another market-leading brand to our portfolio. The acquisition gives us the opportunity to serve the second-largest medical device market in Latin America and to pursue synergies with our healthcare portfolio in Brazil.”

UK, London, Mexico, Mexico City & Brasil, Sao Paulo

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Keywords acquires Blindlight for up to $10M

keywordsKeywords Studios, the international technical services provider to the global video games industry, has acquired Blindlight LLC for a consideration of up to $10m, from the founder, Lev Chapelsky.

Blindlight achieved EBITDA of an average of $1m per annum over the three-year period to 31 December 2017. Under the terms of the acquisition Keywords is paying an initial $3.64m in cash and will issue 64,521 new ordinary shares in Keywords to the seller on the first anniversary of the acquisition which will then be subject to orderly market provisions for a further 12 months. Deferred consideration of up to $4.8m will be payable to the seller in cash depending on the performance of the business in the 12-month periods to the first and second anniversaries of the acquisition.

Founded in 2001 and based in Hollywood, California, Blindlight enjoys a leading position in the provision of Hollywood production services for the video games industry. The company works on behalf of game publishers and developers in procuring specialised talent and managing the entire production processes for the parts of games that benefit from Hollywood production resources. Blindlight’s service disciplines include voiceover production, celebrity acquisition and rights management, game writing, music, sound design and motion capture.

Andrew Day, CEO of Keywords Studios, said, “Keywords and Blindlight have got to know each other well over the past three years and we see good opportunities to leverage both businesses to offer a wider range of world leading services to our clients. We are delighted to welcome Lev and the rest of the team to the Keywords family. Following our recent acquisition of music services companies, Cord Worldwide and Laced, we see excellent opportunities for Blindlight to bring these services to Los Angeles, as well as providing access to further opportunities for our downstream production services of translation and localised voice over.”

Ireland, Dublin & USA, West Hollywood, CA

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