Author: Logan Abner

Valnet Acquisitions

Posted on by Logan Abner

A Comprehensive Look at the Acquisitions Completed by Valnet Inc. in the Digital Publishing Industry:

 

Valnet has been steadily expanding its presence in the digital publishing sphere over the past 10+ years. They have acquired a diverse range of content and publishing properties that cater to various market sectors including entertainment, gaming, technology, travel and parenting.

In this article, we take a closer look at the acquisitions made by Valnet to understand how the company has grown its portfolio over time, as well as a complete list of the transactions WeBrokr has been involved in.

1. BabyGaga (2014) BabyGaga is a legacy parenting website that offers advice, tips, and support for new and expecting parents. Valnet’s acquisition of BabyGaga was one of the company’s first completed acquisitions in digital publishing, and expanded the company’s content offerings to cater to the family and parenting demographics.

  • WeBrokr represented BabyGaga ownership in the transaction.

 

2. Screen Rant (2015) Screen Rant is one of the most popular movie news websites in the world. The brand offers the latest updates on film, television, and related entertainment content. Since the acquisition by Valnet in 2015, the website has expanded its coverage significantly and has attracted a much larger audience. Screen Rant also boasts an enormous YouTube audience, with over 10m subscribers across the brands 5 channels. Screen Rant is Valnet’s flagship brand.

  • WeBrokr represented ScreenRant.com founder Vic Holtreman in the acquisition. More info can be found here on the ScreenRant.com acquisition.

 

3. Comic Book Resources (CBR) (2016) CBR is the largest website dedicated to comic book specific news and reviews in the world. The brand is also one of the most visited general entertainment, film, movie and TV news publishing properties. CBR provides insights, reviews, and analysis on comic books, movies, and TV shows. CBR saw a massive influx of traffic following Marvel / Disney’s continued focus on bringing legacy comic books to the big screens throughout the 2010’s. Valnet’s acquisition of CBR solidified its presence in the comic book and pop culture sector.

  • WeBrokr represented Comic Book Resources founder Jonah Weiland in the acquisition. More info can be found here regarding the CBR.com acquisition.

 

4. Game Rant (2019) Game Rant is a gaming-focused website that offers news, reviews, features, and insights about video games and the gaming industry. Created by the founder of Screen Rant (Vic Holtreman) in 2009, the website covers various gaming content, including consoles, PC gaming, and mobile gaming. Valnet’s acquisition of Game Rant in 2019 was the company’s first major video gaming acquisition, and has become their flagship gaming brand. The acquisition also reunited Game Rant with it’s sister-site Screen Rant.

 

5. Collider (2020) Collider is a well-known entertainment news brand founded in 2005 that covers movies, television shows, and pop culture. Valnet’s acquisition of Collider in late 2020 further expanded their entertainment portfolio of premium web properties. According to SimilarWeb the monthly web traffic on Collider.com had more than doubled in the two years following the acquisition. Collider is also home to a large YouTube channel with over half a billion views.

  • WeBrokr represented the Collider ownership team in the acquisition.

 

6. MakeUseOf (2020) – MakeUseOf is a technology-focused website that provides tips, tutorials, and reviews for a wide range of software, hardware, and gadgets. The site covers topics such as mobile devices, computers, smart home technology, and internet services. The acquisition of MakeUseOf.com by Valnet in 2020 further was Valnet’s first foray into the the technology publishing sector, and is now Valnet’s flagship technology-facing brand.

 

7. Android Police (2021) Android Police is a popular website dedicated to news, reviews, and analysis about Android devices, the Android ecosystem and general tech. Valnet’s acquisition of Android Police further strengthened its presence in the technology publishing sector.

  • WeBrokr represented Android Police founder Artem Russakovskii in the transaction. More details can be found here regarding the Android Police acquisition.

 

8. Simple Flying (2021) Simple Flying is the largest aviation news website in the world, and provides updates and commentary on the aviation industry. Simple Flying was Valnet’s first (and currently only) acquisition within the general ‘travel’ vertical. Simple Flying was founded by serial entrepreneur Arran Rice in 2018.

 

9. Snack Media (2022) Snack Media was founded in 2007 and grew to become one of the largest digital media companies in the world for sports content – specifically European football / soccer. The company’s largest digital publications include GiveMeSport, FootballFanCast and Football League World. Valnet’s acquisition of Snack Media was their first acquisition within the sports publishing vertical.

 

10. Pocket-Lint.com (2022) Pocket-Lint is a technology news website that covers gadgets, consumer electronics, and technology trends. Valnet’s acquisition of Pocket-Lint was their third acquisition in the tech publishing sector.

 

11. Busy Pixel Media (2022) Busy Pixel Media acquired XDA-Developers in 2009, and grew their portfolio to include other large tech publishing brands. At the time of acquisition in February 2022 the Busy Pixel portfolio was bringing in 20 million sessions per month. Included in the acquisition of Busy Pixel was the App Advice brand, a community-driven website that offers news, reviews, and discussions about mobile technology.

  • WeBrokr was not involved in the Busy Pixel Media acquisition by Valnet, but did represent App Advice founder Mahmoud Hafez in 2021 when he sold the company to Busy Pixel Media. More details can be found here regarding the AppAdvice.com acquisition.

 

12. Top Speed (2022) Top Speed is a website dedicated to automotive news, reviews, and information, covering a wide range of topics such as car releases, industry updates, motorsports, and more. The site caters to car enthusiasts and professionals within the automotive industry. Valnet’s acquisition of Top Speed in 2022 was the company’s first major acquisition within the automotive publishing sector.

 

13. DualShockers (2022) DualShockers is a gaming news web property that covers video game news & reviews, gaming hardware, and insider gaming commentary. Valnet’s acquisition of DualShockers was the company’s first major gaming-focused acquisition since they had acquired GameRant in 2019.

  • WeBrokr represented UK-based GRV Media in the transaction. More details can be found here regarding the Dual Shockers acquisition.

 

The above list of Valnet acquisitions is accurate as of March 2023, this page will be updated periodically as more transactions are completed.

N4G acquisition by BGFG (By Gamers For Gamers)

Posted on by Logan Abner

N4G.com acquisition by BGFG

WeBrokr is pleased to announce the successful acquisition of N4G, which has been acquired by UK-based By Gamers For Gamers (BGFG). N4G.com was founded in 2007 by Vegard Aure & Haavard Aure of HAVA Media.

Vegard, Haavard and the Hava Media team grew the N4G brand into one of the largest gaming communities in the world over the past 15 years.

Also included in the acquisition were the brands FilmWatch, TechSpy & AnimeShinbun.

WeBrokr represented and advised HAVA Media & N4G from listing through successful completion of sale.

 

Vegard Aure of HAVA Media had this to say regarding the N4G acquisition, as well as his experience working with WeBrokr:

“It was important for us to find a buyer that would want to continue N4G as a community focused website. Logan helped us get in touch with potential buyers that had the right team and resources to accomplish this. With the help from Logan and WeBrokr.com we found a new home for N4G in BGFG , and we are very happy about how everything turned out.”

 

Logan Abner of WeBrokr had this to say regarding the N4G acquisition:

“We are very pleased to announce the successful Sell-Side representation of N4G, FilmWatch, TechSpy & AnimeShinbun. N4G has long been known as the go-to gaming community and news aggregator in the world. Hava Media was far ahead of its time when it launched N4G way back in 2007. N4G was rivaling the likes of Reddit and Digg for gaming specific traffic for many years. We’re excited to see what the great team at BGFG has in store for the N4G brand going forward!”

 

Official BGFG Press Release – BGFG

Youtube Channel Acquisitions

Posted on by Logan Abner

WeBrokr offers both Sell-Side and Buy-Side YouTube channel acquisition service’s.

Sell-Side:

Are you the Owner of a YouTube channel or YouTube network, and looking for a successful exit? WeBrokr can provide you with a free valuation analysis to first give you an accurate picture of what your YouTube channel is currently worth.

If you are happy with our valuation proposal we can then proceed towards an active sale process in order to bring cash offers forward for your review.

Buy-Side:

Are you an investor interested in acquiring premium YouTube channels? Our Buy-Side service will be tailored to your exact acquisition needs where we will source, vet and then bring forward YouTube channel’s for your review. Our Buy-Side service can be as hands-on as you need. From lead generation, all the way through due diligence and successful closing.

 

Contact our CEO Logan Abner at [email protected] to discuss in more detail.

 

DualShockers Acquisition by Valnet

Posted on by Logan Abner

DualShockers.com acquisition by Valnet Inc.

WeBrokr is pleased to announce the successful acquisition of DualShockers, which has been acquired by Montreal-based Valnet Inc. DualShockers.com was founded in 2009 by Yaris Gutierrez, Joel Taveras, and Al Zamora as a passion-project. After more than a decade of operation, DualShockers was then acquired by London-based publisher GRV Media.

Vic Daniels & Graham Morris of GRV Media were extremely successful in their turn-around of DualShockers, and they were able to dramatically increase user engagement & monthly sessions within only a year of Ownership. DualShockers is now one of the largest gaming-focused publications in the world, bringing in more than 7,000,000 monthly sessions as of April 2022. (SimilarWeb)

WeBrokr represented and advised GRV Media from listing through successful completion of sale.

Logan Abner of WeBrokr had this to say regarding the acquisition:

“We are very delighted to announce the successful Sell-Side representation of DualShockers. Vic, Graham, and the DualShockers team were able to turn DualShockers.com into one of the most trafficked gaming properties in the world within a very short period of time. They have become an authoritative source for gaming news, reviews and guides for dedicated gamers around the world. We are excited to see DualShockers continue to thrive alongside Valnet’s growing portfolio of gaming brands!”

Official WeBrokr Press Release – Cision

Official Valnet Press Release – Business Wire

WhatCulture Acquisition by Future PLC

Posted on by Logan Abner

WhatCulture acquisition by Future PLC

WeBrokr is delighted to announce the successful acquisition of WhatCulture, which has been acquired by publishing-giant Future Plc. WhatCulture was founded in 2006 by Peter Willis & Matthew Holmes under the banner ‘Obsessed With Film’. After the company rebranded in 2011, WhatCulture has grown to become one of the largest and most well diversified companies in the entertainment publishing industry. The Company’s portfolio includes 11 YouTube channels with over 8m subscribers, as well as the highly trafficked WhatCulture.com, which accounted for over 8.5m visitors in February according to SimilarWeb.

WeBrokr represented and advised WhatCulture from listing through successful completion.

Logan Abner of WeBrokr had this to say regarding the acquisition:

“We are very excited to announce the successful Sell-Side representation of WhatCulture. Peter & Matt were able to successfully build & scale one of the most reputable – and in my opinion – unique brands within the highly competitive entertainment publishing industry. They were able to find the perfect blend of Web + Video diversification, which takes true talent to create from the ground up. We are excited to witness the continued success of WhatCulture under the ever growing Future Plc umbrella of brands!”

Peter Willis, Founder of WhatCulture, had this to say in the official Future Plc press release:

“We’re really excited to join an organisation like Future which has seen such
amazing success. We have real synergies between our desire to create great original
content for our audiences. Our YouTube expertise combined with their monetisation and platform know-how will realise great opportunities for further growth in this area and unlock real potential across the business.”

Zillah Byng-Thorne, CEO of Future Plc, had this to say in the company’s official press release:

“We are delighted to welcome both WhatCulture and Waive to Future. We look
forward to working with WhatCulture to further diversify our content and revenue
streams.”

 

Official WeBrokr Press Release – Here

Official Future Plc Press Release – Here

TheMarySue.com Acquired by GAMURS Group

Posted on by Logan Abner

WeBrokr provided Sell-Side brokerage services for TheMarySue.com / GAMURS Group acquisition

WeBrokr is excited to announce that TheMarySue.com has been successfully acquired by GAMURS Group. The Mary Sue was founded by Dan Abrams in 2011, and is known as the Geek Girls Guide to the Universe! Having published over 70,000 unique articles, The Mary Sue has grown from a small upstart blog, to one of the most well known publications in the entertainment industry.

This successful Sell-Side brokerage representation of The Mary Sue marks WeBrokr’s second major entertainment publishing acquisition of 2021, after the successful sale of We Got This Covered to GAMURS Group earlier in the year.

“As GAMURS Group reaches a pivotal stage of growth with continued expansion, we are doubling down on our commitment to create world class gaming and entertainment content. That’s what makes The Mary Sue such an extremely appealing addition to our website portfolio,” says Riad Chikhani, Founder and CEO of the GAMURS Group. “The Mary Sue is committed to quality journalism and commentary for a geek culture audience with interests that span social media, technology, arts, and politics. We are proud to bring it into our network and to continue its growth.”

“The Mary Sue has provided an important and sometimes ignored voice that I am so proud to have helped support,” said Dan Abrams, publisher of The Mary Sue. “This next step will allow it to expand to new levels and share its message with a larger audience.”

ResetEra.com Acquisition by M.O.B.A. Network

Posted on by Logan Abner

ResetEra.com acquisition MOBA Network

WeBrokr is excited to announce the successful acquisition of ResetEra.com, which was acquired October 14th, 2021 by Swedish-based gaming company M.O.B.A. Network AB for $4.55m USD. ResetEra was founded in 2017, and has quickly grown to become one of the most active gaming communities in the world with over 55,000 registered users, and over 45 million forum posts. According to SimilarWeb, ResetEra is  averaging between 10.5m – 13.5m unique users per month.

Logan Abner (Founder & CEO of WeBrokr) represented the ResetEra.com acquisition through the companies ‘Private Sell-Side Listing Service’. ResetEra Ownership required absolute discretion during the acquisition process, and WeBrokr was able to satisfy their request from initial listing, through successful deal completion.

Logan had this to say regarding the acquisition:

“We are very excited to announce the successful acquisition of gaming forum & community ResetEra.com. This acquisition marks WeBrokr’s largest gaming-specific acquisition of 2021. We are witnessing a large increase in Buyer demand for gaming & entertainment focused publishing properties, and we feel our successful representation of ResetEra will lead to increased deal flow for gaming specific publishing properties in the coming months.”

Björn Mannerqvist, CEO of M.O.B.A. Network, had this to say in the companies official press release:

“ResetEra.com has great growth potential, and we see significant opportunities to develop ResetEra.com, continue to grow traffic flows, improve the sales development and extract synergies within the M.O.B.A. Group.”

The ResetEra.com acquisition marks WeBrokr’s second time working with M.O.B.A. Network, after the company acquired MMORPG.com through WeBrokr in late 2020.

Official WeBrokr Press Release – Cision

Official M.O.B.A. Network Press Release – Cision

AndroidPolice.com Acquired by Valnet Inc.

Posted on by Logan Abner
WeBrokr completes acquisition of AndroidPolice.com to Valnet
 

WeBrokr is pleased to announce the successful acquisition of AndroidPolice.com, which was acquired in August 2021 by Montreal based digital media company Valnet. Android Police, also known as AP, was founded by Artem Russakovskii in 2009. Android Police is the leading Android-focused publishing property in the world, primarily focusing on android news, general tech tips, and also gaming reviews. At the time of acquisition AndroidPolice.com was bringing in 7,00,000 monthly sessions, primarily from a US based audience.

Logan Abner, Founder & CEO of WeBrokr, represented the sale of Android Police through its Private Sell-Side Listing Service. WeBrokr understands that absolute discretion during the listing + acquisition process is extremely important to many Founders of premium publishing properties. WeBrokr has perfected its Private Listing Service to ensure complete confidentially for all its clients from the time of listing, all the way through to successful acquisition.

Official WeBrokr Press Release – Cision

Official Valnet Press Release – Business Wire

WeGotThisCovered.com Acquired by GAMURS Group

Posted on by Logan Abner

We Got This Covered acquired by GAMURS Group. WeGotThisCovered.com was represented by WeBrokr for this Sell-Side brokerage acquisition.

WeBrokr is pleased to announce that WeGotThisCovered.com has been successfully acquired by GAMURS Group. We Got This Covered, also known as WGTC, was founded by Matt Joseph in 2010 as a college passion-project. WGTC has grown exponentially over the years to become one of the leading entertainment properties in the world, bringing in over 16 million Sessions in May 2021.

WeBrokr worked directly with Matt Joseph, the Founder of We Got This Covered, on this listing. Matt valued absolute discretion on the acquisition of his company, and WeBrokr was able to accommodate his request by proceeding with a strictly Private / Confidential Sell-Side Listing. Private Listings are just one of the many nuanced features that WeBrokr is able to provide for our clients.

Matt Joseph was happy to share the following about his experience working with Logan Abner, Founder & CEO of WeBrokr:

“After 11 years, I decided to sell We Got This Covered and am happy that I was able to connect with Logan and the team at WeBrokr, who assisted in the process. He was able to help prepare the necessary documents, financials, presentations and more to present to potential buyers, and connect me with a wide range of companies who were interested. He effectively managed everything that came along with the sale and brought in multiple offers, ultimately leading to the one we went with which resulted in a successful transaction for all parties.”

GAMURS Group CEO Riad Chikhani says the acquisition serves as a major stepping stone for the company’s goal of redefining gaming and entertainment media.

“Gaming, TV, and film entertainment continue to become increasingly intertwined. We see, for example, Thanos skins in Fortnite, esports events reaching more broadcast channels, and countless other developments. By adding We Got This Covered to our media portfolio, it affords us the opportunity to not simply cover this growing intersection of gaming and entertainment from the lens of gaming, but from the lens of culture, TV, and film,” Chikhani said.