Perform Group plc has partnered with American Business Journals
Friday March 29, 2013 : PERFORM IN US DIGITAL SPORTS MEDIA DEAL
Strategically places firm in strong US position
Digital sports media firm Perform Group plc has partnered with American Business Journals Inc , a division of Advance Publications, in the establishment of a new company Perform Sporting News Limited .
Based in New York, with sales and editorial teams in Charlotte, Chicago and Los Angeles, Perform Sporting News Limited will materially enhance Perform's direct to consumer scale and presence in the US and Canada, said the company.
Perform Sporting News Limited brings together Perform's US and Canadian consumer and advertising businesses including its ePlayer sports video platform and football website Goal.com with the digital assets of ACBJ's consumer web division Sporting News, which includes SportingNews.com.
A press statement said the combined business will have a reach of over 33 million average monthly unique users and a team of 100 journalists, sales and technical staff providing sports fans and business partners with news, editorial comment, video and statistics across eight sports including the NFL, MLB, NBA, NHL and College Sports.
Perform's ePlayer and Goal business outside the USA and Canada and its content distribution and subscription business in the USA and Canada will not form part of the Venture.
PSNL will be 65 percent owned by Perform and 35 percent by ACBJ. On completion, Perform will provide loans and cash equity of $1.4 million and ACBJ loans and cash equity of $4.2 million to the Venture to cover its working capital needs.
Juan Delgado, currently managing director of Perform's Americas business will become managing director of Perform Sporting News Limited and Jeff Price, current Sporting News president and publisher will also join the new management team as president of Perform Sporting News Limited, with responsibility for integration, product innovation and advertising sales.
Commenting on the Venture, Oliver Slipper, joint chief executive officer of Perform, said:
"We are excited to announce this partnership between Perform and ACBJ, which brings together the leading provider of online sports video and one of the US's flagship sports media brands. Perform Sporting News Limited is a fantastic opportunity to significantly scale and transform our business in the US and Canada, two of the world's largest and most advanced digital marketplaces, to become a major player in these territories.
“Together, we will bring the best news, editorial, video and data content of professional and College Sports to millions of sports fans in the US and Canada and provide advertisers with a complete digital sports offering across the web and mobile and across both video and display."
