JEGI CLARITY has advised Gateway Blend on the sale of its subsidiary, CinemaBlend, to Future plc, the third successful transaction with Future plc in the last 24 months.
CinemaBlend is a high-growth digital media brand focused on the TV, film and entertainment market. Through its website, podcast series, social media channels and digital newsletters, CinemaBlend provides a platform for enthusiasts and casual fans to discover, explore and discuss films and TV shows, both on streaming services such as Netflix and linear TV such as HBO.
The brand’s website, Cinemablend.com, reached 19.4m monthly unique visitors over the first six months of 2020, representing growth of 118% year-on-year. In 2020 CinemaBlend continued to perform well with the impact of Covid-19 increasing appetite for advice on what to watch on TV, resulting in 28m sessions in June 2020 alone.
Future is a global platform business for specialist media with diversified revenue streams. Its content reaches 1 in 3 adults in both the UK and the US. The acquisition of CinemaBlend materially expands Future’s market share within the TV & Film and Games & Entertainment verticals in the US, and provides a range of opportunities to continue to drive the brand’s growth organically by leveraging Future’s proprietary 1st party data and advertising technology platform.
The team at JEGI CLARITY did a great job finding the perfect buyer for CinemaBlend. We were extremely impressed by their knowledge of the industry and their firsthand relationships with all the relevant potential buyers. They were able to quickly assess the market, position CinemaBlend for sale, and hold our hand through the process. JEGI CLARITY’s team was available whenever we needed them and truly made us feel as if we were their only clients. I believe we found the best possible home for CinemaBlend, and I firmly believe we could not have done that without JEGI CLARITY.
Kasey Grelle, President & CEO, Gateway Blend