Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 9:45 AM on Monday, April 8th, 2019
SPONSOR: ThreeD Capital Inc. (IDK:CSE) Led by
legendary financier, Sheldon Inwentash, ThreeD is a Canadian-based
venture capital firm that only invests in best of breed small-cap
companies which are both defensible and mass scalable. More than just
lip service, Inwentash has financed many of Canada’s biggest small-cap
exits. Click Here For More Information.
——————-
Societe Generale-Owned Bank Launches Blockchain Exchange Note
Kleinwort Hambros, a Societe Generale-owned private bank and wealth manager, has launched an actively managed exchange-traded note (ETN) targeting the blockchain sector.
The London-based bank announced the news on Monday, saying its Luxembourg-listed ETN will invest in companies that could “profit most†from the development and increasing uptake of blockchain technology.
ETNs are unsecured debt securities that, like exchange-traded funds (ETFs), are traded on a stock exchange.
The blockchain note will initially have 20 stocks diversified across areas including technology, shipping, oil and gas, custody and industrials.
Kleinwort Hambros’ portfolio manager John Birdwood said:
“We have seen increasing interest from clients in the area of
blockchain and we are very excited to be able to cater to this demand
with the launch of our first blockchain note.â€
The product will provide its clients with the “diversified exposure
to the promising growth prospects blockchain technology offers, while
maintaining the rigorous active management,†Birdwood added.
It’s worth noting that the ETN will be only available for Kleinwort
Hambros’s existing and new clients, with a minimum investment of £1,000
($1,305).
The centuries-old bank has assets under management of £14.2 billion
($18.52 billion) and over 900 employees as of last year, according to
its own figures.
In similar news, investment management company Invesco and Elwood Asset Management jointly launched a blockchain exchange-traded fund (ETF) on the London Stock Exchange last month.
The crypto community’s ongoing wait for a bitcoin ETF, however, is
still awaiting a decision from the Securities and Exchange Commission in
the U.S. However, several exchange-traded products (ETPs) for bitcoin and other cryptos have gone live for trading in Europe.
Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 9:45 PM on Sunday, April 7th, 2019
SPONSOR: Good Life Networks (GOOD:TSX-V) Video advertising is the future! Company’s A.I. makes 80,000 calculations / second, targeting 750 million users to deliver higher prices and volume. Company announced FY2018 trailing pro forma of ~ $48,000,000 with Adjusted EBITDA of $7,100,000 Click here for more information.
GOOD: TSX-V
—————————
These are the 5 big trends that will shape the future of digital advertising, according to Adobe
A new report from Adobe looks at the history of digital advertising and where it’s headed.
Programmatic TV and new creative tools are two big areas of
marketer interest, said Keith Eadie, VP and general manager of Adobe
Advertising Cloud.
More ad-tech consolidation is on the way as brands seek to work with fewer than 10 vendors, he said.
A quarter-century after Hotwired.com, a digital offshoot of Wired magazine, sold the first banner ad for AT&T, US digital ad spending has eclipsed traditional advertising and is expected to hit $129.34 billion in 2019, according to eMarketer.
A new report from Adobe chronicles the evolution
of digital advertising, including big moves like Yahoo launching search
ads in 1996 to Snap’s rollout of ads in 2016. The report also details
advertisers’ shift from direct to programmatic buying.
Business Insider talked with Keith Eadie, VP and general manager of
Adobe Advertising Cloud, about five big trends that Adobe sees shaping
the future of digital advertising. Below are excerpts from the
interview.
TV is the next battleground for programmatic advertising
Adobe is betting big on the future of video.
Today, most TV ads are not purchased through data-based deals but Eadie sees that changing as more companies like AT&T and Disney move into streaming TV services and content.
“You’re going to see a spectrum of packaging options put forth by the
publisher,” Eadie said. “I don’t see a scale challenge in over-the-top —
it’s a pretty big and rapidly growing pie.”
For its part, Adobe is focusing on building programmatic pipes for
buyers to plan and measure addressable TV (which uses cable-box data to
target ads), OTT and digital video. The company has partnerships with companies like NBCUniversal, Nielsen, Experian and Placed.
Ad-tech consolidation will continue — and brands are asking for it
Eadie joined Adobe through the acquisition of TubeMogul and said he expects more consolidation in ad tech, with eventually two or three companies emerging to compete with Facebook and Google.
Brands are pushing for some of that consolidation, who want to work with fewer than 10 companies, not hundreds, he said.
Some marketers have pushed back on the pitch by marketing clouds including Adobe
of a one-stop shop for advertising and data because they are wary of
getting locked into big deals, but Eadie said Adobe is well-positioned
to work with big brands.
“Our approach is to be empower the digital transformation of the
largest brands in the world,” he said. “We also approach it from the
perspective that we’re building an open platform and our solutions will
integrate with other technology if the marketer wants to do that.”
Ad fraud and viewability concerns are “teenager-like problems” for digital advertising
One area that is getting better is ad fraud and transparency, Eadie said.
Advertisers began grappling with tough problems like ad fraud,
viewability and brand safety issues nearly 10 years ago. While
advertising boycotts over brand-safety concerns on platforms like YouTube
persist and bad actors continue to find new ways to siphon away ad
dollars, Eadie said advertisers have made progress in tamping down areas
of fraud like bots and malware that hijack ad networks and generate
fake ad impressions.
Advertisers have also made headway in bringing transparency to ad-tech fees as more companies disclose their “tech tax” rates.
“We just have to be diligent and mindful about it, but we’re not
spending an outsized amount of time on them as we used to be,” he said.
Marketers struggle to manage multiple channels
While technical issues in digital advertising are getting better,
brands face new pressure to orchestrate marketing across multiple
platforms.
Marketers are trying to sync up email, text messaging and website
data to make ads more personalized. That requires brands to focus more
on customer experiences and less on ad copy and messaging in specific
campaigns. The challenge for CMOs is organizing teams accordingly, Eadie
said.
Creative will become more important in digital
As the number of distribution platforms grows, brands increasingly
are creating several versions of assets, like switching between
horizontal web and email campaigns to vertical formats for Instagram and
Snapchat.
Advertisers have tinkered with tactics like dynamic creative
optimization that in theory can swap out ad copy, colors and
click-through actions on the fly, but they struggle to do so, he said.
Adobe is tackling creative because it believes that digital advertisers haven’t focused on it as much as they should.
“If you don’t start with a channel that the ad is going to be
delivered on and build a bespoke asset for that, you’re essentially
wasting your money because the creative doesn’t match the format you
want to utilize,” he said.
Tags: adtech, tsx Posted in All Recent Posts, Good Life Networks | Comments Off on Good Life Networks $GOOD.ca – These are the 5 big trends that will shape the future of digital advertising #adtech according to Adobe $ADBE $TTD $RUBI $AT.ca $TRMR $FUEL
Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 9:15 PM on Sunday, April 7th, 2019
Ambitious approach to rounding up these audiences between owned and affiliated media, YouTube channels, and a convention that had over 55,000 people attending in 2018
A market leader in digital media for video gaming
Its platform represents more than 80 websites reaching 75 million monthly visitors, as well as 900 YouTube channels reaching 50 million additional monthly visitors.
The video gaming industry’s media audience goes beyond just the
players of video games; there is now a robust audience of non-player
spectators as well. This considerably shifts the dynamics of media in
the eSports space making it similar to the media ecosystems of
traditional sports, and creating correspondingly profitable business
opportunities.
Toronto-Based Enthusiast Gaming Holdings Inc.
(“Enthusiast Gamingâ€) (TSXV: EGLX | OTCQB: EGHIF) has taken an
ambitious approach to rounding up these audiences between owned and
affiliated media, YouTube channels, and a convention that had over
55,000 people attending in 2018, making it one of the market leaders in
digital media for video gaming. Its platform represents more than 80
websites reaching 75 million monthly visitors, as well as 900 YouTube
channels reaching 50 million additional monthly visitors.
Strategically Partnering with and Acquiring Channels
Enthusiast Gaming has built a respectable portfolio of media assets
through partnerships and acquisitions. At the beginning of 2019,
Enthusiast Gaming announced a partnership with US-based Omnia Media Inc.
(“Omniaâ€), to exclusively represent all of Omnia’s online gaming
traffic in the United States, through Omnia’s multi-channel YouTube
network which, across 900 channels, has 50 million monthly visitors and a
base of more than 400 million subscribers.
In November 2018, Enthusiast Gaming acquired Operation Sports LLC
(“Operation Sportsâ€), which operates a leading web portal for eSports
and video game content. Under Enthusiast Gaming’s ownership, the
subscriber base of Operation Sports grew by more than 100,000 users,
bringing the total subscriber base to over one million users as of March
20, 2019.
In-Person Engagement
Part of how Enthusiast Gaming has built its audience organically is
by cultivating engagement through its flagship convention Enthusiast
Gaming Live Expo (“EGLXâ€). Its first iteration in 2015 saw 1,700
attendees, growing to 12,000 attendees in 2017, followed by 24,000
attendees in March 2018, and 30,000 attendees in October 2018. EGLX is
the largest gaming expo in Canada, and the event has sponsors that
include Bell Canada, Nintendo, World Gaming, LG, and eBay. Enthusiast
Gaming is contemplating expanding EGLX to other North American cities in
light of significant growth in the video gaming sector.
Diversified Base of Revenues
Enthusiast Gaming generates earnings through a number of revenue
categories. Video content attracts advertising payments, and EGLX
produces revenue from show admissions, exhibitor booths, and show
sponsors. Paid user subscriptions are another form of revenue for
Enthusiast Gaming. For example, Enthusiast Gaming acquired The Sims
Resource in January 2019, which generated approximately CAD $2.8 million
in subscription payments in 2018, making up about 40% of its revenue.
Enthusiast Gaming Holdings Inc. has a current market cap of CAD
$57.60 million and commenced public trading on the TSX Venture through
an IPO on October 4th, 2018 with a closing price of CAD $1.07. TSXV:
EGLX closed April 4th 2019 at a price of CAD $1.25, up 16.82% since
inception.
Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 9:00 PM on Sunday, April 7th, 2019
SPONSOR: ThreeD Capital Inc. (IDK:CSE) Led by
legendary financier, Sheldon Inwentash, ThreeD is a Canadian-based
venture capital firm that only invests in best of breed small-cap
companies which are both defensible and mass scalable. More than just
lip service, Inwentash has financed many of Canada’s biggest small-cap
exits. Click Here For More Information.
——————-
Davos Report: Over 40 central banks worldwide are experimenting with blockchain technology
Several central banks are looking into experimenting with cryptocurrencies
The degree of blockchain technology research and experimentation varies greatly among central banks, as do the motivations for interest.
The central banks use permissioned blockchain network to create their CBDCs
As per a new report by the World Economic Forum, over 40 central
banks around the world are experimenting with blockchain technology.
Ashley Lannquist, a project lead in blockchain and distributed ledger
technology at the World Economic Forum and the primary author of the
report, believes that “It’s very much the case that several central
banks are looking at this [experimenting with cryptocurrencies].â€
The report states that the degree of this experimentation varies greatly among banks:
“The degree of blockchain technology research and experimentation
varies greatly among central banks, as do the motivations for interest.
Some central banks are progressive, having begun research and
experimentation as early as 2014 and having conducted multiple pilots or
even deployments. Another set of institutions is curious and interested
in the technology but largely monitors activity by peer institutions
and within the private sector, including cryptocurrency investing
activity. A final set has not yet dedicated resources to blockchain
technology research and may never do so, either because of pressing
priorities or the view that DLT at this stage does not promise
sufficient upside when considering technological immaturity and risks.â€
The report states how these central banks implement their CBDC pilots:
“In many of these CBDC pilots, the central bank issues digital tokens
on a distributed ledger that represent, and are redeemable for, central
bank reserves in the domestic currency held in a separate account with
the central bank. The agents in the system use the CBDC to make
interbank transfers that are validated and settled on the distributed
ledger.â€
The central banks prefer permissioned blockchain networks to create their CBDCs:
“The central banks typically use “permissioned†blockchain network
implementations, whereby participants are limited and must be granted
access to participate in the network and view the set of transactions.
The central bank chooses, according to suitability and availability,
the type of network and its internal mechanisms (most importantly, the
decentralized consensus mechanism the network uses for participants to
reach agreement on valid transactions). R3’s Corda, the Linux
Foundation’s Hyperledger Fabric, J.P. Morgan’s Quorum, or a simple
private configuration of the Ethereum blockchain network are the most
popular implementations used by central banks.â€
Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 10:00 AM on Friday, April 5th, 2019
SPONSOR: Esports Entertainment
$GMBL Esports audience is 350M, growing to 590M, Esports wagering is
projected at $23 BILLION by 2020. The company has launched VIE.gg
esports betting platform and has accelerated affiliate marketing
agreements with 190 Esports teams. Click here for more information
GMBL: OTCQB
———————–
Professional esports are just getting started, Take-Two CEO says
According to research firm Newzoo, esports is projected to generate $1.1 billion in revenue in 2019, marking the first year the industry would reach the billion-dollar mark.
Earlier this week at the Barclays Center, 74 men and 1 woman got the
chance to live out a dream — they became professional competitive
gamers.
The esports athletes were officially drafted for the second season of
Take-Two‘s NBA 2K League, the gaming giant‘s esports league featuring
their flagship NBA 2K sports video game franchise. Take-Two Interactive
CEO Strauss Zelnick emphasized the excitement surrounding the league‘s
second season, highlighting the popularity and rising importance of the
esports industry as a whole.
“The first season ended with a great result, and everyone‘s looking
forward to the April second tip-off,†he said Friday on CNBC‘s “Fast
Money.†“Over 250 million people worldwide consume esports as a form of
entertainment. About half of them, 125 million, are avid esports
watchers.â€
According to research firm Newzoo, esports is projected to generate
$1.1 billion in revenue in 2019, marking the first year the industry
would reach the billion-dollar mark.
In many ways this year‘s NBA 2K League embodies how quickly the space
is growing. AT&T is joining the likes of Dell and Intel as a
partner for the league, which has also expanded to 21 teams from the
original 17 NBA franchise-owned teams that hit the virtual court during
last year‘s inaugural season.
This year‘s draft pool also included 22 international players from
outside of the U.S., reflecting the overall industry‘s drive to expand
globally. Among the players in the draft pool was Chiquita Evans from
Chicago, who became the league‘s first female player in a time when the
esports industry as a whole is grappling with discussions around
diversity and inclusion.
Ultimately, Zelnick believes that esports leagues like NBA 2K will boost the video game industry as a whole.
“We‘re having a record year with NBA 2K, so one of the things we love
is that when there‘s more hits in the market, there are more people
engaged and the entire market grows,†he said. “So we‘re going to sell
more units of NBA 2K this year than ever before, we‘ll have higher
recurrent consumer spending than ever before.â€
But the biggest gaming companies are facing stiff competition. While
Take-Two and Activision Blizzard have dove into esports, with Blizzard‘s
Overwatch League being the latter‘s most recent investment in the
space, they‘re still facing the likes of other publishers who have
dominated the industry.
For example, Tencent-owned Riot Games‘ “League of Legends†events
still draw huge numbers of viewers, with last year‘s World Championship
finals attracting nearly 100 million unique viewers who watched the
match (for comparison, this year‘s Super Bowl had 98 million viewers).
This while Epic Games‘ “Fortnite†also continues to dominate online
viewership, both recreational and competitively.
Zelnick, however, believes that those same competitors, like “Fortnite,†lift the games industry as a whole.
“We think that ‘Fortnite‘ is a great thing for the industry, it has
probably brought in a somewhat younger consumer,†he explained. “I‘m
often asked if it‘s something that has hurt us. To the contrary, we‘ve
seen the market continue to grow at the same time that ‘Fortnite‘ has
been an extraordinary hit for Epic.â€
This despite the fact that some analysts believe game revenues could
be set to decline. Back in January, London-based research firm owner
Pelham Smithers forecast that video game revenue is headed for its first
decline since 1995 on the back of tightening regulations in China, a
shortage of big console hits in 2019 and waning player enthusiasm for
battle royale titles like “Fortnite.â€
But Smithers also made his predictions before the release of
Electronic Arts‘ “Apex Legends,†which took the gaming world by storm
and garnered 50 million players in just one month. The battle royale
title is yet another name in the free-to-play ecosystem that has
revolutionized the gaming industry in the last few years, allowing users
to download a game at no cost. In this case, the vast majority of
revenue is made through in-game purchases and microtransactions, which
have become dominant sources of earnings for many publishers.
This has led even the biggest publishers to explore in-game
monetization. Zelnick notes that not only have microtransactions become
the “biggest opportunity†to encourage users to continue interacting
with a title, but it ultimately is the biggest measure of engagement.
“Microtransactions is spending, and that‘s a reflection in our view
of engagement,†he said, adding that they often are a result of “making
the highest quality enttertainment†that “[engages] the customer.â€
“If we get that right, monetization follows, revenues follow and
profits follow, and that‘s been our story for the 11 years that we‘ve
been responsible for this enterprise,†he added.
Additionally, the Chinese government has seemingly eased on their
game approval regulations. After freezing game approvals for months last
year in a content crackdown on gaming companies, Chinese regulators
have since approved 80 new games in January and one more for gaming
giant Tencent in late February.
Despite the games industry‘s growth, Activision Blizzard and Take-Two
Interactive have struggled with both stocks down 9 and 15 percent
respective this year. Thanks to its “Apex Legends†sensation, Electronic
Arts has outperformed its competitors and surged 25 percent.
Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 8:47 AM on Friday, April 5th, 2019
Nominated to the shortlist for “Materials Company of the Year†at the 3D Printing Industry Awards 2019 for the second year in a row.
“We are truly honored to have been shortlisted “Materials Company of the Year†for the second year in a row,†said Mr. P. Peter Pascali, CEO and President of PyroGenesis.
MONTREAL, April 05, 2019 — PyroGenesis Canada Inc. (http://pyrogenesis.com) (TSX-V: PYR) (OTCQB: PYRNF) (FRA: 8PY), a TSX Venture 50® high-tech company, (the “Company”, the “Corporation†or “PyroGenesis”) that designs, develops, manufactures and commercializes plasma atomized metal powder, plasma waste-to-energy systems and plasma torch products, announced today that it has been nominated to the shortlist for “Materials Company of the Year†at the 3D Printing Industry Awards 2019 for the second year in a row.
Nominations, and winners are decided by public vote.
“We are truly
honored to have been shortlisted “Materials Company of the Year†for the
second year in a row,†said Mr. P. Peter Pascali, CEO and President of
PyroGenesis. “Just being nominated again, together with giants in the
industry, is a recognition of how far we have come in such a short time.
Our recent exclusive partnership to supply plasma-atomized powder to
the Additive Manufacturing industry in Europe, combined with our
recently announced game-changing innovation, our NexGen™ Plasma
Atomization System, underscore this success. We are moving rapidly on
all fronts and expect to announce further exciting developments in the
very near future.â€
About PyroGenesis Canada Inc.
PyroGenesis
Canada Inc., a TSX Venture 50® high-tech company, is the world leader
in the design, development, manufacture and commercialization of
advanced plasma processes and products. We provide engineering and
manufacturing expertise, cutting-edge contract research, as well as
turnkey process equipment packages to the defense, metallurgical,
mining, advanced materials (including 3D printing), oil & gas, and
environmental industries. With a team of experienced engineers,
scientists and technicians working out of our Montreal office and our
3,800 m2 manufacturing facility, PyroGenesis maintains its
competitive advantage by remaining at the forefront of technology
development and commercialization. Our core competencies allow
PyroGenesis to lead the way in providing innovative plasma torches,
plasma waste processes, high-temperature metallurgical processes, and
engineering services to the global marketplace. Our operations are ISO
9001:2015 certified, and have been since 1997. PyroGenesis is a
publicly-traded Canadian Corporation on the TSX Venture Exchange (Ticker
Symbol: PYR) and on the OTCQB Marketplace. For more information, please
visit www.pyrogenesis.com
This
press release contains certain forward-looking statements, including,
without limitation, statements containing the words “may”, “plan”,
“will”, “estimate”, “continue”, “anticipate”, “intend”, “expect”, “in
the process” and other similar expressions which constitute “forward-
looking information” within the meaning of applicable securities laws.
Forward-looking statements reflect the Corporation’s current expectation
and assumptions and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties
that could cause actual results to differ materially from those
anticipated. These forward-looking statements involve risks and
uncertainties including, but not limited to, our expectations regarding
the acceptance of our products by the market, our strategy to develop
new products and enhance the capabilities of existing products, our
strategy with respect to research and development, the impact of
competitive products and pricing, new product development, and
uncertainties related to the regulatory approval process. Such
statements reflect the current views of the Corporation with respect to
future events and are subject to certain risks and uncertainties and
other risks detailed from time-to-time in the Corporation’s ongoing
filings with the securities regulatory authorities, which filings can be
found at www.sedar.com, or at www.otcmarkets.com. Actual
results, events, and performance may differ materially. Readers are
cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking
statements. The Corporation undertakes no obligation to publicly update
or revise any forward- looking statements either as a result of new
information, future events or otherwise, except as required by
applicable securities laws. Neither the TSX Venture Exchange, its
Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of
the TSX Venture Exchange) nor the OTCQB accepts responsibility for the
adequacy or accuracy of this press release.
Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 4:26 PM on Thursday, April 4th, 2019
WHY NORTHBUD FARMS?
Canadian regulatory door for CIP (Cannabinoid Infused Products) is opening this year as shown in other legal jurisdictions (Colorado, Washington, Nevada, California)
Infused products sector has become the highest margin segment of the industry
Positioned to be a raw input producer for this space
Currently working with multiple food, beverage and science companies to provide safe standardized cannabinoid infused raw inputs for large scale GMP manufacturing of products
NORTHBUD Signs Binding Letter of Intent to Enter U.S. Market
with Strategic Acquisition of Multi-State Licensed Operator Eureka Vapor
CHECK OUT OUR RECENT INTERVIEW
FULL DISCLOSURE: NORTHBUD is an advertising client of AGORA Internet Relations Corp.
Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 2:00 PM on Thursday, April 4th, 2019
SPONSOR: ThreeD Capital Inc. (IDK:CSE) Led by
legendary financier, Sheldon Inwentash, ThreeD is a Canadian-based
venture capital firm that only invests in best of breed small-cap
companies which are both defensible and mass scalable. More than just
lip service, Inwentash has financed many of Canada’s biggest small-cap
exits. Click Here For More Information.
——————-
New $50 Million Fund Makes First Investment in Blockchain ID Startup
A new $50 million VC fund has been set up by Nasdaq-listed company Okta to invest in early-stage technology startups, including those working with blockchain
Okta, which provides identity management solutions, announced the Okta Ventures Fund Wednesday, adding that it has made its first investment in blockchain-based identity startup Trusted Key
Trusted Key was founded by former Microsoft, Oracle and Symantec executives and offers decentralized digital identity solutions allowing organizations to “work together as ecosystems to share strongly proofed user identities with user consent.â€
Through its venture fund, Okta said it will invest in startups that
are focused on building innovative solutions around its core businesses
using blockchain, artificial intelligence and machine learning.
The San Francisco-based firm’s co-founder and chief operating officer, Frederic Kerrest, said:
“In line with Okta’s vision of enabling any organization to use any
technology, Okta Ventures will invest in the growing ecosystem of
startups tackling issues like identity, security, and privacy.â€
Besides providing investment capital, Okta plans to provide its
portfolio companies with additional support, including the use of its
software and co-marketing opportunities.
Founded in 2009, Okta has raised total funding of over $229 million,
according to Crunchbase. The firm is also backed by notable investors,
including Andreessen Horowitz, Sequoia Capital, Khosla Ventures and
others.
Okta went public in
the U.S. in April 2017, raising $187 million via an initial public
offering (IPO) that saw 11 million shares sold at $17 apiece. The share
price of the company has risen sharply since and is currently trading at around $89.
Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 9:37 AM on Thursday, April 4th, 2019
Strategic Focus on Esports Content Contributes to Surge in Traffic
Announced that its esports community, Daily Esports (dailyesports.gg), has reported record-breaking quarterly visitor growth since the acquisition in March 2018
The digital property saw a 4X pageview increase within the quarter, an increase of 135% in visitor traffic over the previous quarter, and has added 288,000 unique monthly visitors to its overall readership since the acquisition.
TORONTO, April 04, 2019 — Enthusiast Gaming Holdings Inc. (TSXV: EGLX) (OTCQB: EGHIF), (“Enthusiast†or the “Companyâ€), a gaming company building the largest community of authentic gamers, is excited to announce that its esports community, Daily Esports (dailyesports.gg), has reported record-breaking quarterly visitor growth since the acquisition in March 2018.  The digital property saw a 4X pageview increase within the quarter, an increase of 135% in visitor traffic over the previous quarter, and has added 288,000 unique monthly visitors to its overall readership since the acquisition.
Daily Esports is one of the leading online communities of esports
content around breaking news, game patches, analysis, opinion,
tournament coverage, and more. Enthusiast Gaming acquired the digital
property in March 2018 as the Company anticipated the tremendous growth
of the esports industry. It is anticipated that the global esports
audience will grow to 453.8 million worldwide in 2019(1), and Daily
Esports is well positioned as one of the leading communities catering to
esports enthusiasts.
Since the acquisition, Enthusiast and its Director of Content, Niero
Gonzalez and Director of Special Projects, Jason Lepine have built out
the Daily Esports team, including new Editor-in-Chief, Taha Zaidi, and
28 freelance writers. The additional staff and rebranding of the
property were both factors helping to fuel the growth. With a surging
popularity in esports and games such as Fortnite and Apex Legends,
Enthusiast focused its 28 writers to cover the latest esports news. Over
the last month, Daily Esports has featured the industry’s newest entry,
Apex Legends, which has spiked visitor growth. Apex Legends is EA’s
free-to-play Battle Royale game which has already surpassed 50M players
which makes it the fastest growing videogame in the sector. Due to the
increasing popularity of the game, over 50% of the website’s traffic is
being driven by Apex Legends content.
Jason Lepine, Director, Special Projects at Enthusiast Gaming commented, “It’s
an exciting time in the world of esports and our property, Daily
Esports, is positioned as the leading voice for the community. We are
very happy with the growth to date, which confirms the success of our
renewed strategy which focuses on providing cutting edge content around
esports.†He continued, “The team has worked hard to become an authoritative voice in the coverage of the fastest growing Esports game, Apex Legends.â€
Founded in 2014, Enthusiast is the fastest-growing online community
of video gamers. Through the Company’s unique acquisition strategy, it
has a platform of over 80 owned and affiliated websites and currently
reaches over 75 million monthly visitors with its unique and curated
content and over 50 million YouTube visitors. Enthusiast also owns and
operates Canada’s largest gaming expo, Enthusiast Gaming Live Expo,
EGLX, (eglx.ca) with over 55,000 people attending in 2018. For more information on the Company, visit www.enthusiastgaming.com.
CONTACT INFORMATION: Investor Relations: Julia Becker Head of Investor Relations & Marketing [email protected] (604) 785.0850
This news release contains certain statements that may constitute
forward-looking information under applicable securities laws. All
statements, other than those of historical fact, which address
activities, events, outcomes, results, developments, performance or
achievements that Enthusiast anticipates or expects may or will occur in
the future (in whole or in part) should be considered forward-looking
information. Such information may involve, but is not limited to,
comments with respect to strategies, expectations, planned operations
and future actions of the Company. Often, but not always,
forward-looking information can be identified by the use of words such
as “plans”, “expects”, “is expected”, “budget”, “scheduled”,
“estimates”, “forecasts”, “intends”, “anticipates”, or “believes” or
variations (including negative variations) of such words and phrases, or
statements formed in the future tense or indicating that certain
actions, events or results “may”, “could”, “would”, “might” or “will”
(or other variations of the forgoing) be taken, occur, be achieved, or
come to pass. Forward-looking information is based on currently
available competitive, financial and economic data and operating plans,
strategies or beliefs as of the date of this news release, but involve
known and unknown risks, uncertainties, assumptions and other factors
that may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of
Enthusiast to be materially different from any future results,
performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking
information. Such factors may be based on information currently
available to Enthusiast, including information obtained from third-party
industry analysts and other third-party sources, and are based on
management’s current expectations or beliefs regarding future growth,
results of operations, future capital (including the amount, nature and
sources of funding thereof) and expenditures. Any and all
forward-looking information contained in this press release is expressly
qualified by this cautionary statement. Trading in the securities of
the Company should be considered highly speculative.
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services
Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture
Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this
release.
The securities of the Corporation have not been and will not be
registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended
and may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration
or an applicable exemption from the registration requirement. This press
release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an
offer to buy nor shall there be any sale of the securities in any
jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be
unlawful.
