Privately-owned talent agency UTA has entered public markets by launching a special purpose acquisition company. The IPO raised $230 million with a plan “targeting businesses in the gaming, digital media, creator economy, entertainment and technology industries.” That’s ahead of an initial plan to raise $200 million. It trades as UTAAU on Nasdaq. Former Nintendo president Reggie Fils-Aime serves as chair. UTA’s Clinton Foy is co-CEO alongside Jamie Sharp, with UTA’s Ophir Lupu as president. Elsewhere in finance, founder and owner of academic publisher SAGE Sara Miller McCune has transferred her voting shares and control of the company to a trust, […]
M&A
Open Road Sold to Steinberger-Led Investor Group; Clarivate Completes ProQuest Buy
Founded in 2009 as a venture-capital backed ebook publisher and marketer, Open Road has been sold to an investor group led by former Arcadia Publishing and Perseus Book Group ceo David Steinberger, selling for “between $60 million and $80 million” according to the WSJ. Investors include private equity company Abry Partners, MEP Capital (which acquired Rosetta’s ebook catalog earlier this year), Grove Atlantic (which has worked with Open Road as a customer), and “a number of prominent individual investors from the worlds of publishing and finance” according to the press release. Paul Slavin, who took over as ceo in 2016 […]
Acquisitions for RBMedia, and Hachette UK
RBmedia has acquired Toronto-based Author’s Republic, a distribution platform for self-published audiobooks. The deal includes the company’s Novel Audio audiobook publishing imprint as well. (Novel Audio was originally Audiobooks.com Publishing, and changed its name after the Audiobooks.com retail site was sold to RBmedia’s predecessor. And RBmedia just sold Audiobooks.com to Storytel.) RBmedia says in the announcement that the two will “also provide audiobook creation tools, a narrator marketplace, and other functionality to enable self-published authors to produce and distribute their audiobooks to as many listeners as possible.” Separately, Hachette UK’s Hodder Education Group has acquired John Catt Educational.
CJK Makes Another Editorial Services Acquisition
CJK Group continues to build their content services business with the acquisition of Baltimore-based Kaufman Wills Fusting & Company, which will be integrated into their KnowledgeWorks Global division. Through the Sheridan group, CJK has built one of the country’s largest book printers. KWF Consulting and KWF Editorial together employ 99 people, providing editorial services and management consulting to the scholarly publishing community, including “professional staffing solutions for journal editorial office management, peer review services, and editor support.” CEO of CJK Group Chris Kurtzman said in the announcement, “With this acquisition, CJK Group continues to build a successful global operation serving every […]
Chatham Offers Higher Bid to Acquire RR Donnelly
Chatham Asset Management, which kicked off the bidding to take RR Donnelly private and already owns just under 15 percent of Donnelly’s stock, offered a fully-financed bid to acquire the printing company for $9.10 per share in cash. They say their bid is worth approximately $48 million more than the deal from Atlas Holdings (which bought LSC Communications in bankruptcy). Chatham also filed suit in a Delaware Chancery Court, asking for the termination fee due Atlas if they do not prevail and certain other provisions to be declared unenforceable. Chatham indicated that they will pay $9.34 a share if the termination fee […]
Spotify to Acquire Findaway and Storytel Will Buy Audiobooks.com
Two big acquisitions will fuel hopes for players of scale to challenge Audible’s dominance in core markets. Spotify will acquire distributor Findaway as part of their goal to develop a meaningful presence in the audiobooks market, pending regulatory approval. The deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2021; the terms were not announced. Findaway bills itself as the “world’s largest audiobook distributor,” and is a key player in distributing digital audiobooks to Apple, Google, Overdrive and others. The company also provides tools for independent authors to produce and distribute audiobooks and sells audiobook players to brands. “The […]