NetPlay to acquire Challenge Jackpot brand from Virgin
NetPlay TV has signed a deal with Virgin Media Television which will see the latter transfer the assets of Two Way Gaming to Netplay TV for shares to the value of £2m and a 9.9% stake in the company.
NetPlay TV has signed a deal with Virgin Media Television which will see the latter transfer the assets of Two Way Gaming to Netplay TV for shares to the value of £2m and the option to take a 9.9% stake in the company.
The deal will see NetPlay TV will take over production of the Challenge Jackpot brand, including its website and television channel, and also includes the transfer of Challenge Jackpot’s 16,000 registered players, their account balances and the equipment to run the business. A number of Two Way Gaming staff will transfer to NetPlay, including Guy Templer, the managing director of Two Way Gaming.
NetPlay will also fund transaction related expenses and reorganisation costs associated with the deal through a private £800,000 share placing.
Challenge Jackpot TV channel airs 24/7 on Virgin Media and Sky, plus three hours a day on Bravo 2 and Virgin 1, enabling customers to play a range of games including live TV roulette and a range of web games.
March saw the Challenge Jackpot business generate £14.5m of bets, producing a gross margin of £500,000, and NetPlay say the addition of the Two Way Gaming revenue will take its gross monthly bets to over £45m.
NetPlay has until 16 April to set a date for an EGM to gain shareholder approval for the acquisition, option agreement and share placing.
NetPlay chief executive, Martin Higginson, said: “The combination of the established Challenge Jackpot brand with our vision for converged gaming solutions will be a powerful force. From our perspective, it allows us to offer gaming services to a new set of customers, thus broadening our demographic reach considerably.”
Jonathan Webb, managing director of Virgin Media Television, added: “I’m delighted that NetPlay TV will be building on the work of Two Way Gaming in establishing Challenge Jackpot in the market. NetPlay TV’s expertise in convergent gaming fits with our ambition to totally integrate the gaming experience between internet, TV and mobile.”