REG - Digitalbox PLC - Conclusion of Strategic Review;End of Offer Period

DigitalboxAnnouncement

28/01/2025 07:00

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RNS Number : 8650U  Digitalbox PLC  28 January 2025

28 January 2025

Digitalbox plc

("Digitalbox" or the "Company")

 

Conclusion of the Strategic Review & End of Offer Period

 

Notice of Results and Investor Presentation

 

The Board of Digitalbox plc (AIM: DBOX), the mobile-first digital media
business, which owns leading websites, including Entertainment Daily, The
Daily Mash, The Tab, Emmerdale Insider and Royal Insider, is pleased to
announce that it has concluded its strategic review  announced on 4th October
2024 ("Strategic Review").

 

Given the positive trading position of the Company and the expansion of the
Company's portfolio over the past 12 months, the Board felt it was an
appropriate time to deliver a Strategic Review, which may have included a
possible sale of the Company, with the objective of maximising shareholder
value. On 28 November 2024 the Company announced that the Strategic Review had
progressed to a 'root and branch' appraisal of the existing business and the
opportunities within it.

 

The Board has subsequently concluded that seeking to crystallise value through
a sale of the Company at this time is not in the best interests of all
stakeholders and the Board will continue to focus on maximising value through
the expansion of its current model.

 

The key drivers of the Board's decision are:

 

·    After a period of significant disruption for news media brands in
general, the Company's underlying portfolio including Entertainment Daily, The
Daily Mash, The Tab, The Poke and TV Guide continues to trade well alongside a
positive outlook fueled by forecast growth within the digital ad market;

 

·    The Company has diversified its revenue sources and further expanded
its portfolio over the past year, which it expects will continue to contribute
to greater operational trading resilience in the future;

 

·    The conclusion of the Strategic Review does not effect the Company's
established process of exploring organic and acquisitive opportunities in
the media market that take it beyond its current operating model;

 

·    The strengths contained within the current business enable a faster
and more assured route to growth than a significant pivot of the business to
an alternative unexplored model at this stage of the Company's development;

 

·    The Company will continue to develop its business through launching
new products and remains alive to acquisition and merger opportunities that
can maximise shareholder value.

 

The Board's decision is consistent with that of certain third party
independent corporate advisers consulted during the Strategic Review and was
led by Link Stone Advisory and the Company's independent Non-Executive
Directors.

 

Digitalbox expects revenue for the period ending 31 December 2024 to be
approximately £3.6m further to the announcement on 10 December 2024.

The Company is not in discussions with any party in relation to a sale and is
not in receipt of any approaches. Consequently, as the Strategic Review has
now concluded, the Company is no longer in an "offer period" as defined by the
City Code on Takeovers and Mergers (the "Takeover Code") and the disclosure
requirements pursuant to Rule 8 of the Takeover Code are no longer applicable
from the time of this announcement.

 

Marcus Rich, Chairman, commented; "The completion of our Strategic Review
marks an important milestone for Digitalbox plc. Over the past year, we have
made significant progress in expanding and diversifying our portfolio,
demonstrating the strength and resilience of our mobile-first digital media
business. This review has provided a comprehensive assessment of our
opportunities and confirmed the Board's belief in the potential of our current
operating model.

 

"The decision not to pursue a sale of the Company at this time reflects our
confidence in the underlying performance of our business and the considerable
opportunities we believe lie ahead. Our brands, including Entertainment Daily,
The Daily Mash, The Tab, The Poke, TV Guide, Emmerdale Insider and Royal
Insider, continue to deliver strong trading results amongst improving industry
conditions.

 

"By leveraging the solid foundation we've built, we believe the Company is
well-positioned to accelerate growth through both organic initiatives and
strategic acquisitions. The Board remains committed to exploring all avenues
that will drive sustainable value creation for our shareholders.

 

"As we move forward, we will continue to focus on innovation and expansion
while maintaining our agility in responding to new market opportunities. I
would like to thank our shareholders, stakeholders, and team for their
continued support as we embark on this next phase of development."

 

Notice of Results and Investor Presentation

 

The Company will announce its full year results for the 12 months ending 31
December 2024 ("FY24") on 25 March 2025.

 

James Carter, CEO, Richard Spilsbury, CFO and Jim Douglas, COO, will provide a
live investor presentation relating to the Company's results for FY24 via the
Investor Meet Company platform on 25 March 2025 at 10:00am.

 

The presentation is open to all existing and potential shareholders. Questions
can be submitted pre-event via your Investor Meet Company dashboard up until
9am the day before the meeting or at any time during the live presentation.

Investors can sign up to Investor Meet Company for free and add to
meet DIGITALBOX PLC via:

https://www.investormeetcompany.com/digitalbox-plc/register-investor
(https://www.investormeetcompany.com/digitalbox-plc/register-investor)

 

Investors who already follow DIGITALBOX PLC on the Investor Meet Company
platform will automatically be invited.

 

Market abuse regulation: This announcement contains inside information for
the purposes of Article 7 of Regulation (EU) No 596/2014 as it forms part of
UK domestic law by virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 ("MAR").
The person responsible for arranging for the release of this announcement on
behalf of the Company is James Carter, Chief Executive Officer.

 

Enquiries:

 Digitalbox                                              c/o SEC Newgate
 James Carter, CEO
 Panmure Liberum (Nominated Adviser & Joint Broker)      Tel: 020 7886 2500
 James Sinclair-Ford
 Rupert Dearden

 Dougie McLeod

 Rauf Munir
                                                         Tel:  07786150915

 Leander Capital Partners (Joint Broker)
 Alex Davies

 SEC Newgate (Financial PR)                              Tel: 07540 106 366
 Robin Tozer / Molly Gretton                             digitalbox@secnewgate.co.uk

 

About Digitalbox plc

Based in the UK, Digitalbox is a 'pure-play' digital media business with the
aim of profitable publishing at scale on mobile platforms.

 

Digitalbox operates the following trading brands, "Entertainment Daily", "The
Daily Mash", "The Tab", "The Poke", "TV Guide" and "Emmerdale Insider".
Entertainment Daily produces and publishes online UK entertainment news
covering TV, showbiz and celebrity news. The Daily Mash produces and publishes
satirical news content. The Tab is the UK's biggest youth culture site fuelled
by students. The Poke expertly curates and editorialises the funniest content
from around the web and social media. TV Guide serves as the definitive guide
to what is on TV. Emmerdale Insider charts the twists and turns of this ever
present British soap staple. Royal Insider provides the latest information for
royal family fans the world over.

 

Digitalbox primarily generates revenue from the sale of advertising in and
around the content it publishes. The Group's optimisation for mobile enables
it to achieve revenues per session significantly ahead of market norms for
publishers on mobile.

 

 

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