confidential grouper: m&a strategy draft. page 1 acquisition considerations...
TRANSCRIPT
CONFIDENTIAL
Grouper: M&A Strategy
DRAFT
page 2
Acquisition Considerations
Considerations Recommended Approach
Audience
Content
Functionality
• Critical to success• Important to build early (network
effect; virtuous cycle)• Challenging to build organically• Target companies with audience
but no differentiated content or functionality generally overvalued
• High priority acquisitions; only if coupled with differentiated content or technology
• Budget for significant investment
• Differentiated content can drive audience
• Opportunities exist to broaden Grouper with SPE owned content
• Near-term focus on licensing deals and SPE owned content
• Potential to supplement with limited, point-acquisitions
• Differentiated functionality more likely to retain than attract audience
• Focus on building in-house• Enter near-term licensing
relationships as needed• Limited potential for point
acquisitions
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Acquisition Considerations
Content + Functionality
Lower Priority Acquisitions
Potential for small to medium acquisitions
Functionality
Lower Priority Acquisitions
Potential for small acquisitions to round-out feature set
Audience
Avoid acquisitions of audience without
differentiated content or functionality
Audience + Content
High Priority Acquisitions
May require significant investment
Audience + Functionality
High Priority Acquisitions
May require significant investment
Content
Lower Priority Acquisitions
Potential for small point acquisitions to address specific demographics
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Content
College Humor (0.9)
JibJab (0.6)
SingingFool/VideoDetecitve
Broadband Sports (0.1)
RocketBoom(0.04)
Ruckus (0.02)
Revision3 (0.02)
Channel 101 (0.02)
Content + Functionality
Pure Video (0.9)
Castpost (0.2)
Now Public (0.09)
Bix (0.08)
Blip.tv (0.06)
Dave.tv (N/A)
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Audience + Functionality
PhotoBucket (12.0)
Roo Media (N/A)
Six Apart (10.4)
Image Shack (9.3)
Xanga (5.5)
Reunion (4.7)
MetaCafe (3.1)
Digg (2.1)
Friendster (1.0)
Tagged (0.8)
Functionality
Meetup (0.7)
Piczo (0.5)
Text America (0.5)
Imeem (0.2)
VideoEgg (0.2)
eyeSpot (0.2)
MotionBox (0.2)
Famster (N/A)
Potential Acquisition Candidates
Audience
AddictingClips (1.9)
Putfile (1.4)
DailyMotion (0.8)
vMix (0.8)
vidiLife (0.8)
ManiaTV (0.6)
Revver (0.5)
Vimeo (0.5)
Audience + Content
Break.com (3.3)
eBaum’s World (3.0)
Bolt.com (2.9)
Heavy.com (2.7)
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Tier 1 M&A Candidates
Company M&A Benefits Description Audience(1) Estimated Valuation Range
Roo(2)
New York, NY
Audience
Functionality
• Video syndication platform• Hosts and streams to third party sites• Not a standalone destination site
5.8MM Unique Video Streamers
(primarily syndicated)
• $33MM (Public RGRP.OB)• $200K debt
Break
Los Angeles, CA
Audience
Content
• Skews toward 15-35 year old male demo • Owns most content (pays up to $1000 for
featured videos)• Focus on humor, sports, games
3.3MM UUs • Approximately $150-$250MM based on Digg and Heavy comps
• Being shopped by Montgomery, bankers to provide guidance
Heavy
New York, NY
Audience
Content
• Skews toward 15-35 year old male demo• Mix of video, animation, and games
created by Heavy and/or its partners
2.7MM UUs • Approximately $200MM per paidcontent.org
• Polaris led $10MM round in (1/06)
Digg
SF, CA
Audience
Functionality
• Focuses on user ratings• Content is a mix of categorized text
(primary) and video (secondary) postings from blogs, news, and other sites
2.1MM UUs • Approximately $150MM• Passed on Newscorp offer because
it was <$150MM
Bolt
New York, NY
Audience
Content
• Skews younger (31% 12-16, 32% 18-34)• Content, includes video, photos, music• Some social net features on Bolt2.com
2.9MM UUs •Approximately $150-$250MM based on Digg and Heavy comps•Rumored to be for sale
Metacafe
Palo Alto, CA and
Tel Aviv, Israel
Audience
Functionality
• Primarily a UGV destination• Recently tested user rev sharing• Has a robust on-site search tool
3.1MM UUs Approximately $150-$250MM based on Digg and Heavy comps
PhotoBucket
Palo Alto, CA
Denver, CO
Audience
Functionality
• Hosts photos and videos, enables linking to sites like MySpace and Blogger
12.0MM UUs • Approximately $250-$450MM based on rough guidance from Jeffries
• Trinity led $10.5MM round (5/06)
(1) Monthly Unique Users per Nielsen Net Ratings except for Roo(2) Roo audience estimate is of unique streamers
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Tier 2 M&A Candidates
Company M&A Benefits Description Audience(1) Valuation Considerations
Pure Video
Los Angeles, CA
Content
Functionality
• Operates a video search engine in partnership with Pixsy
• Runs StupidVideos and Grind (action sports videos)
0.9MM UUs
StupidVideos=596K
Grind = 282K
• Raised $5.6MM from Soft Bank in December 2005
JibJab
Santa Monica, CA
Content • Focuses on jokes, humor, and animation• Includes sponsored content (e.g., Bud
Light commercials)
0.6MM UUs • Raised undisclosed amount of funding from Polaris in June 2006
Revision3
SF, CA
Content • Positioned as an online TV network• Produces its own original content• Founded by Digg’s founders
0.02MUUs • Raised $1MM in funding from Marc Andreessen and Greylock Partners in September 2006
Bix
Palo Alto, CA
Content
Functionality
• User-generated contest site• Users create and enter online talent
competitions
0.08MM UUs • Raised $6.77MM in first round• Investors include Trinity and Sutter
Hill
Blip.tv
Blip.tv
Content
Functionality
• Hosts high quality “Prosumer” shows• Syndicates and licenses out tech (e.g.,
Oxygen is a licensee)• Lets producers opt-in for post-roll ads
0.06MM UUs • Raised undisclosed amount of funding in a July 2006 Series A round
Imeem
Palo Alto, CA
Functionality • Combines instant messaging and social networking
• Users can use any of their IM services from one application
• Shows full profiles with photos, music, videos and blogs from users’ buddy list
0.2MM • Venture backed by Morgenthaler Ventures
(1) Monthly Unique Users per Nielsen Net Ratings
CONFIDENTIAL
APPENDIX(Profiles on Heavy, Break, Digg, Bix, PhotoBucket)
8
Break.com: Summary Overview Break.com: Summary Overview
Background
Established in 1998 as Big-Boys.com, a video-sharing site
Purchased in May 2004 by Keith Richman, co-founder of Billpoint, and changed name to Break.com
100% owned by Richman and a few business partners – has never taken any venture financing
Based in Beverly Hills, CA with 20 employees
Content
Online entertainment network and community powered by traditional user-generated content
Content base skews toward 15-35 year old male-oriented humor, sports and racy categories
Majority of the content is original and created by users specifically for Break.com
Pays $250/ video for videos it wants to feature, incentivizing users to create high-quality videos (est. to spend ~$250K/ month buying user videos)
Generate revenue through banner ($20 CPM) and text ads only – no pre-rolls
User Metrics
Partnerships
Leverages AdBrite to sell its banner and text ads
Established partnerhsip with Amp’d Mobile in Nov. 2005 to distribute videos through mobile, charging $2.99/ month for unlimited access
Unique Users (MM)
Web page views (B)
Time/ person(min.)
1.4 1.9 1.3
16.1 21.5 15.3
Source: Nielsen//NetRating used for page view, time data, AdBrite; BambiBlogs.com; Break.com; Multichannel News; Amp’d Mobile; PureVideo; ComScore Video Matrix
Note: estimated
to generate ~100MM streams/ month
3-mo. growth: 12.8%
2.6 2.53.5
2.6 2.9 3.3
Jul-06 Aug-06 Sep-06
Jul-06 Aug-06 Sep-06
MM NR
*
Internal break.com sources estimate uniques of approx 13MM
9
Case study: Break.comCase study: Break.comFunctionality Functionality
Break.com demo
Advertising:
• Banner ads – no pre-rolls or text
Content
• User-generated
• Share it with friends (viae-mail)
• Embed & blog it
Interactivity:
• Promote to home page
• Rate It
• Recommend
• Comment
10
Heavy.com: Summary Overview Heavy.com: Summary Overview
Background
Established in 1999 as a P2P digital content sharing site by Simon Asaad & David Carson
Polaris venture capital holds a 25% stake in Heavy
Polaris lead a $10MM round in January 2006 Expected to generate ~$20MM adv.
revenues in 2006, a 300% increase over 2005 (recently valued at ~$200MM – source: paidContent.org)
Based in New York, NY with 20 employees
Content
Broadband entertainment network focused on providing high-quality content
Content base skews toward 18-34 year old male-oriented humor and racy categories
Content is a mix of video, animation, and games created by Heavy and/or its partners, e.g., NBC delivered through distinct channels
Generates revenue through banner ads, pre-rolls, and branded production, e.g., Burger King videos
Ad sales and marketing conducted internally
User Metrics
Partnerships
Recently announced partnership with TiVo to provide content for TiVo’s VoD service
Established partnership with Verizon Wireless in April 2006 and created a channel on Vz’s V Cast subscription mobile offering
Parnter with Sony PSP, video iPod, and Virgin Mobile to distribute non-wireless mobile content
Unique Users (MM)
Web page views (B)
Time/ person(min.)
0.9 1.0 0.6
1.5 1.2 1.0
Source: Nielsen//NetRating used for page view, time data, Heavy.com; Multichannel News; PureVideo; ComScore Video Matrix; paidContent.org; FT.com; VCMike’s Blog
Note: estimated
to generate 80-90MM streams/ month
3-mo. growth: (5.4%)
8.3 7.5 6.8
3.0 3.5 2.7
Jul-06 Aug-06 Sep-06
Jul-06 Aug-06 Sep-06
MM NR
11
Case study: Heavy.comCase study: Heavy.comFunctionality Functionality
Heavy.com demoAdvertising:
• Banner ads
• Pre-rolls
Content sharing:
• Heavy/ partner produced channels
• Share it with friends (viae-mail)
• Blog it
Interactivity:
• Rate It
• Comment
12
Digg.com: Summary Overview Digg.com: Summary Overview
Background
Established in Nov. 2004 as an information and news sharing site by Kevin Rose
Closely held (Rose owns ~30-40%) with minimal venture financing – received $2.8MM round in Oct. 2005 to support initial growth
Expected to generate ~$3MM in adv. revenuesin 2006 (recently valued at $200MM – source: BusinessWeek, 8/2006)
Based in San Francisco, CA with ~20 employees
Content
Online user-driven news/ information community
Target IT professionals, developers, professional “geeks” and news junkies
Content is a mix of categorized text (primary) and video (secondary) postings from blogs, professional news sites and random Web sites
Users tag news stories they like (dig) and dislikes, driving what content appears on the home page
Generate revenue through banner and text ads only – focused on growing audience with minimally invasive advertising
User Metrics
Partnerships
Leverages Federated Media to sell its banner ads
Digg.com founders started a video production company, Revision3, in Sept. 2006
Focused on high-end humor and tech content targeted at young, tech-oriented people
Advertising model is 1950s throwback – based on sponsors named in advance of ‘shows’ by hosts
Unique Users (MM)
Web page views (B)
Time/ person(min.)
0.6 0.5 1.2
2.2 2.1 2.5
Source: Nielsen//NetRating used for page view, time data, Digg.com; Multichannel News; PureVideo; ComScore Video Matrix; Federated Media; HowStuffWorks.com; BusinessWeek (8/06); Red Herring
Note: estimated
to generate 20-30MM streams/ month
3-mo. growth: 13.8%
1.2 1.2 1.31.6 1.8
2.1
Jul-06 Aug-06 Sep-06
Jul-06 Aug-06 Sep-06
MM NR
13
Case study: Digg.comCase study: Digg.comFunctionality Functionality
Digg.com demo
Advertising:
• Limited banner and text ads
• No pre-rolls (link directly to other video sites, e.g., YouTube)
Content
• User-posted and recommended
• Share it (viae-mail)
• Blog it
Interactivity:
• Edit It
• Rate (Digg) It
• Comment
Bix.com
Strategic Profile Based in Palo Alto, California
Workforce of 16 employees, mostly engineers from eBay
Formerly known as 900Seconds.com, Bix.com operates a user-generated contest site
Enables consumers to create their Web-based talent competitions and enter existing competitions
Currently, the website is ad-free, depending solely on corporate-sponsored contests for revenue
– Bix.com is seeking alternative revenue sources, including advertisements on its site and user-generated ringtones
Management Team / Board of Directors
Funding History & Investors Unique Users(in thousands)
Number of Rounds: 1
Total Amount Raised ($ in mm): $6.77
Investors:
Geoff Ralston
Name Title Prior Experience
Mike Speiser Co-founder & CEO
VP and Technology Advisor to Symantec CEO
Co-founder of Epinions
Geoff Ralston Director Chief Product Officer of Yahoo!
Jeremy Burton Director Symantec Group President
Jim White Director Sutter Hill Ventures
Larry Orr Director Trinity Ventures
32
220
500
750
1000
Aug-06 Sep-06 Oct-06 Nov-06 Dec-06
Citigroup Estimates
1
Bix was launched on August 8th, 2006
Positive Reviews for Bix.com
“Two of the biggest phenomena in pop culture have been the ‘American Idol’ TV show and the plethora of Web sites that depend on user-generated content … Bix.com hosts contests that include ‘American Idol’-style stuff like singing … Bix is ad-free, depending for revenue solely on corporate-sponsored contests … Bix will seek alternative revenue sources, including advertisements on its site and user-generated ringtones.“
- Walter S. Mossberg & Katherine Boehret
“American Idol proved not just that we love watching the highs and lows of wannabe superstars, but that a surprising number of us wanted to be up there … Bix, a company enabling public and private contests online … is trying to address a real business problem: diminishing effectiveness of brand advertising … [it] believes controlled sponsorship of a legally sanctioned online contest … is a powerful brand advertising ”
- Neil Kjeldsen
Will Bix Kill the Record Industry?
“The idea behind Bix is neat -- a combination of American Idol and YouTube's lip syncing madness. Basically, anyone can set up a contest -- karaoke, lip-syncing, beauty, whatever … If Bix really takes off, then bands who win "best original song" contests will have a built-in audience to buy their music. And who needs the record industry to press CDs or make deals with iTunes then?”
- Mark Frauenfelder
“Bix is a platform for creating contests online much in the mold of American Idol … The company plans to allow end-users to download their own audio clips and use them as ringtones for a small charge. Eventually the same content could be sold to others, and at that point the company is going to split the proceeds with the creators … Bix is hoping to cash in on the shift of ad-dollars to the online medium … these contests will be ideal vehicles for brand advertising.”
- Om Malik
2
page 16
PhotoBucket Overview