Future plc (LSE: FUTR; “Future” or “the Group”), the global platform for specialist media, today announces the acquisition of WhatCulture.com, a digital-only entertainment publisher and Waive, a data insight platform.
WhatCulture is a digital-only brand focused on the gaming and entertainment market. WhatCulture’s website and 11 YouTube channels have respectively 3m users (source: GoogleAnalytics) and over 8m subscribers, and c.70% of its revenue is from the US.
This acquisition further strengthens Future’s position in video, notably with its expertise in the monetisation on YouTube. WhatCulture will benefit from the Future proprietary technology stack and operating model to drive the platform effect whilst bolstering Future’s gaming and entertainment vertical.
Waive is a data insight platform which provides intelligence on emerging content trends. This acquisition will extend Future’s “Aperture” data platform and enhanced data science capabilities. Aperture is Future’s proprietary platform that allows advertisers to access Future’s rich first-party audience data captured across its vast portfolio of brands, helping them reach high-intent target audiences.
Zillah Byng-Thorne, Chief Executive, said:
“We are delighted to welcome both WhatCulture and Waive to Future. We look forward to working with WhatCulture to further diversify our content and revenue streams, and we are particularly excited about the video monetisation expertise and data insight capabilities that WhatCulture and Waive will bring to the Group respectively.”