MeetMe Announces Closing of if(we) Acquisition and Rebrands to The Meet Group
April 03 2017 - 4:15PM
Business Wire
MeetMe, Inc. (NASDAQ: MEET), a public market leader in the
mobile meeting space, has completed its acquisition of Ifwe Inc., a
social and mobile technology company.
MeetMe expects the acquisition to strengthen its ability to
create shareholder value by expanding its global portfolio of
branded meeting apps for meeting new people. The if(we) acquisition
is expected to contribute $9 million of adjusted EBITDA in the
first 12 months post-close and to provide the combined company with
a path forward for generating $150 million in annualized revenue
and $50 million of adjusted EBITDA.
To better encapsulate the company’s mission to innovate,
acquire, and build the largest mobile portfolio of brands for
meeting new people, MeetMe, Inc. has also changed its name to The
Meet Group, Inc., effective today. Moving forward, The Meet Group
will be the parent company of the MeetMe, Skout, Tagged, and Hi5
brands, as well as the vehicle with which the company intends to
pursue future acquisitions.
“We are excited to close the acquisition of if(we) and welcome
our new team members and brands to The Meet Group. Our growing
portfolio unites all of our brands with a singular purpose: to meet
the universal need for human connection,” said Geoff Cook, CEO of
The Meet Group. “We are no longer MeetMe, Inc. running a single
app, but a global portfolio of mobile meeting apps that spans ten
million monthly active users. As The Meet Group continues to add
brands to its global portfolio that can leverage our cutting-edge
technology for bringing the right people together and meeting their
need for connection, we believe we will build a solid foundation
for long-term growth and shareholder value creation.”
“The Meet Group is larger than dating,” Cook continued. “Our
users come to meet, chat, and hang out. Our communication model is
open, and we believe our revenue model is optimized to retain users
longer, not chase them away with paywalls. We believe the new
umbrella brand will better position the company to consolidate the
fragmented mobile meeting industry into an efficiently run
portfolio.”
In connection with closing of the if(we) acquisition, The Meet
Group granted options to purchase an aggregate of up to 75,000
shares of its common stock and restricted stock awards representing
an aggregate of 717,500 shares of common stock to 83 former if(we)
employees as an inducement material to their employment. Each
option has a ten-year term, a three-year vesting period and an
exercise price of $5.74 per share, the closing price per share of
the company’s common stock on the grant date. Each restricted stock
award vests one-third each year during a three-year vesting period.
Vesting on both is subject to continued employment. The grants were
approved by the company’s Board of Directors, including a majority
of its independent directors, and were made in accordance with
NASDAQ Listing Rule 5635(c)(4).
About The Meet Group
The Meet Group (NASDAQ: MEET) is a fast-growing portfolio of
mobile apps designed to meet the universal need for human
connection. Using innovative products and sophisticated data
science, The Meet Group keeps its approximately 2.8 million mobile
daily active users engaged and originates untold numbers of casual
chats, friendships, dates, and marriages. The Meet Group offers
advertisers the opportunity to reach customers on a global scale
with hundreds of millions of daily mobile ad impressions. The Meet
Group utilizes high user density, economies of scale, and leading
monetization strategies with the goal of maximizing adjusted
EBITDA. Our apps – currently MeetMe®, Skout®, Tagged®, and Hi5® –
let users in more than 100 countries chat, share photos, stream
live video, and discuss topics of interest, and are available
on iPhone, iPad, and Android in multiple
languages. For more information, please
visit http://www.themeetgroup.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements in this press release are forward-looking
statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation
Reform Act of 1995, including whether the (if)we acquisition will
strengthen our ability to create shareholder value from expanding
our global portfolio of branded meeting apps for meeting new
people, whether the if(we) acquisition will contribute $9 million
of adjusted EBITDA in the first 12 months post-close and provide
the combined company a path to $150 million in annualized revenue
and $50 million of adjusted EBITDA, whether The Meet Group brand
will better encapsulate our mission to innovate, acquire, and build
the largest mobile portfolio of brands for meeting new people,
whether we will pursue future acquisitions as intended and The Meet
Group will be the vehicle therefor, whether all brands under The
Meet Group will leverage cutting-edge technology to bring the right
people together to meet their need for connection, whether we will
build a solid foundation for long-term growth and shareholder value
creation, whether our revenue model is optimized to retain users
longer and not chase them away with paywalls, whether the new
umbrella brand will better position the company to consolidate the
fragmented mobile meeting industry into an efficiently run
portfolio. All statements other than statements of historical facts
contained herein are forward-looking statements. The words
“believe,” “may,” “estimate,” “continue,” “anticipate,” “intend,”
“should,” “plan,” “could,” “target,” “potential,” “project,” “is
likely,” “expect” and similar expressions, as they relate to us,
are intended to identify forward-looking statements. We have based
these forward-looking statements largely on our current
expectations and projections about the proposed acquisition and
future events and financial trends that we believe may affect our
financial condition, results of operations, business strategy and
financial needs. Further information on our risk factors is
contained in our filings with the Securities and Exchange
Commission, including the Form 10-K for the year ended December 31,
2016, the Form 8-K as filed on March 6, 2017. Any forward-looking
statement made by us herein speaks only as of the date on which it
is made. Factors or events that could cause our actual results to
differ may emerge from time to time, and it is not possible for us
to predict all of them. We undertake no obligation to publicly
update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new
information, future developments or otherwise, except as may be
required by law.
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version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20170403006525/en/
MEET Investor Contact:MKR Group Inc.Todd
Kehrlimeet@mkr-group.com
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