Media Prima acquires REV Asia for RM105 million

Among the online brands owned by REV Asia

Media Prima Berhad announced the landmark acquisition of a 100 percent equity interest in REV Asia Holdings by the Group’s wholly owned subsidiary, Media Prima Digital.

The acquisition which costs RM105.0 million is a major investment by Media Prima at it will see the group’s digital platform audience reach of up to 10.4 million (5 million pre-acquisition). This according to the company would establish Media Prima as the largest Malaysian digital media company and third overall in Malaysia after Google and Facebook with 15.7 million and 14.1 million respectively.

Rev Asia Holdings, a subsidiary of Rev Asia Berhad is one of Southeast Asia’s leading digital media groups. The company possess a strong track record in social media and online marketing through an established portfolio of well-known online consumer brands that cover a wide variety of segments including entertainment, lifestyle and social-millennial English, Malay and Chinese news.

Mohamad Ariff Ibrahim, Group Chief Financial Officer of Media Prima said the acquisition is timely as the Group has embarked aggressively on digital based initiatives to reduce dependency over traditional revenue base.

“At Media Prima, we are big believers in digital content and its growth prospects for the future. The strategic acquisition of REV Asia Holdings demonstrates our firm commitment to capitalise on the growing demand for digital content amongst consumers by expanding our reach and further enhancing the Group’s competencies in digital content marketing, digital content curation and digital native marketing ads,” he shared.

REV Asia according to Mohamad Ariff has a strong expertise in curating content for a lucrative market segment, consumers aged 18 – 35 years. The company’s online brands include SAYS.com, JUICE, OhBulan! and Klips.

REV Asia Holdings recorded revenue and profit after tax of RM23.5 million and RM4.2 million for the financial year ending 31 December 2016, representing a growth of 32 and 27 percent respectively compared to the previous financial year.

Rafiq Razali, Chief Executive Officer of Media Prima Digital, shared, “Media Prima is expected to derive potential synergistic benefits as the Group can expand its media offerings to general consumers, media buyers, advertisers and premium publishers.”

“REV Asia Holdings is a profitable company that recorded significant digital revenue growth from the company’s Social News segments since 2015. The company specialises in native content-based advertising which garners higher margins and their deep expertise in producing content for the age group is an additional value to Media Prima. This bodes well for the Group as we capitalise on the increasing importance of digital amongst advertisers.”

He also added that the immediate impact of this acquisition would be a massive base to up-sell Media Prima’s digital products and services by having a wider digital audience base in Malaysia.

“Media Prima has in the Group’s inventory a slew of digital products and consumer based services including tonton, FullAMark, CJ Wow Shop and mobile apps which will benefit from the additional reach provided by this acquisition,” said Rafiq.

Commenting on the acquisition, REV Asia Holdings’ Managing Director, Voon Tze Khay said “We are excited to be joining the Media Prima family and working together to transform the media landscape in Malaysia. Media Prima are true leaders in Malaysia’s media and television industry with a strong track record of success. Together, we are confident in our ability to expand our reach while solidifying our combined position as the number one digital media group in the country”.

Tze Khay added that he is looking forward to work in close collaboration with Media Prima Digital as both companies share the same vision and are confident that the integration of all REV Asia Holdings employees will occur smoothly.

Co-founder and Director of REV Asia Berhad, Patrick Grove, adds “The acquisition is a testimony to the strong leadership of Tze Khay and his team. REV Asia Holdings and Media Prima Digital are highly complimentary businesses, and there is strong strategic rationale underpinning the sale. I look forward to watching REV Asia Holdings grow exponentially together with Media Prima Digital.”

Media Prima had since 2016 launched several key initiatives to capitalise on the growing demand for digital services and online commerce amongst Malaysian consumers. Some of its new initiatives include the launch of CJ Wow Shop (home shopping via television broadcast and online), Super Deals (combining the potential of e-commerce and radio) and revamp of tonton (Malaysia’s leading Over the Top subscriber-based video streaming portal).