Monstermob enters Chinese mobile market with ATOP Century acquisition |
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Tue, 23 Aug 2005 00:35
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LONDON - Monstermob Group Plc, the leading provider of mobile ringtones and games has announced that it is taking over Chinese mobile content services provider ATOP Century. This marks the group's entry into the lucrative Chinese mobile market, which is forecast to grow exponentially in the next five years. The deal has been negotiated for $100 million, Monstermob said on Monday.
Monstermob specializes in selling its goods to the youth segment of the market and focuses on the 16-30 years segment. "The transaction will enable Monstermob to expand substantially its international mobile content activities and to take advantage of the rapid growth in one of the world's largest mobile phone markets," the company said in a statement. Monstermob also said that
the deal would be in the nature of a 50 percent cash and 50 percent share one.
As an initial payment, Monstermob would be shelling out $30 million in cash and $12 million in shares as soon as the agreement is formalized. This deal comes in the wake of the £20 million allotment for the AIM-listed Monstermob to fund its international ambitions. The company's shares surged last week after it was speculated that it had made a lucrative deal in China. As mentioned, China and India are seen as the countries where the mobile sector is on the verge of a boom.
Analysts say that the mainland European as well as the US market has reached saturation and hence many businesses have turned their attention towards China.
Monstermob said that ATOP had a 1.25 million mobile subscriber-base in China making it a top service provider. The deal would go a long way in gaining a strong foothold in that country, Monstermob said. Monstermob Chairman Hans Snook released a statement saying, "The ATOP transaction marks our largest acquisition to date and is a great entry point into the rapidly growing Chinese mobile content market." In early trading this morning, Monstermob shares jumped 0.9 percent at 438-1/2 pence.
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