Media and Games Invest SE: Tapping Into an Additional Innovative Growth Opportunity by Proving Successful Reactivation of Games Audiences Through Connected TV

• MGI successfully piloted innovative re-engagement campaigns for console gamers via Connected TV (CTV) through its Ad-Software-Platform, with very good results
• Overall 34% lower Costs Per Mille (CPM) and 12x higher conversion rates compared to other available channels were achieved
• Product unlocks remarkable Customer Lifetime Value and at least Enterprise Value of gaming companies
• Unique MGI-product-offering is expected to further strengthen and grow the Company’s position in CTV, a substantial market that, according to eMarketer, grew 71% in the U.S. in 2021 and is expected to grow a further 75% in 2022

May 16, 2022 – Media and Games Invest SE ("MGI" or the "Company", ISIN: MT0000580101; ticker M8G; Nasdaq First North Premier Growth Market and Scale Segment Frankfurt Stock Exchange; OTCQX ticker: MDGIF), a leading Ad-Software-Platform with proprietary first-party games content, today announced that the Group has unlocked previously untapped games console audiences for re-engagement on Connected TV (CTV) in a pilot project - which is the first of its kind in the industry and which opens up great potential for user acquisition as well as player lifetime expansion and Customer Lifetime Value in the games segment. MGI expects that this solution can further accelerate growth in its already strongly growing Connected-TV business on its Ad-Software-Platform providing an efficient solution to unlock enterprise value for gaming companies. 

The pilot project and its results

The pilot project was performed in close cooperation between MGI’s gaming studio gamigo and media unit Verve. The initial phase of this cross-channel reactivation pilot involved a series of tests with a popular MGI massively multiplayer online (MMO) game. The game’s lapsed users were divided into two subsets and were separated by their time of inactivity in the game. By uploading this data onto its in-house Ad-Software-Data-Platform, MGI was able to successfully reactivate lapsed console gamers through targeted campaigns via the Group’s DSP and by utilizing the CTV inventory available through the Group’s SSP. The pilot program was conducted in compliance with applicable privacy laws.

In the initial test, the pilot program’s games campaign saw 34% lower CPMs than on other available channels, making the campaigns substantially more efficient for the advertiser, with a 12-fold higher conversion rate. Multichannel re-engagement, especially (re)targeting console players via CTV ad-campaigns is an innovative way to re-engage or also attract new gamers. The results demonstrate the effectiveness of CTV re-engagement of gamers for both games publishers looking to reactivate lapsed users, as well as advertisers and brands looking to effectively market their products to an ever-growing cord-cutting audience. More prominently, the success of the campaign showcases the ability of CTV to offer high attention ad units to capture interest from a specific audience, while increasing brand awareness to align with a broader omnichannel marketing strategy. Showing videos instead of banners as well as being able to cover multiple segments with the unique MGI Ad-Software-Platform are the basis of this success.

Following on from this test and the promising results, MGI intends to expand the offering to desktop gamers as well as mobile advertisers to improve performance campaign KPIs by coupling them with CTV. The announcement comes on the heels of similar innovations from MGI made possible by the company’s proven buy-and-build strategy to facilitate long-term organic growth. MGI remains committed to providing premier solutions for advertisers and publishers navigating the industry’s most pressing challenges.

The average amount of time that consumers spend on games continues to increase, and games are becoming an increasingly omnichannel experience, with gamers routinely moving from one device to another. New advertising paradigms are required to reach gamer audiences, and MGI’s end-to-end multichannel Ad-Software-Platform is now uniquely positioned to unlock these cross-channel connections, helping publishers and advertisers to connect with consumers on multiple platforms serving relevant advertising experiences.

Connected-TV Market

CTV refers to TV devices like Smart TV’s or game consoles, that are connected to the internet either directly or via an adapter, which is a fast-growing market segment, and which are thus the counterpart to cable or satellite subscriptions, which are still dominant at present, but declining. The industry experts at eMarketer predict that by 2030, only 35% of U.S. households will have pay TV, compared to 58% today. The advantages of CTV for the audience are obvious. They are no longer limited to one screen and are also no longer limited to watching content at the moment it is broadcasted. Viewers can stream live content or watch video on demand, and they can access a vast selection either by subscribing to subscription services or by accessing ad-supported free content. The number of streaming providers has grown exponentially in recent years and audiences are feeling the burden of juggling multiple subscriptions. As a result, the new term "subscription fatigue" is discussed in trend reports. This trend could significantly accelerate the path for ad-supported video-on-demand (AVOD) in the coming years. Publishers can monetize their content with advertising instead of subscriptions with CTV devices, which would then play an important role in the process. With the right platform in combination with efficient as well as anonymized data analytics, advertisers can tailor their ad content to the right audience and content genre to drive engagement much more efficiently and accurately than with linear TV. As a result, audiences have the advantage that they can enjoy content for free and have fewer subscriptions to handle.

The growth potential in the CTV market is enormous. From 2020 to 2021, ad spending for ads shown on CTV devices in the U.S. increased by 60%. Until 2024, eMarketer analysts expect growth at a CAGR of approximately 28% to around USD 30bn in the United States alone.

CTV business accelerates the MGI Flywheel as part of the ad software platform 

As early as 2020, CTV has become a focus topic for MGI as part of its Ad-Software-Platform strategy. In early 2021, the key assets of Nexstar Inc., digital video advertising technology platform (formally known as LKQD) were acquired, adding key technologies as well as additional expertise in CTV.

Remco Westermann CEO of MGI

“Cross-channel campaigns, meaning the targeting of users across different channels such as in-app, mobile web, web, CTV or digital out of home, are a significant benefit that our Ad-Software-Platform offers to advertisers who no longer need different providers to run the same campaign on different channels. As such we can enable a significant gain in efficiency. This is especially important for games publishers, who can thus execute new user acquisition as well as re-engagement campaigns to reach the gamer communities and gain their attention with the right multi-channel offering. MGI is one of the early adopters of cross-channel campaigns and has several years of experience in this area. MGI has now also proven to be the first in the market to add Connected TV to its cross-channel offering, following intensive testing with its own games. This demonstrates how we can leverage innovation to create opportunities that further drive our flywheel. “

Responsible parties

The information in this release has been made public through the agency of the responsible persons set out below for publication at the time stated by MGI's news distributor EQS Newswire at the publication of this release. The responsible persons below may be contacted for further information.

For further information, please contact:

Sören Barz
Head of Investor Relations
+49 170 376 9571
soeren.barz@mgi-se.com, info@mgi-se.com
www.mgi-se.com

Jenny Rosberg, ROPA, IR contact Stockholm
+46707472741
Jenny.rosberg@ropa.se

Axel Mühlhaus / Dr. Sönke Knop, edicto GmbH, IR contact Frankfurt
+49 69 9055 05 51
mgi@edicto.de

About Media and Games Invest SE

Media and Games Invest SE (“MGI”) is an advertising software platform with strong first party games content. MGI’s main operational presence is in Europe and North America. The company combines organic growth with value-generating synergetic acquisitions, which has demonstrated continuous strong profitable growth with a revenue CAGR of 77% (2018 –2021). Next to strong organic growth, the MGI Group has successfully acquired more than 35 companies and assets in the past 6 years. The acquired assets and companies have been integrated and amongst others cloud technology is actively used to achieve efficiency gains and competitive advantages. MGI is registered as Societas Europaea in Malta (registration number SE 15) and its shares are listed on Nasdaq First North Premier Growth Market in Stockholm and in the Scale segment of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange. The Company has a secured bond that is listed on Nasdaq Stockholm and on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange Open Market.

The Company's certified advisor on Nasdaq First North Premier Growth Market is FNCA Sweden AB; info@fnca.se, +46-8-528 00 399.