28 January 2025

Digitalbox plc

("Digitalbox" or the "Company")

Conclusion of the Strategic Review & End of Offer Period

Notice of Results and Investor Presentation

The Board of Digitalbox plc (AIM: DBOX), the mobile-first digital media business, which owns leading websites, including Entertainment Daily, The Daily Mash, The Tab, Emmerdale Insider and Royal Insider, is pleased to announce that it has concluded its strategic review  announced on 4th October 2024 ("Strategic Review").

Given the positive trading position of the Company and the expansion of the Company's portfolio over the past 12 months, the Board felt it was an appropriate time to deliver a Strategic Review, which may have included a possible sale of the Company, with the objective of maximising shareholder value. On 28 November 2024 the Company announced that the Strategic Review had progressed to a 'root and branch' appraisal of the existing business and the opportunities within it.

The Board has subsequently concluded that seeking to crystallise value through a sale of the Company at this time is not in the best interests of all stakeholders and the Board will continue to focus on maximising value through the expansion of its current model.

The key drivers of the Board's decision are:

·    After a period of significant disruption for news media brands in general, the Company's underlying portfolio including Entertainment Daily, The Daily Mash, The Tab, The Poke and TV Guide continues to trade well alongside a positive outlook fueled by forecast growth within the digital ad market;

·    The Company has diversified its revenue sources and further expanded its portfolio over the past year, which it expects will continue to contribute to greater operational trading resilience in the future;

·    The conclusion of the Strategic Review does not effect the Company's established process of exploring organic and acquisitive opportunities in the media market that take it beyond its current operating model;

·    The strengths contained within the current business enable a faster and more assured route to growth than a significant pivot of the business to an alternative unexplored model at this stage of the Company's development;

·    The Company will continue to develop its business through launching new products and remains alive to acquisition and merger opportunities that can maximise shareholder value.

The Board's decision is consistent with that of certain third party independent corporate advisers consulted during the Strategic Review and was led by Link Stone Advisory and the Company's independent Non-Executive Directors.

Digitalbox expects revenue for the period ending 31 December 2024 to be approximately £3.6m further to the announcement on 10 December 2024.

​

The Company is not in discussions with any party in relation to a sale and is not in receipt of any approaches. Consequently, as the Strategic Review has now concluded, the Company is no longer in an "offer period" as defined by the City Code on Takeovers and Mergers (the "Takeover Code") and the disclosure requirements pursuant to Rule 8 of the Takeover Code are no longer applicable from the time of this announcement.

Marcus Rich, Chairman, commented; "The completion of our Strategic Review marks an important milestone for Digitalbox plc. Over the past year, we have made significant progress in expanding and diversifying our portfolio, demonstrating the strength and resilience of our mobile-first digital media business. This review has provided a comprehensive assessment of our opportunities and confirmed the Board's belief in the potential of our current operating model.

"The decision not to pursue a sale of the Company at this time reflects our confidence in the underlying performance of our business and the considerable opportunities we believe lie ahead. Our brands, including Entertainment Daily, The Daily Mash, The Tab, The Poke, TV Guide, Emmerdale Insider and Royal Insider, continue to deliver strong trading results amongst improving industry conditions.

"By leveraging the solid foundation we've built, we believe the Company is well-positioned to accelerate growth through both organic initiatives and strategic acquisitions. The Board remains committed to exploring all avenues that will drive sustainable value creation for our shareholders.

"As we move forward, we will continue to focus on innovation and expansion while maintaining our agility in responding to new market opportunities. I would like to thank our shareholders, stakeholders, and team for their continued support as we embark on this next phase of development."

Notice of Results and Investor Presentation

The Company will announce its full year results for the 12 months ending 31 December 2024 ("FY24") on 25 March 2025.

James Carter, CEO, Richard Spilsbury, CFO and Jim Douglas, COO, will provide a live investor presentation relating to the Company's results for FY24 via the Investor Meet Company platform on 25 March 2025 at 10:00am.

The presentation is open to all existing and potential shareholders. Questions can be submitted pre-event via your Investor Meet Company dashboard up until 9am the day before the meeting or at any time during the live presentation.

Investors can sign up to Investor Meet Company for free and add to meet DIGITALBOX PLC via:

https://www.investormeetcompany.com/digitalbox-plc/register-investor

Investors who already follow DIGITALBOX PLC on the Investor Meet Company platform will automatically be invited.

Market abuse regulation: This announcement contains inside information for the purposes of Article 7 of Regulation (EU) No 596/2014 as it forms part of UK domestic law by virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 ("MAR"). The person responsible for arranging for the release of this announcement on behalf of the Company is James Carter, Chief Executive Officer.

Enquiries: 

​

About Digitalbox plc

Based in the UK, Digitalbox is a 'pure-play' digital media business with the aim of profitable publishing at scale on mobile platforms.

Digitalbox operates the following trading brands, "Entertainment Daily", "The Daily Mash", "The Tab", "The Poke", "TV Guide" and "Emmerdale Insider". Entertainment Daily produces and publishes online UK entertainment news covering TV, showbiz and celebrity news. The Daily Mash produces and publishes satirical news content. The Tab is the UK's biggest youth culture site fuelled by students. The Poke expertly curates and editorialises the funniest content from around the web and social media. TV Guide serves as the definitive guide to what is on TV. Emmerdale Insider charts the twists and turns of this ever present British soap staple. Royal Insider provides the latest information for royal family fans the world over.

Digitalbox primarily generates revenue from the sale of advertising in and around the content it publishes. The Group's optimisation for mobile enables it to achieve revenues per session significantly ahead of market norms for publishers on mobile.