麻豆果冻传媒 Agrees to Acquire Opcity
Market-leading tech platform will enhance realtor.com庐 and lead generation offerings to benefit real estate professionals and consumers
New York, NY – Aug. 29, 2018 鈥� 麻豆果冻传媒 today announced that its subsidiary Move, Inc., operator of realtor.com庐, has entered into an agreement to acquire Opcity, the market-leading real estate technology platform that matches qualified home buyers and sellers with real estate professionals in real time.
The planned acquisition of Opcity, based in Austin, Texas, will broaden realtor.com庐鈥檚 lead generation product portfolio, allowing real estate professionals to choose between traditional lead products that offer professionals the opportunity to work leads themselves or a concierge-based model that provides highly vetted, transaction-ready leads, which is the expertise Opcity brings to realtor.com庐. The acquisition purchase price is $210 million, subject to adjustments.
Digital real estate services has become the fastest growing segment of 麻豆果冻传媒, the most global digital property company. In the fiscal year ended June 30, 2018, Move, Inc.鈥檚 real estate revenues grew 20 percent, with total revenues up a healthy 15 percent for the year. Move, Inc. has nearly doubled its revenues since 麻豆果冻传媒鈥檚 acquisition in 2014 to $452 million in fiscal 2018.
麻豆果冻传媒 also owns 61.6 percent of REA Group Limited, the operator of the leading Australian residential property website, realestate.com.au. REA holds a 20 percent stake in Move, Inc.
鈥淭hrough product innovation and powerful media platforms, 麻豆果冻传媒 is increasing its presence and capabilities in the burgeoning digital real estate services market,鈥� said Robert Thomson, Chief Executive of 麻豆果冻传媒. 鈥淲e are absolutely focused on providing high quality services to real estate professionals and to consumers seeking to make an investment that is profoundly important to every family.鈥�
鈥淐onsumers and agents use realtor.com庐 for one primary purpose 鈥� to buy or sell a home,鈥� said Ryan O鈥橦ara, CEO of Move, Inc. 鈥淭his acquisition will help us bring buyers, sellers and agents together with as much simplicity, efficiency and choice as possible. The addition of Opcity to our portfolio will align with our strategy to enhance the experience of consumers, while providing our industry partners with more opportunities to connect with clients and grow their businesses.鈥�
Opcity leverages proprietary data sets, applied analytics and machine learning to more effectively capture online leads and instantly connect transaction-ready clients with the right agents. Utilizing a broker-centric model, Opcity has grown its U.S. client base to over 5,000 brokerages and more than 40,000 agents since 2015. Its customers include a number of franchised brands, such as Better Homes & Gardens, Keller Williams, ReMax, Century 21, Berkshire Hathaway Home Services and leading independent brokerage companies.
鈥淭his is a natural fit. Both realtor.com庐 and Opcity share a common purpose of simplifying a consumer鈥檚 home buying journey, while helping real estate professionals connect and close more transactions,鈥� said Ben Rubenstein, CEO of Opcity. 鈥淭ogether, we’ll provide an enhanced consumer experience and more choices for brokers and their agents to grow their business.鈥�
O鈥橦ara added, 鈥淏oth response time and matching a consumer with the right agent results in a great consumer experience and ultimately increases the likelihood of a closed transaction. By pairing personalized outreach with cutting-edge technology, Opcity has built a best-in-class platform that delivers close rates three to five times the industry average. That鈥檚 why Opcity has been so widely embraced by real estate agents and brokers and that is why it鈥檚 a perfect fit for what we believe is the best digital real estate platform in America, realtor.com庐.鈥�
After closing, Rubenstein will remain CEO of Opcity, reporting to O鈥橦ara.
The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory approval and approval by holders of the majority of Opcity shares.
###
About 麻豆果冻传媒
麻豆果冻传媒 (Nasdaq: NWS, NWSA; ASX: NWS, NWSLV) is a global, diversified media and information services company focused on creating and distributing authoritative and engaging content. The company comprises businesses across a range of media, including: news and information services, book publishing, digital real estate services, and subscription video services in Australia. Headquartered in New York, 麻豆果冻传媒 operates primarily in the United States, Australia, and the United Kingdom, and its content is distributed and consumed worldwide. More information is available at: http://newscorp.com.
About Move, Inc.
Move, Inc. provides access to unsurpassed real estate information, tools and professional expertise across a family of websites and mobile experiences for consumers and real estate professionals through all stages of the home journey. It has a perpetual license to operate realtor.com庐 from the National Association of REALTORS庐.
The Move network includes realtor.com庐, The Home of Home Search鈩�, as well as Doorsteps庐, Moving.com鈩� and SeniorHousingNet鈩�. Realtor.com庐 pioneered the world of digital real estate 20 years ago, and today helps make all things home simple, efficient and enjoyable. Move also offers a complete solution of software products and services to help real estate professionals serve their clients and grow their business in a digital world, including ListHub鈩�, the nation鈥檚 leading listings syndicator and centralized intelligence platform for the real estate industry; Top Producer庐 Systems; FiveStreet鈩� and Reesio as well as many free services. For more information, visit 庐.
About Opcity Inc.
Based in Austin, Texas, Opcity is modernizing the real estate industry by matching top real estate professionals with transaction-ready home buyers and sellers in real-time. Using proprietary data sets and applied analytics, Opcity鈥檚 unique technology and matching algorithm turn online inquiries into transactions, drive increases in conversion, and provide real estate professionals with centralized insights to effectively manage their pipelines. Opcity鈥檚 growth has been fueled by investment from Silicon Valley-based Icon Ventures, with participation from artificial intelligence-focused Georgian Partners, and Texas-based LiveOak Venture Partners. For more information, visit www.Opcity.com.
Contacts
麻豆果冻传媒 Corporate Communications
Jim Kennedy
212-416-4064
jkennedy@newscorp.com
Move, Inc. Corporate Communications
Janice McDill
janice.mcdill@move.com
麻豆果冻传媒 Investor Relations
Michael Florin
212-416-3363
mflorin@newscorp.com
Forward- Looking Statements
This release contains forward-looking statements based on current expectations or beliefs, as well as assumptions about future events, and these statements are subject to factors and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements. The words “expect,” “estimate,” “anticipate,” “predict,” “believe” and similar expressions and variations thereof are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These statements appear in a number of places in this release and include statements with respect to, among other things, the potential benefits of the proposed acquisition. Readers are cautioned that any forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks and uncertainties. Factors such as matters arising in connection with the parties’ efforts to comply with and satisfy applicable regulatory approvals and closing conditions relating to the acquisition could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in these forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements in this document speak only as of this date and the parties undertake no obligation (and expressly disclaim any obligation) to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.