Bidstack Group PLC (AIM:BIDS, OTC:FTBGF) has announced a new high-profile team-up, unveiling a partnership with NFL franchise the Washington Commanders.
It is part of a collaboration with the StatusPRO organisation and will see AIM-quoted Bidstack help deliver advertising assets into the Commanders’ virtual stadium, a replication of FedEXField, in a VR simulation called NFL PRO ERA on Meta’s Oculus Quest.
The company’s technology, which promises to allow the NFL franchise to independently control the native marketing and commercial inventory within the VR experience, is expected to be rolled out with NFL PRO ERA across 30 replicated virtual stadiums across the league.
“Our partnership with the NFL franchise Washington Commanders and StatusPRO with their game NFL PRO ERA, will be the first time a sports team real-time control of their virtual stadium, for brand activations and fan engagement messaging,” said Bidstack chief executive James Draper.
"Mapping our technology behind the billboard placements is nothing new for us, but this use case, with a team acting as a licensed partner of ours, is low-touch, high margin for Bidstack.
“Bidstack Sports we feel will transform licensed sports simulation games forever, with teams utilising their virtual real estate as a platform to communicate, engage and monetise.”
In London, Bidstack shares rose nearly 6% to trade at 0.9p per share, valuing the company at just under £12 million.
The NFL game tie-up comes during a week of tumult as the share reached a low on Tuesday after a small group of activist retail investor levered their shareholdings to push for change within Bidstack’s management.
Bidstack on Tuesday said it would carry out a review of the composition of the board and its advisers, whilst adding to the calendar a shareholder meeting at which there’ll be a vote over the future of two Bidstack directors.
The meeting, which will be held on 27 July in London, was requisitioned by eight retail investors that clubbed together to build a 5.25% stake.
The resolutions to be proposed at the general meeting are to remove chief strategy officer Lisa Hau and non-executive director Glen Calvert and to appoint Nick Hargrave, formerly of Rothschild and UBS, as a director.
Hargrave (not to be confused with Theresa May’s Downing Street adviser of the same name) is a founder of Moulton Harrox Members (MHM) which is described as “a subscription-based publisher of investment ideas”.
The Bidstack board, meanwhile, said it would use its combined 15.79% shareholdings to vote against the meeting resolutions and has commitments from shareholders representing another 9.23%.
Last month, Bidstack reported results that showed an increased loss of £7.7mln for last year, on revenue up 101% to £5.3mln.
After a contract tussle with European partner Azerion, leading to a termination of its commercial partnership last December, revenues for the first half of 2023 are expected to be roughly flat at £2mln which it said showed a "strong recovery following re-engagement with agencies and programmatic platforms".