Gfinity PLC (AIM:GFIN) increased revenues by more than a quarter in its latest financial year as income from digital media (DGM) surged more than five-fold.
The esports specialist has pivoted to building its own communities, player hubs and technology and this was the future for the group and gaming said chairman Neville Upton.
“The real growth area is now grassroots competitive gameplay. Connecting with players and fans through engagement hubs that deliver entertainment, competitive play and chat forums is essential for game publishers as they look to extend the lifecycle of their games.
"This is equally important for brands and sports rights holders seeking ways to broaden their reach and better collect and utilise first-person data.”
Upton added that over the year the annualised value of each monthly user (MAU), a key metric for the group, had grown to over 15p from 4p.
"The GDM team is now focused in the short-to-medium term on driving 50 million MAUs at a target of 30p per MAU, which would generate revenue of £15.0m per annum. And in the medium-to-long-term, driving 100mln MAUs at 40p per MAU to generate revenue of £40.0m per annum," he added.
Acquisitions will also be a key part of the strategy he said following the recent deal to buy Megit, the owner and operator of the website Stock Informer, an ecommerce referral site for gamers and their lifestyles, and the purchase of fantasy gameplay community Epicstream in the financial year just ended.
Total group revenue in the year to end June 2021 rose by 27% to £5.7mln (2020: £4.5m) driven by a 768% increase in revenue attached to Gfinity owned and co-owned properties with digital media income rising to £1.6mln from £0.3mln.
Losses over the year were halved to £4.1mln from £8.2mln, reflecting a 35% reduction in overhead costs and higher revenues.
John Clarke, chief executive, added: "Over the past year, Gfinity has continued to embed itself into the gaming ecosystem by providing unique esports solutions and establishing a highly engaged community of gamers through the Gfinity Digital Media Group (GDM) and our proprietary technology IP.
"Looking ahead, we are now in a position to grow and monetise at scale. Despite ongoing uncertainty around Covid-19, macro trends around gaming are attractive and we remain focused on delivering against our strategy."