Media & Entertainment Acquisitions in Georgia

Allwyn International AG has completed the acquisition of a 62.3% stake in PrizePicks for $1.533 billion, subject to customary post-closing adjustments and excluding performance-based earnouts. PrizePicks, headquartered in Atlanta, will retain leadership continuity and expand its regulated prediction markets and new product offerings as part of Allwyn's strategy to grow its casual gaming entertainment footprint in the United States.

VERSANT (Nasdaq: VSNT) has completed its acquisition of Free TV Networks (FTN), a U.S. owner/operator of free over-the-air digital broadcast networks (diginets) and FAST channels. Financial terms were not disclosed; FTN will operate as a dedicated business within VERSANT and founder Jonathan Katz has joined VERSANT to continue leading FTN's operations.

McClatchy has completed a merger with accelerate360 to form the McClatchy Media Company (MMC), combining McClatchy's local journalism with a360media's lifestyle content and accelerate360's retail distribution and logistics network. Chatham Asset Management is the majority owner of the new company, which will operate a unified digital publishing and retail distribution platform reaching roughly 100 million unique visitors and access to over 56,000 retail locations.

4612 Group acquired ON Services, a national live event production and in-house audio-visual provider, in a transaction that includes key ON Services management (Brent Milner, Austin Milner and Stan Milner) as co-investors. ON Services will remain branded as ON Services / ON Site and continue to be led by CEO Brent Milner as a privately held company under the new ownership.

One Equity Partners (OEP) has completed the acquisition of Gamut and CoxReps from Cox Media Group (CMG). OEP will operate the two businesses as sibling companies to pursue deeper collaboration and invest in technology to accelerate growth in local video and streaming advertising while CMG retains commercial relationships with both businesses.

disguise, the London-based extended reality (xR) technology leader, has acquired Atlanta-based immersive studio Meptik to accelerate global delivery of immersive productions, studios and installations. Meptik will continue to operate as a separate entity while partnering with disguise on product roadmaps, new solutions and global deployments to expand disguise's creative and technical capabilities.

Silver Lake has made a $500 million strategic capital commitment to Shadowbox Studios (formerly Blackhall Studios) in a recapitalization that supports over $1.5 billion of planned soundstage development across Atlanta, London and Los Angeles. Commonwealth Asset Management remains the majority shareholder; the funding will accelerate geographic expansion and incremental production services while Silver Lake takes board representation.

Cincinnati-based The LC Group, a partner organization of creative agency Boonrise led by Joe Boyd, has acquired Leadercast, a long-running producer of leadership events and digital content. The deal will relocate Leadercast's headquarters from Atlanta, Georgia to downtown Cincinnati and accelerate the company's shift to a digital-first leadership platform through expanded offerings like Leadercast NOW.

KKR has made a significant strategic investment in PlayOn! Sports, the operator of the NFHS Network, alongside existing shareholder Panoramic Ventures. The growth capital will support PlayOn!'s product development and expansion of its high school sports media and technology offerings across the U.S.; financial terms were not disclosed.

Boston-based private equity firm Abry Partners acquired Best Lawyers, a provider of peer-reviewed legal rankings and marketing services headquartered in Augusta, Georgia, in a deal that also included Best Lawyers' management team. Levine Leichtman Capital Partners sold the company; financial terms were not disclosed. Abry said the investment will support continued product, technology and geographic growth.

iFIT, the Logan, Utah-based connected fitness company, has acquired 29029, the ultra-endurance event and community that stages Mount Everest–equivalent hiking challenges. The deal brings experiential events and wellness tourism capabilities to iFIT’s platform, while 29029’s founders will remain engaged to scale live outdoor adventures for iFIT’s global member base.

United Gaming, LLC acquired Amusement Sales and Service, Inc. (ASSI), a long-standing coin-operated amusement machine (COAM) operator based in Savannah, Georgia. The transaction expands United Gaming's statewide footprint in Georgia as part of its ongoing roll-up strategy and marks another add-on to its growing portfolio.

Questex has acquired the live and digital assets of Digital Signage Expo from Exponation LLC, including trademarks, websites, domain names, databases and attendee/vendor lists. The acquisition, executed by Questex (a MidOcean Partners–owned platform), expands Questex’s events and technology portfolio as an add-on to its experience-economy offerings.

United Gaming LLC, the largest operator of coin-operated amusement machines (COAMs) in Georgia, acquired the assets and team of Elite Amusement, Inc. The transaction was announced alongside a new $250 million senior secured multi-draw credit facility to support United Gaming's consolidation and expansion plans.

Accel Entertainment, Inc. has agreed to acquire Tom's Amusement Company, Inc., a Georgia-based coin-operated amusement machine (COAM) master licensee, expanding Accel's operations into the Southeastern United States. The deal adds 11 Georgia COAM Class B locations (65 terminals) to Accel's portfolio and is expected to close pending regulatory approvals from the Georgia Lottery Corporation.

Affiliates of Apollo Global Management completed the acquisition of a majority interest in Cox Media Group from Cox Enterprises, with Cox retaining a minority stake. The deal transfers ownership of CMG’s television and radio stations, Ohio newspapers, CoxReps and Gamut digital/OTT advertising businesses to the Apollo-backed company, which will continue to operate as Cox Media Group headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia.

Kayne Partners, the growth equity group of Kayne Anderson Capital Advisors, committed $15 million in growth equity to Ideas United to support the creative studio's global expansion and scaling of its content production, sales, and marketing capabilities. The investment will help Ideas United deepen its sales and marketing teams, expand its production infrastructure, and accelerate development of original content and experiential offerings.