MENA territories swiftest growing media and entertainment start-up Minly, announces acquisition of Oulo, a Dubai-based celebrity shoutout platform that is focused mainly on the Levant region.
As per the Minly’s sources, the acquisition of Oulo will be aiding in the consolidation of its position as the prominent creator economy platform in the territory and also will be accelerating Minly’s growth trajectory as well as the client reach. The merged business will be operational under the Minly brand and will be rolling out its combined offerings across the entire territory.
The global creator economy market exceeds $100 billion in worth and is still mounting. Minly’s growth strategy for this market is raising a full-stack product suite authorizing content creators to offer meaningful experiences, across multiple mediums, to their fan base audiences.
As per the firm’s sources, the Mena territory will be having over 450 million individuals, of which 30% are between the ages of 18 to 30 – a group with a deep connection to social media, and fast contributing more to the global creator economy.
With this transactional agreement, Oulo’s founder and CEO, Kamal Nazha, will officially join Minly as Chief Commercial Officer.
Statement from Mohamed El-Shinnawy, co-founder and CEO of Minly
On the deal between the two firms, he stated: “We are delighted to join forces with Kamal and the Oulo team. Consumers want authentic access to celebrities more than ever before, whilst stars need platforms to connect personally with their fan base. These market dynamics are very powerful, and scale is a competitive differentiator.”
He also added: “Minly and Oulo share a common passion to create authentic enjoyable moments by connecting creators with their fans in unique ways, so we’re very excited about our future together in this fast-growing market.”
Statement from Kamal Nazha, founder and CEO of Oulo
He stated: “I am a big believer in the age-old proverb: If you can’t beat them, join them. I’ve always admired and respected the vision and execution of Minly, so I’m naturally very excited to join Shinnawy and the whole Minly team on this journey.”
He also added: “With its top-tier technology, investors, and team members, Minly is very well positioned to develop and dominate the creator economy market in the region and beyond, and I am very motivated to ensure this happens.”
As per the firm’s reports, Minly’s platform currently has over 1,30,000 users and more than 1,000 celebrities, also comprising Tamer Hosny, Fifi Abdou, and Dorra Zarrouk.
The firm also added that complementing its personalized video shoutouts, voice notes, and direct text messages, Minly had recently unveiled its Minly Watch service where the public can virtually attend online events performed by the region’s biggest stars, from anywhere in the world.
The platform’s debut event, an exclusive live concert by Egyptian rapper Wegz, set a regional record as the biggest virtual concert in MENA and was attended by over 32,000 fans across 31 nations.
Oulo is a video gifting platform with over 300 celebrities across Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq, and Saudi Arabia. It has produced thousands of unique video messages from leading celebrities like Bassel Khaiat, Ali Jaber, Maguy Farah, and others.
The company was founded in 2020 by Kamal Nazha after a career in investment banking, mostly at Deutsche Bank. In June 2021, Minly raised $3.6 million in Seed funding from 4DX Ventures, B&Y Venture Partners, and Global Ventures.
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