Swedish company M.O.B.A. Network has announced the acquisition of one of the world’s largest gaming forums, ResetEra, for a whopping $4.55 million.
If you follow video game news and the wider industry, you’re likely to see ResetEra mentioned quite frequently. The forum, which was created in 2017 after NeoGAF was rocked by allegations of misconduct against its owner, earns approximately $700,000 per year through ads. Its members include numerous video game industry professionals as well as journalists.
“M.O.B.A. Network sees significant opportunities to increase advertising revenue through a higher share of direct sales, implementation of new ad formats, and a long-term product development strategy,” reads a press release. “M.O.B.A. Network, therefore, estimates that ResetEra.com can grow sales significantly in 2022 while maintaining an EBITDA [Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation, and Amortization] margin.”
In a few short years, ResetEra has garnered over 45 million forum posts and about 55,000 members. Its moderators work on a voluntary basis.
Over on the forum, owner Cerium assured members that the site’s day-to-day operations won’t change and M.O.B.A. Network will remain hands-off.
“I’ve wrestled with this decision for a long time now, but when I’m honest with myself I know I won’t be able to keep doing this forever,” Cerium wrote. “The right thing to do was to find a responsible buyer for the site.”
Cerium revealed that there were several interested buyers, but he chose M.O.B.A. Network because it has a good track record of acquiring sites and giving them the resources they need to succeed without interfering in their operations.
