Corporate video tycoons stay in focus after sale

Jul 4 2008 by Peter McCusker, The Journal

TWO North East media entrepreneurs have sold their business to an AIM-listed company founded by Bob Geldof in a deal which could eventually net them £750,000.

Nick Imrie and Sam Morton will continue the day-to-day running of their Newcastle-based corporate video company Twenty First Century Media Limited following its purchase by Ten Alps.

Ten Alps, which is listed on the AIM market and has an annual turnover of £81m, says the deal will allow it to move into a substantial new market which is still in its infancy.

Twenty First Century was formed five years ago and is now recognised as one of the main players in the world of corporate videos.

This market has changed significantly from the days when they were epics made for blue chip clients, featuring stars like John Cleese, to two minute shoots for companies to upload on their websites and costing in the region of £5,000.

The deal will guarantee the future of the 15 staff at the Jesmond company and may well fuel a period of substantial growth.

Adrian Dunleavy, CEO of Ten Alps’ communications division, in which Twenty First Century Media will operate, said: “This is a first class entrepreneurial business in what we see as one of our fastest growth markets.

“We’ve witnessed strong increases in demand for our video propositions in recent months across the B2B and public sectors.

“We are only scratching the surface of a potentially huge market and we welcome the additional resources and capacity that Twenty First Century Media will bring to us.

“We are aiming for a market leading position in this fast developing sector and look forward to continued growth as we continue the roll out of video services to our customer base and open up other channels.

Newcastle will become the hub for our video activities and we will be investing what is required to grow the business.”

Ten Alps will pay up to £750,000 for Twenty First Century, with an initial £200,000 on completion and further payments to follow over the next two years against the delivery of profit targets.

Twenty First Century’s client roster includes a range of corporate and public sector organisations such as Nike, Sage, the NHS and The Prince’s Trust.

Sam Morton, MD of Twenty First Century Media, added, “Naturally we are delighted and consider this our next step after just over five years of continuous growth. In those five years, and after producing hundreds of hours of film, it’s clear that online video production is tremendously exciting and increasingly relevant.

“I feel we have the track record and capabilities to continue to offer the business audience effective digital visual communication on a greater national scale. We are delighted to be joining Ten Alps.”

Tom Harvey, chief executive of Northern Film & Media, who was instrumental in introducing Twenty First Century to Ten Alps , said: “Twenty First Century Media is a strong and forward thinking company that has produced impressive creative and commercial work out of the North East for some time now.

“I think the deal is indicative of just how strong some of our region’s companies are and it is great news for Twenty First Century Media and entirely deserved.”