John N. Marchesini

DULCEDO Management bought Node App for $13M. This marks Dulcedo’s 5th acquisition since 2016. Let's break it down... ---SELLER: Node--- • AI-powered influencer marketing platform • Mission = bridge gap between small businesses and micro-influencers • Founded 2019 by Armin Faraji, Mackenzie Dérival ✌🏾 • Initially focused on restaurants, expanded to ecom brands • Focuses on Instagram, TikTok campaigns • 2021 raised $1M seed round from Techstars, Alchemist, strategic angels ---TECH OVERVIEW: Node App--- • In 2022 selected for Google for Startups Accelerator program • Pioneered a machine-learning technology to revolutionize agency workflows by improving influencer discovery and data reporting • “Creators can participate in brand campaigns in 3 clicks via Node, as opposed to pitching/negotiating with brands” • “Brands can create a campaign and begin interacting with influencers within 5-10 min of landing on Node's website” ---PERFORMANCE HIGHLIGHTS: Node App--- • Over 2,000 clients across North America • Generated “tens of millions of social media impressions” • Clients incl Kraft, Samsonite, Jarritos, St-Regis, Marriott • Has activated 5,000+ content creators in campaigns • Creators include A-list models, elite athletes, actors, social influencers • During pandemic scaled from 30 to 800 brands five months ---BUYER: Dulcedo Group--- • Global talent mgmt and digital marketing agency • 4 divisions – Models, Sports, Gaming, Influencer • Offices in Montreal and Toronto • Founded 2008 by CEO Karim Leduc • 3 co-owners incl founder • 70+ team members ---M&A HISTORY: Dulcedo Group--- • 2022 acquired C4G, a startup esports marketing agency • 2016 acquired 4249, an influencer relations agency • 2023 acquired Influence + All Management • 2023 acquired Sundae Creative Agency • 2024 acquired Node ---DEAL DETAILS--- • $13M purchase price • No other details were disclosed ---DEAL VALUE PROP--- • Give Node added funding, resources for growth • Access to Dulcedo's 300M network following  • Access to Dulcedo’s diverse creator roster to support IM campaigns across various industries • Accelerate development of AI-enabled tools to enhance the IM campaign lifecycle ---POST DEAL OPS--- • Dulcedo CEO will serve as interim Node CEO • Node co-founder Armin Faraji moves to COO • Node co-founder Mackenzie Dérival remains as CPO ---WHAT ELSE I FIND INTERESTING--- I'll write more about the deal in my Friday newsletter. I'll estimate Node's revenue and EBITDA, and discuss valuation multiples and likely deal structure. Signup link in comments below 👇 -- I'm the founder of RockWater Industries. We do M&A and strategy advisory for media, agencies, and creator economy. My DMs are open.

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Dude Perfect raised $100M for global biz expansion. The deal is getting lots of buzz, but our team’s math signals challenges ahead. Let’s break it down… DEAL DETAILS • $100 - 300M growth capital investment • Led by Highmount Capital • Unclear if 100% invested upfront OR draw down of commitment over time • No previous capital raised USE OF FUNDS • Hire mgmt team to expand biz • More live experiences incl int’l tour, consumer products • Grow content formats, frequency, channels, global localization e.g. animation, TV, movies, streaming • Extend brand beyond 5 founders by building talent network • New HQ in Frisco, TX as prod facility and “family-friendly entertainment destination”: – Retail store, podcasts / gaming / fan UGC spaces, trick shot tower, DP museum, mini golf, restaurants – Original plans for 3-story, 30 acre facility est to cost $100M+, 2 yrs to build COMPANY OVERVIEW: Dude Perfect • Digital-native comedy and sports media brand • Faith-based mission: “We’re about giving back, spreading joy and glorifying Jesus Christ”  • Other YouTube franchises: “Stereotypes,” “Overtime”, “Bucket List”  • Media brand also incl books, mobile games, board games and toys, and merch / retail / food and beverage partnerships • 25 current team members PERFORMANCE HIGHLIGHTS • 60M YouTube Followers, 17B views • Est 2024 revenue: $50M per DP • Est 2023 and 2022 revenue: $25M and $20M per WSJ  • Consumer product partnerships incl Nerf toy line, Columbia Sportswear • Partnered with A Parent Media co to launch a streaming service • ESPN “30 for 30” doc premiering at Dallas Int’l film festival • TV series on CMT in 2016, later aired on Nickelodeon • Alternate broadcasts for Amazon’s Thursday Night Football • 4 live nationwide tours as of 2023 ORIGIN STORY • Founded 2009 by 5 friends at Texas A&M • Cofounders = twins Coby Cotton and Cory Cotton, Tyler Toney, Cody Jones, Garrett Hilbert • Started as YT channel featuring trick shot videos INVESTOR OVERVIEW: Highmount Capital • Growth stage and middle mkt PE fund for tech, media, healthcare • Founded in 2023 by jason illian and David Hawkins • 4 team members on website + advisor • 3 team members have faith-based ties per bios • No other investments listed on website other than DP My takeaway... I really like and support the trend of increased investment into YouTubers and digital-native media brands. But as I wrote about in my 2024 State of Creator x Media capital markets reports (will link them below), investment must match market and opportunity size. To ensure good ROI, and to set good precedent for future investment into our space. The DP bet is exciting, but could be overly optimistic based on our prelim math. My colleague Michael Booth's post breaks the math down (link below). More analysis to come in my Friday newsletter. —- I’m the founder of RockWater Industries. We do m&a and strategy advisory for media, agencies, and creator economy. My dm’s are open. #media #agency #creatoreconomy

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Packed house for #ATSL24 and a great discussion between Jeff Green, CEO of The Trade Desk and our own Ciarán O'Kane of FPC and ExchangeWire. The discussion touched on the lack of VC participation in AdTech (despite being a $1 Trillion addressable market). “Generalist VCs avoided AdTech because it’s complex. They often don’t understand why they’d win or lose”. This summed up exactly why FirstPartyCapital exists. A $1T+ complex sector needs specialists to fund innovation, provide deeper DD, illuminating context, access to networks and relevant portfolio support. Over time we hope this provides a stronger signal to generalist VCs and PEs. Look out for Rich Ashton Jack Tunney Alex Powell Mike Follett Mark Giblin Dan Jones Rafael Michelucci Ed French Shane Shevlin Lumen Research LightBox TV Contxt Media Bedrock Platform Exiber Pixels AI

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Been thinking about this a lot recently: the J-curve for gaming investments. Takes more capital and more time to launch a game compared to a consumer app or LLM-wrapper. This is more similar to biotech or hardtech investing but with less moats (no patents, no capex, Tencent/Netease might fast follow you). A few ideas to ease the curve: - Move faster with AI-enabled production (sfx, vfx, code, 2d assets, video) - Bootstrap to more before raising - Earlier liquidity through pre-sales (kickstarter or NFTs) - Go after high-leverage, multiplayer genres - Playtest earlier to get to retention earlier What else?

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If you've ever wondered what the original Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) has in common with Hamster Kombat read my latest in CoinDesk "For as long as video games have existed, they have been played by children. I played them ... and still do" https://lnkd.in/g3gycBU6 #crypto #cryptocurrrency #web3 #games #gaming #taptoearn #telegram #TON #telegramopennetwork #digitalassets #blockchain

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Since the last quarterly earnings call, Threads has notably taken steps toward integrating with ActivityPub, the decentralized protocol that powers networks like Mastodon. In March, the company allowed U.S.-based users over 18 to connect their accounts to the fediverse so their posts would show up on other servers. I have discussed a little bit on what the "Fediverse" is and how the "ActivityPub" protocol works in my newsletter here are the links, if you are interested: Read My Newsletter: https://lnkd.in/d34BcjpZ Read On My Blog: https://lnkd.in/dJGGAqek You can also get in touch with me: https://lnkd.in/d5XMis58 #threads #fediverse #mastodon #activitypub #protocol #socialmedia #social #meta #metamates #engineering #technology #boredtoolbox

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A balanced reward system will need to be transparent, as well as think beyond token utility to consider the quality of engagement value, argues Dave Catudal. https://lnkd.in/gqxmwdfv

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My thanks to Fubo’s Co-Founder and CEO, David Gandler, who sat down with me for an in-depth discussion about their lawsuit filed against Disney, FOX, and WBD, its Q1 earnings numbers, industry challenges around content licensing pricing and bundling and Fubo’s goal to get to profitability in 2025. Listen here: https://lnkd.in/e5eYZFXT David defines antitrust, why Fubo believes the JV is anticompetitive and how the suit's outcome could impact the entire industry. We also highlight why so many carriage disputes are happening, leading to a fragmentation of sports content and an unfriendly fan experience. We discuss the pricing and bundling of vMVPD services, including how Fubo picks RSNs to work with and why pricing for OTT services never goes down. Finally, David recaps Fubo’s most recent earnings, including its subscriber growth numbers, lower net loss, the recent reduction of its debt, and Fubo's operating plan as they work towards profitability. Listen here: https://lnkd.in/e5eYZFXT -- #fubo #SVOD #AVOD #streamingmedia Disclaimer: I do not own any stock in Fubo, Disney, FOX or WBD.

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If anyone is in North County San Diego, on Thursday May 2nd, we will be hosting a tech entrepreneur and investor meet up at 5:30pm. We’ll have a couple speakers, one of which is a fin-tech start-up raising a round, followed up by a presentation on the state of the stock & crypto market. We host these events quarterly and usually get a lot of founders and investors to attend. If anyone is interested, please message me and I can send you the details. LaunchPad San Diego #startups #startupincubator #entrepreneur #investing #crypto #meetup

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Neon just leveled up with a $14M funding round, and this one’s not about playing it safe. Led by Renegade Partners, with Thrive Capital, Andreessen Horowitz (A16Z GAMES SPEEDRUN), SciFi VC, and Ribbit Capital in the mix, this San Francisco crew isn’t tinkering with the system—they’re torching it and rebuilding from the ground up. Neon’s vision is clear: give game developers the tools to go direct-to-consumer, keep their cash, and finally break free from the app store chokehold. Let’s face it, the 30% cut that app stores demand isn’t just steep—it’s suffocating. Neon is here to pull developers out of that quicksand. Their platform builds custom web stores that aren’t just functional but immersive, giving players a seamless journey from in-game to D2C. Developers can integrate LiveOps features, create dynamic offers, and take control of their monetization. Neon handles all the messy backend—payments, tax compliance, fraud protection—so studios can stop sweating the details and focus on creating games that players actually love. This isn’t Neon’s first rodeo. CEO Chris Faught has seen it all, with a résumé spanning Affirm, Unity, and Netflix. He’s betting on this moment as gaming’s ultimate inflection point. Chris put it bluntly: “For the first time in 40 years, developers can step out from behind the platforms and build their own brands.” The shift isn’t theoretical—it’s happening now. Advances in tech like WebGL, cross-platform gaming, and AI have already started leveling the field, and Neon’s at the front of the pack. And here’s the kicker: the results are already ridiculous. Studios like Metacore and Space Ape Games are seeing up to four times the average order value on Neon-powered stores compared to in-game purchases. Nearly half the transactions come through payment methods app stores don’t even support, and over a third of players are coming back for more, month after month. Even better? Neon-powered stores are unlocking brand-new spenders—players who never clicked “buy” in-game but are dropping serious coin online. This isn’t just about cutting costs—it’s about shifting culture. Players are tired of feeling like a faceless transaction, and developers are done playing second fiddle to platforms. Neon’s giving both sides something better: direct relationships, fairer pricing, and experiences that actually feel personal. With this $14M, Neon’s about to kick it into overdrive. They’re doubling their team, ramping up product development, and bringing their vision to even more studios around the world. It’s not just a funding round; it’s fuel for a revolution. The gaming industry’s walls are coming down, and Neon’s smashing through them with precision. #Gaming #D2C #DirectToConsumer #GameDevelopers #LiveOps #Monetization #Payments #FinTech #Technology #Innovation #TechEcosystem #StartupEcosystem #VentureCapital #StartupFunding #WebGL #CrossPlatformGaming #CPG #AI #GamingAI #Startups

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