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Entercom Rebrands, Changes Name to Audacy

Entercom Rebrands, Changes Name to Audacy

New Brand Marks Company’s Transformation into a Scaled Multi-Platform Audio Content and Entertainment Leader

PHILADELPHIA–(BUSINESS WIRE)–
Entercom Communications Corp. (NYSE: ETM) today announced that it is transitioning its brand name to Audacy, effective immediately.

Over the past three years, the company has purposefully evolved into a scaled, multi-platform audio content and entertainment organization with the country’s best radio broadcasting group and a leadership position in virtually every segment of the dynamic and growing audio market—including broadcasting, podcasting, digital, network, live experiences, music, sports and news. Audacy isalso the #1 creator of original, premium audio content.

“We have transformed into a fundamentally different and dramatically enhanced organization and so it is time to embrace a new name and brand identity which better reflects who we have become and our vision for the future,” said David Field, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer, Audacy. “‘Audacy’ captures our dynamic creativity, outstanding content and innovative spirit as we aspire to build the country’s best audio content and entertainment platform.”

The company’s evolution has been fueled by a number of significant moves, including:

  • Acquiring CBS Radio, building scale as one of the two largest radio broadcasting groups, with unrivaled leadership in news and sports.
  • Launching RADIO.COM and building the fastest growing digital audio platform.
  • Acquiring Cadence13 and Pineapple Street Studios, establishing Audacy as one of the three largest podcasting publishers, with the industry’s most award-winning, critically-acclaimed content and the most shows consistently ranked in the top 100 on Triton’s U.S. Podcast Report.
  • Becoming the primary companion podcast partner of leading brands including HBO, Netflix, Nike and others.
  • Enhancing its best-in-class sports platform with the acquisition of QL Gaming Group and a ground-breaking partnership with FanDuel.
  • Establishing strategic partnerships with Apple, Google, Amazon, Twitch and others, to enable its listeners to connect seamlessly with Audacy audio content wherever and whenever they want it.
  • Acquiring Podcorn, the #1 podcast influencer marketplace in the country, pairing brands and podcast creators more effectively through an influencer marketplace with self- and full-service options for brands to connect with podcast creators for native advertising.
  • Creating some of the nation’s best music festivals and exclusive, boutique listening experiences.
  • Continuously investing in data, analytics and attribution capabilities, enabling advertisers to connect with scale and precision to over 170 million listeners monthly.

“This moment is not just a change of sign, but a sign of change. Our new brand encapsulates who we’ve become in audio and will guide our forward aspirations,” said Paul Suchman, Chief Marketing Officer, Audacy. “We are bringing it to life across all touchpoints inside and outside the organization and look forward to delivering on its promise every day.”

As it begins the next chapter in its journey, Audacy today made a number of additional content and product announcements. These include:

  • An exclusive podcast partnership with global superstar Demi Lovato, renowned singer, actress, and activist, whose tremendous talent, transparency and honesty has earned her hundreds of millions of devoted fans around the world. Demi will host her first-ever podcast with Cadence13, which will be produced by OBB Sound, the audio division of OBB Media, and SB Projects. More details coming in May.
  • New original podcasts and other projects that will air exclusively on Audacy’s digital platform including new shows from Boomer Esiason, Big Tigger and “The Rich Eisen Show,” as well as a revamped “Loveline” set to debut this summer. Additionally, a number of original podcasts will launch exclusively in a bingeable window on Audacy’s app.
  • A partnership with BetMGM, further cementing Audacy’s dominant position in sports betting and entertainment. This follows last week’s announcement of a partnership with Rush Street Interactive.
  • A partnership with Irving Azoff’s Global Music Rights, which will enable the company to add significantly enhanced on-demand and other interactive features to its digital platform.

Audacy engages over 170 million consumers each month across its connected platform including the Audacy app and website, over 230 radio stations across 47 markets, influential chart-topping podcasts and premium live music experiences.

The company’s ticker symbol will change from ETM to AUD effective on or about Friday, April 9, 2021. Along with the name Entercom, effective today, the company will also sunset the RADIO.COM brand and align its direct-to-consumer platform under Audacy. Cadence13, Pineapple Street Studios, BetQL and Podcorn remain market-facing brands.

No action is required by existing shareholders with respect to the name and ticker symbol change. Certificates representing common shares of Entercom will not need to be exchanged as a result of the name change.

Learn more at www.audacyinc.com or on the Audacy app, and follow Audacy for the latest news and events on Facebook (Audacy Corp) and Twitter (@AudacyCorp).

About Audacy

Entercom Communications Corp. (NYSE: ETM), soon to be Audacy, Inc. (NYSE: AUD), is a scaled, multi-platform audio content and entertainment company with the country’s best radio broadcasting group, a leader in virtually every segment of audio, and America’s #1 creator of original, premium audio. Audacy engages over 170 million consumers each month, bringing people together around the news, sports, podcasts and music that matter to them. Learn more at www.audacyinc.com, Facebook (Audacy Corp) and Twitter (@AudacyCorp).

Ashok Sinha

Audacy

917-656-5800

[email protected]

Nicole Pampe

BCW

512-987-6024

[email protected]

Additional media assets available via Electronic Press Kit

KEYWORDS: United States North America Pennsylvania

INDUSTRY KEYWORDS: Marketing Entertainment Advertising Communications Other Entertainment TV and Radio

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Fortinet Enhances Students’ Cybersecurity Awareness and Safety with Availability of Free Training and the Release of a New Children’s Book

“Cyber Safe: A Dog’s Guide to Internet Security” Available Globally to Make the Internet a Safer Place for All Children

SUNNYVALE, Calif., March 30, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) —

John Maddison, EVP of Products and CMO at Fortinet

“Fortinet’s mission is to secure people, devices and data everywhere. As part of this mission the company is committed to educating the global community on cybersecurity knowledge and skillsets regardless of age, background or life experiences as cybersecurity affects everyone. Fortinet’s NSE 1 and NSE 2 training courses are available for free as part of the NSE Training Institute and can be taken by anyone of any age, including children.”

Renee Tarun, Deputy CISO and VP Information Security at Fortinet and Co-Author of “Cyber Safe”

With more children being online for prolonged periods of time as a result of remote learning, it’s especially important to educate our youth about internet safety. The “Cyber Safe” book was written to help protect kids by teaching them from an early age how to behave and to keep themselves safe online.”

News Summary

Fortinet® (NASDAQ: FTNT), a global leader in broad, integrated and automated cybersecurity solutions, today announced continued commitment to educate students and underrepresented groups on cyber awareness and safety. In addition to Fortinet’s NSE 1 and NSE 2 training courses focused on fundamental cyber awareness providing an overview of threat actors and their tactics, Fortinet is releasing a children’s book designed to increase cyber awareness amongst children ranging from 7 to 12 years old. The book “Cyber Safe: A Dog’s Guide to Internet Security” was co-authored by Renee Tarun, Deputy CISO at Fortinet.

  • The release of this children’s book further builds on Fortinet’s NSE 1 and NSE 2 training courses’ focus on basic cyber awareness and an overview of threat actors and their tactics. These two courses – part of the eight-level NSE Certification Program – are free for anyone interested and is for all ages including young children.
  • The children’s book takes readers on a journey to learn how the Internet is a useful place, and how to stay secure. Lacey, the cyber smart dog teaches her friend Gabbi the cat how to use the Internet safely.
  • With a strong focus on seeding cybersecurity education at all levels, Fortinet will make copies of the book available to elementary and middle schools across the country to instill a strong foundation of cybersecurity at an early age as part of the NSE Training Institute’s initiatives to close the skills gap.

Instilling Foundational Cyber Awareness Knowledge from an Early Age

A year into the pandemic and many students are still learning virtually. With the onslaught of new devices on the home network linking students to teachers, threat actors have identified an open opportunity to execute ransomware attacks, target specific devices to steal information and compromise public school districts’ security defenses. Young children are especially a vulnerable target for cyber criminals due to their little understanding of all the bad actor tactics and methods and the detrimental impact of falling victim to these actors.

With the influx of online activity, it’s crucial for both parents and children from an early age to know basic cybersecurity best practices as many continue in a hybrid capacity through the end of this school year and into the next. “Cyber Safe: A Dog’s Guide to Internet Security” provides an easy to understand introduction to possible dangers for children connecting online for school, video games, streaming shows and more. For parents, the book includes a parent’s guide with details on what they should be aware of when their children are online.

To purchase the book, please visit here.

NSE Training Institute’s Cyber Awareness Courses

Through the NSE Training Institute, Fortinet offers cyber awareness courses via NSE 1 and NSE 2 that can further develop foundational cybersecurity skills, complementing the “Cyber Safe” book lessons. Fortinet established the NSE Training Institute in 2015, comprised of the NSE Certification Program, the Security Academy Program – which is aimed at bringing cybersecurity education to academic institutions – and the Veterans Program, as well as programs focused on global nonprofits. In 2020 the NSE Training Institute also launched the Information Security Awareness and Training Service available for free. This service can be used by any organization, including schools, to bring cybersecurity awareness to their non-technical staff. To get started on NSE 1 and NSE 2, you can sign up here. To register for the InfoSec Service, sign up here.

Supporting Quotes

“With the rapid shift to virtual learning last year, cybersecurity awareness became more important than ever.  The “Cyber Safe” book by Renee Tarun made cybersecurity a relatable topic and enjoyable to read at the same time. We would like to start including the book as part of our mandatory Cybersecurity Awareness training and hand it out to all of our elementary students when they are issued a new device at the start of the school year.”
– Troy Neal, Executive Director, Cybersecurity and Technology Operations from Spring Branch Independent School District

“This is an artful, amusing, and accurate description of the dangers of unprotected Internet access. The book makes it easy to take pro-active measures to protect children and their parents against cyber-harms.  It is an enjoyable read that will give educators the language to help students use the Internet responsibly and safely.”
–John Windhausen Jr., Executive Director of Schools, Health & Libraries Broadband Coalition 

 “The complex concepts addressed in the “Cyber Safe” book are important for both children and parents. The book gives enough information to create interest and understanding in children. One aspect I really liked about the book was a focus on safety and how things such as a child’s identity information and others in a young person’s orbit can compromise this. Telling the security story through identifiable characters will help younger internet learners to see information security from a new perspective.”
-Bob Turner, CISO at the University of Wisconsin-Madison

Additional Resources

About Fortinet

Fortinet (NASDAQ: FTNT) secures the largest enterprise, service provider, and government organizations around the world. Fortinet empowers our customers with complete visibility and control across the expanding attack surface and the power to take on ever-increasing performance requirements today and into the future. Only the Fortinet Security Fabric platform can address the most critical security challenges and protect data across the entire digital infrastructure, whether in networked, application, multi-cloud or edge environments. Fortinet ranks #1 in the most security appliances shipped worldwide and more than 500,000 customers trust Fortinet to protect their businesses. Both a technology company and a learning organization, the Fortinet Network Security Expert (NSE) Training Institute has one of the largest and broadest cybersecurity training programs in the industry. Learn more at http://www.fortinet.com, the Fortinet Blog, or FortiGuard Labs.    


FTNT-O

Copyright © 2021 Fortinet, Inc. All rights reserved. The symbols ® and ™ denote respectively federally registered trademarks and common law trademarks of Fortinet, Inc., its subsidiaries and affiliates. Fortinet’s trademarks include, but are not limited to, the following: Fortinet, the Fortinet logo, FortiGate, FortiOS, FortiGuard, FortiCare, FortiAnalyzer, FortiManager, FortiASIC, FortiClient, FortiCloud, FortiCore, FortiMail, FortiSandbox, FortiADC, FortiAI, FortiAP, FortiAppEngine, FortiAppMonitor, FortiAuthenticator, FortiBalancer, FortiBIOS, FortiBridge, FortiCache, FortiCam, FortiCamera, FortiCarrier, FortiCASB, FortiCenter, FortiCentral,FortiConnect, FortiController, FortiConverter, FortiCWP, FortiDB, FortiDDoS, FortiDeceptor, FortiDirector, FortiDNS, FortiEDR, FortiExplorer, FortiExtender, FortiFone, FortiHypervisor, FortiInsight, FortiIsolator, FortiLocator, FortiLog, FortiMeter, FortiMoM, FortiMonitor, FortiNAC, FortiPartner, FortiPortal, FortiPresence , FortiProtect, FortiProxy, FortiRecorder, FortiReporter, FortiScan, FortiSDNConnector, FortiSIEM, FortiSDWAN, FortiSMS, FortiSOAR, FortiSwitch, FortiTester, FortiToken, FortiTrust, FortiVoice, FortiVoIP, FortiWAN, FortiWeb, FortiWiFi, FortiWLC, FortiWLCOS and FortiWLM.

Other trademarks belong to their respective owners. Fortinet has not independently verified statements or certifications herein attributed to third parties and Fortinet does not independently endorse such statements. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary herein, nothing herein constitutes a warranty, guarantee, contract, binding specification or other binding commitment by Fortinet or any indication of intent related to a binding commitment, and performance and other specification information herein may be unique to certain environments. This news release may contain forward-looking statements that involve uncertainties and assumptions, such as statements regarding technology releases among others. Changes of circumstances, product release delays, or other risks as stated in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, located at www.sec.gov, may cause results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in this press release. If the uncertainties materialize or the assumptions prove incorrect, results may differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements and assumptions. All statements other than statements of historical fact are statements that could be deemed forward-looking statements. Fortinet assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements, and expressly disclaims any obligation to update these forward-looking statements.

Media Contact: Investor Contact: Analyst Contact:
     
Stephanie Lira Peter Salkowski Ron Davis
Fortinet, Inc. Fortinet, Inc. Fortinet, Inc.
408-235-7700 408-331-4595 415-806-9892
[email protected] [email protected] [email protected]



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Ollie’s Bargain Outlet, Inc. Donates Over $640,000 to Feeding America®

Ollie’s Bargain Outlet, Inc. Donates Over $640,000 to Feeding America®

Extreme Value Retailer Supports Over 100 Member Food Banks

HARRISBURG, Pa.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–
Ollie’s Bargain Outlet, Inc. (Ollie’s), one of America’s largest closeout retail chains, raised more than $640,000 through an in-store fundraising campaign during February and March. Funds raised will benefit more than 100 Feeding America member food banks in the communities that Ollie’s serves.

“We began this partnership with Feeding America last year to support an immediate need in our communities at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic,” said John Swygert, President and CEO of Ollie’s, “After what has been a challenging year for so many families, we wanted to renew this partnership in 2021 to continue providing support to local food banks and people in need.”

“Due to the coronavirus pandemic, 42 million people, including more than 13 million children, may face hunger in the U.S. in 2021,” said Lauren Biedron, vice president of corporate partnerships at Feeding America. “We are thankful to Ollie’s for helping Feeding America member food banks provide more meals to neighbors during this time of increased need.”

Proceeds collected across the 390 participating Ollie’s Bargain Outlet locations will be donated to 109 member food banks across the company’s footprint.

About Ollie’s Bargain Outlet, Inc.

Ollie’s Bargain Outlet, Inc., founded in 1982, is one of America’s largest retailers of closeouts and excess inventory, offering real brands at real bargain prices. Famous for its signature catch-phrase Good Stuff Cheap, Ollie’s has a huge variety of famous brand-name merchandise in every department – food, books, housewares, toys, electronics, domestics, clothing, furniture, health and beauty, flooring, seasonal items and so much more – at up to 70 percent off the fancy stores’ prices. You never know what you’ll find at one of Ollie’s 395 “semi-lovely” stores in Alabama, Arkansas, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida., Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and West Virginia. For more information, visit www.ollies.us. Like us on Facebook or find us on Twitter at @OlliesOutlet. Ollie’s Bargain Outlet Holdings, Inc. is a publicly-traded company on NASDAQ under the ticker symbol OLLI.

Heather Zell

717-805-7419

[email protected]

KEYWORDS: United States North America Pennsylvania

INDUSTRY KEYWORDS: Teens Discount/Variety Women Department Stores Men Philanthropy Fund Raising Consumer Foundation Retail

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New Schwab Data: Pandemic Reveals Demand for Virtual and Self-Serve 401(k) Education

New Schwab Data: Pandemic Reveals Demand for Virtual and Self-Serve 401(k) Education

Workers prefer holistic personal finance help over plan-specific topics

WESTLAKE, Texas–(BUSINESS WIRE)–
New data from Schwab Retirement Plan Services reveals worker preferences in retirement education that can help employers more effectively support their employees’ financial health in post-pandemic times.

Workers flocked to online retirement education in 2020 and were less likely to cancel attendance and more likely to choose on-demand sessions than in 2019. One third of all participants in Schwab’s 2020 education sessions chose to view virtual material at a time of their choosing rather than attending live online sessions, representing a 207% increase in attendance at on-demand sessions compared to 2019.

The popularity of virtual sessions was clear even before the pandemic. “In 2019, we had three times higher attendance in virtual sessions than in-person on-site sessions, with the added flexibility for attendees to join the sessions either live online or later through an on-demand recording,” said Nathan Voris, Senior Managing Director, Business Strategy at Schwab Workplace Financial Services. “And of course, those trends accelerated sharply in 2020 when the pandemic drove nearly all participant education into a virtual environment.”

Employers see value in virtual education as well, with the versatile online approach greatly simplifying delivery to the workforce. “In-person sessions often require clients to set up multiple conference rooms and juggle peak workloads across different teams. The virtual environment eliminates those challenges, and all the time and effort that comes with them,” Voris added. In another sign that employers benefited from the increased convenience of virtual sessions, meeting day cancellations and reschedules among Schwab plan sponsor clients declined 57% in 2020 compared with 2019.

“Even when more people begin returning to their workplaces, we believe many will continue to prefer accessing financial education at their desks, at home or on their mobile devices, whether for a scheduled live event or an on-demand session.”

Compared with 2019, the number of on-site meeting days in 2020 dropped almost 88% as a result of the pandemic, and attendance at virtual education sessions increased 53%. “On-site education meetings seem unlikely to return to pre-pandemic levels,” added Voris. “In 2020, we saw a significant acceleration in the trend towards virtual delivery but the number of employees making this choice has been growing since at least 2018.”

Workers want holistic help

Workers have also increasingly shown they want information beyond plan-specific features. Last year Schwab saw a 54% increase in attendance for virtual sessions on holistic personal finance topics versus a 37% increase in attendance for virtual sessions on plan-specific topics compared to 2019.

In 2020 Schwab offered a variety of online content with practical approaches designed to improve workers’ financial know-how. These included live panel discussions on timely personal finance and investing questions; informal, 10-minute “coffee talks” on trending topics such as managing finances during uncertainty; and live, interactive webcasts with in-depth discussions on how to save, invest, and manage expenses. As part of the webcast series, Schwab added new workshops that addressed market volatility, and transitioned in-person, plan-specific learning to virtual sessions.

“It’s clear that the outlook for retirement education includes more focus on overall financial fitness and more options to let workers choose when and how they receive that education,” Voris said.

About Charles Schwab

At Charles Schwab we believe in the power of investing to help individuals create a better tomorrow. We have a history of challenging the status quo in our industry, innovating in ways that benefit investors and the advisors and employers who serve them, and championing our clients’ goals with passion and integrity.

More information is available at www.aboutschwab.com. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and LinkedIn.

Disclosures

Through its operating subsidiaries, The Charles Schwab Corporation (NYSE: SCHW) provides a full range of securities brokerage, banking, money management and financial advisory services to individual investors and independent investment advisors. Its broker-dealer subsidiary, Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. (member SIPC, www.sipc.org), and affiliates offer a complete range of investment services and products including an extensive selection of mutual funds; financial planning and investment advice; retirement plan and equity compensation plan services; compliance and trade monitoring solutions; referrals to independent fee-based investment advisors; and custodial, operational and trading support for independent, fee-based investment advisors through Schwab Advisor Services. Its banking subsidiary, Charles Schwab Bank (member FDIC and an Equal Housing Lender), provides banking and lending services and products. More information is available at www.schwab.com and www.aboutschwab.com.

Workplace Financial Services is a business enterprise which offers products and services through Schwab Retirement Plan Services, Inc.; Schwab Stock Plan Services; and Compliance Solutions. Schwab Retirement Plan Services, Inc., provides recordkeeping and related services with respect to retirement plans. Schwab Stock Plan Services is a division of Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. providing equity compensation plan services and brokerage solutions for corporate clients. Compliance Solutions is comprised of Schwab Designated Brokerage Services (DBS), a division of Charles Schwab & Co., Inc., and Schwab Compliance Technologies, Inc. (SchwabCT). DBS provides brokerage solutions for corporate clients who monitor their employees’ securities activity. SchwabCT provides technology solutions for corporate clients to help facilitate their compliance technology program implementation. Schwab Retirement Plan Services, Inc., Schwab Compliance Technologies, Inc., and Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. (Member SIPC, www.sipc.org) are separate but affiliated entities, and each is a subsidiary of The Charles Schwab Corporation.

(0421-1LTB)

Mike Peterson

Charles Schwab

330-908-4334

[email protected]

Travis Fishstein

The Neibart Group

718-801-8205

[email protected]

KEYWORDS: United States North America Texas

INDUSTRY KEYWORDS: Banking Professional Services Human Resources Finance

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Oportun Surpasses 4 Million Loans and $10 Billion in Originations

Oportun continues to advance economic equity with its A.I.-driven credit underwriting, providing hardworking people with affordable credit and a path to the financial mainstream

SAN CARLOS, Calif., March 30, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Oportun Financial Corporation (Nasdaq: OPRT), a financial services company that leverages its digital platform to provide hardworking people with responsible, affordable, and credit-building alternatives to payday and auto title loans, today announced that it has originated more than 4 million loans and $10 billion to customers who have largely been underserved by the financial mainstream.

“More than 100 million hardworking people in the U.S. live outside the financial mainstream because traditional providers are unable to accurately assess their creditworthiness,” said Raul Vazquez, CEO of Oportun. “Reaching this milestone with responsible credit products proves that the hardworking people we serve are creditworthy. While incumbent banks and other lenders remain unable to successfully score our customers, we are leveraging advanced technology for the purpose of uplifting underserved communities.”

Using a proprietary scoring and risk model, backed by artificial intelligence, machine learning, and 15 years of data, Oportun is able to provide affordable and responsible loans to traditionally unserved consumers. Since its first loan in 2006, Oportun has now extended more than 4 million loans and $10 billion in credit, primarily in small dollar loans, and saved its customers more than $1.8 billion in interest and fees when compared to other options typically available to people with little or no credit history. By reporting repayment performance to the major credit bureaus, the company has also helped more than 890,000 people begin to establish a credit history.

About Oportun

Oportun (Nasdaq: OPRT) is a financial services company that leverages its digital platform to provide responsible consumer credit to hardworking people. Using A.I.-driven models that are built on 15 years of proprietary customer insights and billions of unique data points, Oportun has extended more than 4 million loans and $10 billion in affordable credit, providing its customers with alternatives to payday and auto title loans. In recognition of its responsibly designed products which help consumers build their credit history, Oportun has been certified as a Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) since 2009.

Media Contact

Usher Lieberman
650-769-9414
[email protected]



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Marchex AI-Fueled Products Win 2021 Artificial Intelligence Excellence Award

Marchex AI-Fueled Products Win 2021 Artificial Intelligence Excellence Award

SEATTLE–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Marchex (NASDAQ: MCHX), a leading conversational analytics and solutions company that connects the voice of the customer to your business, today announced that The Business Intelligence Group has named Marchex a winner in its inaugural Artificial Intelligence Excellence Awards program.

Marchex received the recognition for its sales engagement product suite, which uses conversational AI to enable businesses to deliver customer experiences that improve sales outcomes and outperform the competition. The Artificial Intelligence Excellence Awards program sets out to recognize those organizations, products and people who bring Artificial Intelligence (AI) to life and apply it to solve real problems. In judging for the award, Business Intelligence Group’s proprietary and unique scoring system selectively measures performance across multiple business domains and then rewards those companies whose achievements stand above those of their peers.

This is the second product and technology-related award for Marchex in 2021. Separately in February, Marchex Marketing Edge received the 2021 Gold Stevie award for Marketing Solution-New Version. Marchex Marketing Edge is a conversational analytics solution that enables marketers to make data-driven decisions that improve their digital marketing performance, by revealing which marketing campaigns and channels result in call and text conversions. The Stevie Awards recognize the achievements of contact center, customer service, business development, and sales professionals worldwide. The selection panel looks for solutions that address real-time consumer demands and compelling client success stories in addition to the benefit the solution provides to customers.

“Marchex is honored to receive these awards, which recognize the power that our conversation intelligence and analytics solutions deliver to solve mission-critical problems for our customers,” said Ryan Polley, Marchex Chief Product and Strategy Officer. “Marchex sits in the flow of a tremendous amount of valuable conversational data that augments our ability to innovate. Our passion in helping businesses harness AI has created a robust innovation pipeline, and we look forward to bringing more AI-powered solutions to market in the coming months and years.”

“We are so proud to name Marchex as a winner in our inaugural Artificial Intelligence Excellence Awards program,” said Maria Jimenez, chief nominations officer for Business Intelligence Group. “It was clear to our judges that Marchex was using AI to improve the lives of their customers and employees. Congratulations to the entire team!”

About Marchex

Marchex understands the best customers are those who call your company – they convert faster, buy more, and churn less. Marchex provides solutions that help companies drive more calls, understand what happens on those calls, and convert more of those callers into customers. Our actionable intelligence strengthens the connection between companies and their customers, bridging the physical and digital world, to help brands maximize their marketing investments and operating efficiencies to acquire the best customers.

Please visit http://www.marchex.com, www.marchex.com/blog or @marchex on Twitter (Twitter.com/Marchex), where Marchex discloses material information from time to time about the company, its financial information, and its business.

About Business Intelligence Groupwww.bintelligence.com

The Business Intelligence Group was founded with the mission of recognizing true talent and superior performance in the business world. Unlike other industry award programs, these programs are judged by business executives having experience and knowledge. The organization’s proprietary and unique scoring system selectively measures performance across multiple business domains and then rewards those companies whose achievements stand above those of their peers.

Marchex, Inc.

Investor Relations

Trevor Caldwell, 206-331-3600

[email protected]

KEYWORDS: United States North America Washington

INDUSTRY KEYWORDS: Telecommunications Software Search Engine Marketing Marketing Advertising Communications Technology Other Technology

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Cloud Nine Adds Hussein Hallak to the Strategic Advisory Board

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, March 30, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Cloud Nine Web3 Technologies Inc (“Cloud Nine” or the “Company“) (CSE: CNI) (OTC: CLGUF) is pleased to announce the appointment of Hussein Hallak to the Strategic Advisory Board.

Hussein Hallak is an entrepreneur with over 25 years of business experience. He developed over 20 startups, completed two tech startup exits, spearheaded the world’s first and largest marketplace for Middle Eastern art, helped grow several tech startups in less than a year and trained hundreds of successful founders.

“We are very excited to have Hussein as a strategic advisor. He has extensive experience in the technology startup space in addition to his in-depth blockchain knowledge,” said Sefton Fincham, President of Cloud Nine. “We believe that his broad perspectives and expertise will help us through this growth phase as we develop and increase our product portfolio.”

Hallak is currently the Chief Executive Officer and Founder of Unleashed Ventures Inc. He was recently the Vice-President of Products and Strategy at 3 tier logic where he was instrumental in launching new robust, secure, and highly scalable products and closing deals with major global brands like Unilever, Universal Pictures and Toro.

“Decentralized technology redefines how various industries operate, improving efficiencies and reducing the cost of doing business,” said Hussein Hallak, CEO and Founder of Unleashed Ventures. “I am thrilled to join Cloud Nine’s advisory board and look forward to supporting the board and its executive team as they move forward to developing and launching their emerging technology products.”

An outspoken startup community advocate, Hallak was the General Manager of Launch (previously Launch Academy), one of North America’s top tech hubs and startup incubators with over 3500 founders incubated and over 500 startups that raised over $800 million.

He was a Strategic advisor for several successfully funded tech, blockchain and impact startups including Fintrux, which raised $25 million through an ICO, and MajikBus, which publishes high end photography prints of music legends like Freddie Mercury, Sammy Davis, and the Beatles.

A keynote speaker on entrepreneurship, blockchain and education, Hallak is recognized as one of 30 Vancouver tech thought-leaders and influencers, and has been featured in Forbes, BBC, BetaKit, Entrepreneur, DailyHive, Notable, and CBC.

Hallak is a graduate of the Oxford Blockchain Strategy Programme and holds a BSc in Electronics Engineering.

On Behalf of The Board,

CLOUD NINE WEB3 TECHNOLOGIES INC.

Allan Larmour
President and Chief Executive Officer

About Cloud Nine Web3 Technologies Inc.:

Cloud Nine Web3 Technologies is a technology company focused on incorporating emerging technologies into its current platforms leveraging Web 3.0. Cloud Nine’s mission is to fuel innovation and make the future more accessible by powering the launch and growth of future tech companies. Web 3.0 enables a future where decentralized users and machines are able to interact with data, value and other counterparties via a substrate of peer-to-peer networks without the need for third parties.

For further information, please contact:

Paul Searle
Corporate Communications
Citygate Capital Corp
Phone: (778) 240-7724
[email protected]

Neither the Exchange nor its regulation services provider accepts responsibility for the adequacy of accuracy of this release. No stock exchange, securities commission or other regulatory authority has approved or disapproved the information contain herein.

Disclaimer for Forward-Looking Information

Certain statements in this press release are forward-looking statements and are prospective in nature. Forward-looking statements are not based on historical facts, but rather on current expectations and projections about future events, and are therefore subject to risks and uncertainties which could cause actual results to differ materially from the future results expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. These statements generally can be identified by the use of forward-looking words such as “may”, “should”, “will”, “could”, “intend”, “estimate”, “plan”, “anticipate”, “expect”, “believe” or “continue”, or the negative thereof or similar variations. Forward-looking statements in this news release include statements regarding: the Company’s ability to successfully launch products and expand partnerships; its pursuit of emerging technology products; support its pursuit of Web3 opportunities on a global scale; and the ability of the Strategic Advisor to use his experience to positively impact Cloud Nine’s business. Such forward-looking statements should therefore be construed in light of such factors, and, except as required by applicable law, the Company is not under any obligation, and expressly disclaims any intention or obligation, to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.



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DoubleVerify Unveils Expanded Brand Safety & Brand Suitability Integration with Facebook

DV now offers a comprehensive third-party brand suitability solution to clients buying on Facebook and Instagram

NEW YORK, March 30, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — DoubleVerify (“DV”), a leading software platform for digital media measurement, data and analytics, today announced an expanded brand safety and suitability integration with Facebook, extending verification to new premium inventory channels such as Facebook In-Stream Reserve, while providing new tools to boost control and efficiency. With the expansion, DV now offers comprehensive brand measurement solutions on Facebook and Instagram, optimizing campaign quality.

“We are excited to enter this phase in our work with Facebook,” said Mark Zagorski, CEO of DoubleVerify. We are expanding our partnership to ensure an even more brand-safe and brand-suitable advertising environment for the global brands we serve across the Facebook ecosystem.”

Protecting brand reputation online is critical. According to research by DV and Harris, 67% of consumers say they would stop using a brand that appeared beside objectionable or unsuitable content. Moreover, an overwhelming majority said that they hold advertisers responsible for brand and content alignment.

Today, DV provides advertisers with comprehensive brand safety and suitability controls, category options and languages. DV’s brand safety technology protects a brand’s equity and reputation — across all media environments, and is built for the modern brand suitability era.

Building on its existing partnership, advertisers on Facebook using DV can now:

  • Manage brand safety and suitability settings with precision and accuracy using 53 content avoidance categories and 39 supported languages.
  • Create Allow Lists for Facebook In-Stream Video inventory, supporting brand and content suitability and alignment.
  • Create Block Lists that work across In-Stream Reserve, In-Stream Video, Instant Articles, and Facebook Audience Network.
  • Improve operational efficiency with automated Allow and Block List updates and delivery.

“We are excited to see the progress DV is making across Facebook and the broader social media ecosystem, which continues to deliver value to our clients,” said Julie Kandel, Senior Partner, Director of Brand Safety North America at GroupM. “We look forward to DV’s continued innovation in this space and will continue to work closely with them to further expand their brand safety and suitability solutions for our clients and industry.”

DV pioneered brand safety in 2008 and has been a continuous innovator in the category. In January, the company announced the availability of Brand Suitability Tiers for advertisers and publishers, making DV one of the first verification companies to align product functionality with the Brand Safety and Suitability Framework advanced by the APB and GARM. Advertisers can leverage DV’s Brand Suitability Tiers across digital channels including Facebook’s In-Stream Video ads and Instant Articles.

In addition to its brand safety and suitability capabilities, DV has partnered with Facebook for fraud protection and viewability measurement across their inventory. DV enables advertisers to leverage a single viewability metric to measure performance across Facebook, Instagram, other large platforms and publishers, as well as open exchanges. With DV, brands gain a holistic view of viewability performance across platforms and can use those learnings to validate their media plan and adjust budget allocation.

In December 2020, DV received the Media Rating Council (MRC) accreditation for third-party integrated impression and viewability measurement (as defined by MRC’s viewability standard) and reporting for display and video ads on Facebook and Instagram.

For more information about DoubleVerify’s Facebook and Instagram capabilities, contact [email protected].

About DoubleVerify

DoubleVerify is a leading software platform for digital media measurement and analytics. DoubleVerify’s mission is to increase the effectiveness and transparency of the digital advertising ecosystem. Through our software platform and the metrics it provides, we help preserve the fair value exchange in the digital advertising marketplace – offering advertisers unbiased data analytics to drive campaign quality and effectiveness, and maximize return on their digital advertising investments. Since 2008, DoubleVerify has helped hundreds of Fortune 500 companies gain the most from their media spend by delivering best in class solutions across the digital advertising ecosystem, helping to build a better industry. DoubleVerify is majority owned by Providence Equity Partners, a premier global private equity firm with approximately $44 billion in aggregate capital commitments.

“Facebook® is a registered trademark of Facebook Inc.”



Chris Harihar, [email protected]

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BlackRock Hires Paul Bodnar to Lead Sustainable Investing

BlackRock Hires Paul Bodnar to Lead Sustainable Investing

Brings Climate Finance Expertise and Extensive Public and Private Sector Experience

NEW YORK–(BUSINESS WIRE)–
BlackRock (NYSE: BLK) has hired Paul Bodnar to lead its sustainable investing platform and its global initiative to help clients create more sustainable, more resilient investment portfolios. As Global Head of BlackRock Sustainable Investing (BSI), Bodnar will be responsible for sustainable research, analytics, product development, and integration of Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) considerations into the investment process.

“Understanding the interplay between public policy, technology and finance is absolutely critical in helping clients invest sustainably,” said Philipp Hildebrand, Vice Chairman of BlackRock. “Paul is universally respected for his intellect, experience and practical approach to solving this urgent and complex issue. His experience in developing both policy and market-based solutions for the financial sector make him an ideal choice to help BlackRock’s clients achieve their net zero ambitions.”

Most recently, Mr. Bodnar was a Managing Director and Chief Strategy Officer at Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI), an independent non-profit organization working to accelerate the clean energy transition. While at RMI, Mr. Bodnar founded and chaired RMI’s Center for Climate-Aligned Finance, which works with some of the world’s largest financial institutions to enable their transition to net-zero emissions portfolios. He also established initiatives to support green investment in emerging markets, including the Climate Finance Access Network and the Green Bank Design Platform.

Before joining RMI, Mr. Bodnar held a number of climate leadership roles in the U.S. government, including as Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Energy and Climate Change at the National Security Council. Mr. Bodnar also held positions at the U.S. Department of State, including as lead negotiator for climate finance and Counselor to the Special Envoy for Climate Change.

Mr. Bodnar played a critical role in the development of Obama Administration climate policies, including the U.S. strategy for the Paris Climate Conference, the historic U.S.-China presidential joint climate announcement of November 2014, the OECD agreement to strictly limit public financing for coal-fired power plants, and the doubling of clean energy research and development budgets by 20 major countries through the Mission Innovation initiative.

Earlier in his career, Mr. Bodnar worked as a Director for Carbon Finance at the $1.2 billion carbon fund managed by London-based Climate Change Capital. He was also co-founder and partner at Vertis Environmental Finance, now one of Europe’s leading environmental commodity brokerage firms.

“I’m thrilled to join BlackRock as it takes major steps in its journey to become the leading sustainable investment firm in the world. BlackRock’s willingness to speak up on the risks of deferred climate action – and the opportunities inherent in the transition to a net zero economy – has brought the issue to the forefront for companies and investors,” said Paul Bodnar. “I look forward to helping BlackRock deliver innovative research, analytics and investment products across both climate risk and the full range of sustainability considerations.”

BlackRock is a global leader in sustainable investing. In January, BlackRock laid out its ambition to help clients prepare their portfolios for a net zero world. As part of those commitments, the firm has committed to publishing the temperature alignment of its assets under management by year end, establishing a heightened scrutiny model for investments that pose a high climate-related risk, and developing leading climate risk analytics through Aladdin Climate, an arm of the firm’s industry-leading Aladdin risk management technology. Through its investment stewardship team, the firm engages with companies that it invests in on behalf of clients on issues that impact long-term financial performance such as preparedness for the net zero transition.

BlackRock is also at the cutting edge of sustainable investing research, drawing on expertise from across the investment teams and the BlackRock Investment Institute to understand the relationship between climate- and sustainability-related factors and investment returns. The firm has also developed investment processes to help clients target the companies that are best positioned to benefit from the energy transition.

The company offers sustainable investment opportunities across active, index, and alternative investments: iShares offers the world’s most extensive suite of sustainable ETFs, LEAF was the first environmentally-aware cash vehicle, we have a flagship Global Impact Fund, and we are one of the world’s largest investors in renewable power through our Global Renewable Power franchise. BlackRock is also working to accelerate the energy transition in emerging markets, having established the Climate Finance Partnership with the French and German governments and three leading U.S. impact charitable organizations.

About BlackRock

BlackRock’s purpose is to help more and more people experience financial well-being. As a fiduciary to investors and a leading provider of financial technology, we help millions of people build savings that serve them throughout their lives by making investing easier and more affordable. For additional information on BlackRock, please visit www.blackrock.com/corporate | Twitter: @blackrock | LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/blackrock

Media

Ed Sweeney

[email protected]

(646) 231-0268

KEYWORDS: United States North America New York

INDUSTRY KEYWORDS: Banking Professional Services Environment Finance

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Allied Esports Entertainment and Element Partners Amend Stock Purchase Agreement

Allied Esports Entertainment and Element Partners Amend Stock Purchase Agreement

IRVINE, Calf.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–
Allied Esports Entertainment, Inc. (NASDAQ: AESE) (the “Company” or “AESE”), a global esports entertainment company, today announced that it has amended its stock purchase agreement with Element Partners, LLC (“Element”) to sell all of the outstanding capital stock of each of the legal entities that collectively operate or engage in the Company’s poker-related business and assets (the “WPT Business”). The amendment to the stock purchase agreement increases the overall purchase price from $90.5 million to $105 million.

The Company’s Board of Directors unanimously approved the amendment to the stock purchase agreement. In connection with approval of the amendment, the Company’s Board of Directors, in consultation with its financial and legal advisors, compared the terms of the amended stock purchase agreement to the terms of the proposal received from Bally’s Corporation (“Bally’s”) to acquire the WPT Business for $105 million. After such review, the Board of Directors determined that the Bally’s proposal did not constitute a “Superior Proposal” (as such term is defined in the stock purchase agreement with Element).

The transaction is expected to close in late April 2021, assuming the Company’s stockholders approve the transaction and following required regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions.

About World Poker Tour

World Poker Tour (WPT) is the premier name in internationally televised gaming and entertainment with brand presence in land-based tournaments, television, online, and mobile. Leading innovation in the sport of poker since 2002, WPT ignited the global poker boom with the creation of a unique television show based on a series of high-stakes poker tournaments. WPT has broadcast globally in more than 150 countries and territories, and is currently producing its 18th season, which airs on FOX Sports Regional Networks in the United States. Season XVIII of WPT is sponsored by ClubWPT.com. ClubWPT.com is a unique online membership site that offers inside access to the WPT, as well as a sweepstakes-based poker club available in 43 states and territories across the United States, Australia, Canada, France and the United Kingdom. WPT also participates in strategic brand license, partnership, and sponsorship opportunities. For more information, go to WPT.com. WPT Enterprises Inc. is a subsidiary of Allied Esports Entertainment, Inc.

About Allied Esports Entertainment (AESE)

Allied Esports Entertainment (NASDAQ: AESE) is a global esports entertainment venture dedicated to providing transformative live experiences, multiplatform content and interactive services to audiences worldwide through its strategic fusion of two powerful entertainment brands: Allied Esports and the World Poker Tour (WPT). On January 19, 2021, AESE entered into a Stock Purchase Agreement (the “Original Agreement”) to sell the equity interests that own WPT to Element Partners, LLC once all applicable shareholder and regulatory consents have been obtained, and the other conditions to closing have been satisfied. The Original Agreement was amended and restated on March 19, 2021, and further amended on March 29, 2021 (the “Amended Agreement”).

Important Additional Information and Where You Can Find It

AESE has filed with the SEC and mailed to its stockholders a Consent Solicitation Statement in connection with the transactions contemplated by the Original Agreement, and will file and mail to its stockholders supplemental materials with regards to the Amended Agreement (the “Sale Transaction”). The Consent Solicitation Statement, as supplemented, will contain important information about AESE, Club Services, Inc., the Sale Transaction and the Amended Agreement. Investors and stockholders are urged to read the Consent Solicitation Statement and the supplemental materials carefully before making any decision to invest or consent to the Sale Transaction. Investors and stockholders will be able to obtain free copies of the Consent Solicitation Statement, supplemental materials and other documents filed by AESE with the SEC through the website maintained by the SEC at www.sec.gov or may contact AESE’s solicitor, Regan & Associates, Inc., by telephone (toll-free within North America) at 1-800-737-3426.

Participants in the Solicitation

In addition to Regan & Associates, Inc., AESE, its directors and executive officers may be deemed to be participants in the solicitation of consents with respect to the Sale Transaction. Information regarding AESE’s directors and executive officers and their ownership of AESE shares is contained in AESE’s Amended Annual Report on Form 10-K/A for the year ended December 31, 2019 and its definitive consent solicitation statement for the Sale Transaction which was filed with the SEC on February 2, 2021, and is supplemented by other public filings made, and to be made, with the SEC. AESE’s directors and executive officers beneficially own approximately 6.6% of AESE’s common stock. Investors and stockholders may obtain additional information regarding the direct and indirect interests of AESE and its directors and executive officers with respect to the Sale Transaction by reading the Consent Solicitation Statement and other filings referred to above.

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Information

This communication contains certain forward-looking statements under federal securities laws. Forward-looking statements may include our statements regarding our goals, beliefs, strategies, objectives, plans, including product and service developments, future financial conditions, results or projections or current expectations. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terminology such as “may,” “will,” “should,” “expect,” “plan,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “predict,” “potential” or “continue,” the negative of such terms, or other comparable terminology. For example, when we discuss the impacts of the Sale Transaction, the satisfaction of the closing conditions to the Sale Transaction, the timing of the completion of the Sale Transaction; and our plans following the Sale Transaction, we are using forward-looking statements. These statements are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties, assumptions and other factors that may cause actual results to be materially different from those contemplated by the forward-looking statements. These factors include, but are not limited to, the occurrence of any event, change or other circumstances that could give rise to the termination of the Amended Agreement or could otherwise cause the Sale Transaction to fail to close; the outcome of any legal proceedings that may be instituted against us following the announcement of the Sale Transaction; the inability to complete the Sale Transaction, including due to failure to obtain approval of our stockholders or other conditions to closing; the receipt of an unsolicited offer from another party for an alternative business transaction that could interfere with the Sale Transaction; a change in our plans to retain the net cash proceeds from the Sale Transaction; our inability to enter into one or more future acquisition or strategic transactions using the net proceeds from the Sale Transaction; and a decision not to pursue strategic options for the esports business. Most of these factors are difficult to predict accurately and are generally beyond our control. You should consider the areas of risk described in connection with any forward-looking statements that may be made herein. The business and operations of AESE are subject to substantial risks, which increase the uncertainty inherent in the forward-looking statements contained in this communication. Except as required by law, we undertake no obligation to release publicly the result of any revision to these forward-looking statements that may be made to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events. Further information on potential factors that could affect our business is described under “Item 1A. Risk Factors” in our amended Annual Report on Form 10-K/A for the year ended December 31, 2019, as filed with the SEC on March 17, 2020. Readers are also urged to carefully review and consider the various disclosures we made in such amended Annual Report on Form 10-K/A and the Consent Solicitation Statement with respect to the proposed Sale Transaction that we have filed with the SEC and mailed to our stockholders.

Investor Contact:

Lasse Glassen

Addo Investor Relations

[email protected]

424-238-6249

KEYWORDS: United States North America California

INDUSTRY KEYWORDS: Casino/Gaming TV and Radio Entertainment

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