London-based esports tournament operator and media business Gfinity was profitable in October and November – the first time in six years.
Gfinity last achieved a month-on-month operating profit in December 2014 when it floated on the London Stock Exchange.
The company’s monthly operating costs were £385,000 in November 2020, a reduction of 47% since November 2019. And further reduction us expected on culmination of Gfinity’s office lease in March 2021.
The company also revealed in its latest trading update that it has sold its holding in Esports Awards Ltd for £500,000 to Premier Team Promotions.
Gfinity first acquired a 33% stake in Esports Awards in 2017 for £138,000, with the remaining 67% of the entity owned by Premier Team Promotions Ltd.
This means that Premier Team Promotions now has sole ownership of the awards, making the awards show independent. Some had criticised the impartiality of the awards in the past, with a major tournament operator owning part of the awards.
“The fact we have achieved month-on-month operating profitability for the first time since our AIM listing in December 2014 is an impressive milestone and a pleasing testament to the hard work of the team.”
Neville Upton, Gfinity
Gfinity chairman Neville Upton said at the firm’s annual general meeting he’s pleased that Gfinity’s positive momentum is continuing.
“The fact we have achieved month-on-month operating profitability for the first time since our AIM listing in December 2014 is an impressive milestone and a pleasing testament to the hard work of the team.
“Given the project-based nature of some of our revenue streams and some seasonality in our business, it does not yet imply we will be always profitable on a monthly basis going forward, but it reflects the excellent progress made over the past nine months.
“The company has come a very long way over the last nine months under the leadership of CEO John Clarke. The business has been recalibrated on three core areas where the Company has competitive strength and momentum, being: products and services that we own (Gfinity Digital Media), co-own (partnerships) and building communities for others (tech IP and world class production).”
Gfinity has a partnership with F1, runs the V10 R-League, has run tournaments including the Cadburys Heroes Parents League, ePremier League and more.
In December 2020, Gfinity announced the acquisition of the trade and assets of Epicstream LLC, an online news community for fantasy and sci-fi movies, TV shows, games, comic books and more and says it is looking for more acquisition opportunities.
Gfinity also said it’s still considering options around selling its business, and continues to engage in conversations with interested parties.
Dom is an award-winning writer and finalist of the Esports Journalist of the Year 2023 award. He graduated from Bournemouth University with a 2:1 degree in Multi-Media Journalism in 2007.
As a long-time gamer having first picked up the NES controller in the late ’80s, he has written for a range of publications including GamesTM, Nintendo Official Magazine, industry publication MCV and others. He worked as head of content for the British Esports Federation up until February 2021, when he stepped back to work full-time on Esports News UK and offer esports consultancy and freelance services. Note: Dom still produces the British Esports newsletter on a freelance basis, so our coverage of British Esports is always kept simple – usually just covering the occasional press release – because of this conflict of interest.
