Tech start-up myFanPark has announced its merger with Silicon Valley-based celebrity engagement platform Starsona, paving the way for the local company to enter the lucrative North American market.
This is the company’s fourth international market expansion this year after establishing a footprint across Africa, Europe and the Indian subcontinent.
Established in October 2019, the myFanPark Web app connects people or brands with celebrities via personalised video messages, connecting public figures – ranging from TV personalities, movie stars and musicians, to sporting greats, DJs, comedians and social influencers – with their fans through personalised, video-recorded messages.
As a result of the merger, the company says, fans can engage with more than 2 400 stars from around the world – from South African Springbok Faf de Klerk and hip hop artist Gigi LaMayne, to Indian Premier League superstar Robin Uthappa, German football legend Roman Weidenfeller, National Basketball Association MVP Kawhi Leonard, musician Shailendra Singh and Beverly Hills 90210 actress Tori Spelling.
In a statement, myFanPark says the amalgamation of the companies comes on the back of a highly successful period for it, which saw a 492% increase in the number of users on the platform and a 959% surge in total orders, with demand for certain talent increasing by 500%.
As a result, it says, it saw its revenue climb 283%, which stimulated a range of new artists, athletes, entertainers and influencers to join the platform around the world, and piqued Starsona’s interest in the business.
Joy Des Fountain, who will now serve as co-CEO alongside Peter Karpas, co-founder of Starsona, says: “Our goal at myFanPark is to reimagine how people around the world are able to connect, engage, share with and inspire each other. We can now offer an almost limitless range of ways for fans and celebrities from all over the world to forge authentic, highly personalised and valuable relationships with each other.
“Celebrities registered on the new platform will now also have the ability to augment their fan and corporate engagements through a new range of individualised and unforgettable experiences. Going forward, in addition to shoutout videos, fans will be able to enjoy live calls, Q&A sessions, social media engagements and even direct-message chats.”
Explaining the rationale of the merger, Des Fountain says: “To deliver myFanPark’s vision and international expansion plans, Starsona presented a natural fit, as it delivers best-in-class technology that enables never-before-seen forms of engagement.
“However, more important than the combining of two businesses on paper, was establishing whether there was a natural synergy and cultural alignment between the people from two companies geographically located at different ends of the world, all whilst during a global pandemic and travel ban. From the first day that we met Peter and his team, it became clear that there was a real opportunity for our two businesses to significantly add to each other’s strengths if we came together as one.”
Commenting on the deal, Karpas, who previously served as general manager for North America small and medium business at PayPal, says: “The growing desire for fans to engage more directly with celebrities represents a cultural shift and massive opportunity for our business and the talent registered on the platform.
“Our goal now is to further entrench ourselves in our regions through key partnerships and commercial opportunities that allow admired talent to create unique and authentic experiences for their fans or corporate clients: think career advice from business leaders, song lyrics from musicians, or coaching tips from world-famous sporting heroes – now anything is possible.”