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Tag: Nutshell

  • Saregama snaps up more of Pocket Aces, goes all in on youth initiative

    Saregama snaps up more of Pocket Aces, goes all in on youth initiative

    MUMBAI: Saregama has snapped up a further 36.63 per cent of Pocket Aces for a cool Rs 127.47 crore. This latest splurge, a second tranche if you will, pushes Saregama’s ownership to a dominant 90.37 per cent, leaving little room for anyone else at the digital buffet.

    The deal, finalised on 29 March  2025, sees Saregama hoovering up a veritable smorgasbord of shares, from equity to an array of convertible preference shares. Pocket Aces, boasting a digital empire of 175 million followers across its FilterCopy, Dice Media, Nutshell and Gobble channels, and a talent roster of over 215 influencers via Clout, is now firmly under Saregama’s wing. The company declared this to the BSE through a regulatory filing on Saturday. 

    Pocket Aces, with a back catalogue of over 35,000 content pieces, from digital originals  to those ubiquitous reels, is a digital goldmine for Saregama, keen to woo the 18-35 demographic.

    Pocket Aces’ financials reveal a turnover of Rs 8859.17 lakhs for FY 24, a slight dip from the previous year’s Rs 10267.93 lakhs, but Saregama is betting on synergies, not just spreadsheets. The acquisition, which includes a related party transaction with a Pocket Aces director – all done “at arm’s length”, naturally – is being touted as a strategic masterstroke.

    “This isn’t just about owning content; it’s about owning the conversation,” an industry observer chirped, with the knowledge that  Pocket Aces’ vast network can be used by Saregama to turbocharge its music library.

    With influencers, long-form content, and snackable reels all under one roof, Saregama is clearly aiming to be the king of the digital jungle.

  • Saregama acquires majority stake in Pocket Aces

    Saregama acquires majority stake in Pocket Aces

    Mumbai: A new chapter in Saregama’s growth story commences with a majority acquisition in a fast-growing digital entertainment company Pocket Aces Pictures Pvt Ltd, that owns direct relationships with over 95M younger digital-first customers across Instagram, YouTube, etc. Saregama will acquire 51.8 per cent shares for Rs  174 crores with a clear path to further acquire another 41 per cent stake in the next 15 months at pre-agreed multiples. The transaction is an all-cash deal.

    This acquisition will further strengthen Saregama’s strategic ambiton to take leadership position in new music across all Indian languages.  

    Pocket Aces, a youth-focussed digital content creator and publisher, boasts of an IP catalog of over 3000  content pieces ranging across web series, sketches, music videos and reels on its channels FilterCopy, Nutshell and Gobble, and releases over 30 new pieces of content every day. The company’s talent management arm, Clout, manages over 100 digital influencers, and its long-form studio, Dice Media, has created relatable youth-centric web series across OTT platforms such as Netflix, Hotstar, and Amazon.

    Pocket Aces’ revenue from operations was Rs 104 cr in FY23. Revenue has grown by 34 per cent CAGR over the last 4 years and is expected to grow even faster in future.

    Acquiring Pocket Aces will add on a whole new dimension of IP and a distribution network of over 95 million followers, which Saregama will leverage to further popularize its music library among the 18-35 audience segment. It will also create synergies across the artiste & influencer management and long-format video creation businesses of the two companies.

    Saregama vice chairperson Avarna Jain said, “This acquisition signifies the confluence of tradition and innovation. While we have always been leaders in the realm of music and media, this partnership with Pocket  Aces will add new dimensions to our business as we tap into the burgeoning young digital audiences.”

     

  • Pocket Aces’ infotainment channel Nutshell reaches milestone; registers 4x growth

    Pocket Aces’ infotainment channel Nutshell reaches milestone; registers 4x growth

    Mumbai: Pocket Aces’ newest channel, Nutshell, which focuses on non-fiction infotainment content, has garnered one million followers on Instagram and is now open for brand collaborations. The channel has been steadily growing across platforms with a highly engaged audience that consists of a healthy mix of millennials and Gen-Z from metro tier I and tier II cities, clocking in an average of 42 million viewers a month.

    Launched in November 2019, Nutshell is India’s fastest-growing non-fiction infotainment channel that provides research-based stories aimed at feeding curious minds.

    Nutshell’s strategy focuses on leveraging this demand for knowledge by building deep communities in interest categories such as history, geo-politics, personal finance, start-up culture, and sexual health and wellness, and becoming the go-to destination for informational videos and discussions around these categories.

    Speaking about the success, Nutshell channel head Andre Borges said, “Over the last few months, we have been testing the market to clearly understand what audiences need and want to watch. We have thoroughly embedded Nutshell within communities of people in these interest categories, allowing the channel to have access to a lot of data about what the audiences are thirsty for. After scaling Instagram, scaling our content and subscribers on YouTube and Discord is next for us.”

    Pocket Aces business head of D2C content Rayvanta Kumar said, “At Pocket Aces, we have already built large GEC channels such as FilterCopy and Dice Media, and one vertically focused channel in Gobble. Infotainment is a huge vertical globally and works amazingly for Indian audiences who love sharing information with their families and friends. We get to use our playbook of the community approach even more deeply here, and that means we are creating a hyper-engaged set of audiences. To give advertisers access to these audiences, we are now opening brand partnerships on Nutshell, and have already worked with some early partners such as Amazon Prime, Deserv, Edufund, Basis, Wint Wealth, etc.”