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Super League acquired development studio Melon to increase its capabilities as a one-stop solution for brands wanting to build communities on gaming metaverse platforms. Melon will serve as an internal development studio. In turn, these interactive experiences will leverage Super League’s suite of player acquisition, monetization and measurement tools.
The added value of Melon to the Super League
Melon specializes in building experiences on Roblox. The studio has worked with brands like Chipotle, Mattel, and PacSun to create experiences and grow communities on the platform.
Additionally, Melon has been a pioneer in bringing musicians to Roblox. It was the first independent studio to create an avatar-based musical performance for the platform. Since then, Melon has worked with high-profile artists like KSI, Ava Max, Tai Verdes, and Zara Larsson.
“We are thrilled to combine forces with Super League and further an ambitious creative and strategic vision shared by both companies,” said Josh Neuman, Melon co-founder and CEO. “There is no one size fits all for brands and IP owners entering the space. With Super League and Melon operating as an integrated company, we are able to provide brands with the full spectrum of crawl, walk and run alternatives designed to achieve specific business objectives. We now have best-in-class execution capabilities at every level under one roof, with the infrastructure to scale far beyond what we thought possible.”
Super League teased is taking advantage of this musical experience immediately. The company teased that their first big in-house collaboration with Melon would be a full-scale music experience.
Once the acquisition is complete, the combined company will have around 100 employees. According to Super League, there are minimal layoffs in the workforce, so no major layoffs are expected.
Brands ready for the future
Together, Super League and Melon have helped over 100 consumer-facing brands and businesses build audiences on metaverse gaming platforms. But this is just a starting point. Moving forward, Ann Hand, President and CEO of Super League, told GamesBeat that Super League wants to help companies prepare for the transition to immersive web experiences.
“Together, Melon and Super League have an integrated backbone of technology and capability that applies to Minecraft, Roblox, and Fortnite. This backbone also works in other virtual engines. Because of this backbone, we are starting to change the conversations we have with brands. Rather than just being a marketing solution, we help brands reach their hard-to-capture audiences. Now, we are starting to show them how this can be applied to their advanced digital strategy,” said Hand. “Brands are looking for Super League solutions to be able to have a more immersive and engaging relationship with consumers in this new marketing channel.”
Super League and Melon have worked together since 2021. Both companies worked together at Chipotle’s roblox experience and have collaborated with Mattel over the years.
This shared vision and synergistic capabilities helped close the deal quickly. According to Matt Edelman, Super League’s president and chief commercial officer, the talks began when he and Neuman appeared together on a conference panel in February 2023.
“We have helped brands and partners think about how to create immersive experiences. Mellon has been in the trenches, building, designing and innovating around you. As a result, when you bring our collective capabilities together, you really have something that is quite special,” Edelman said. Hand, Edelman, and Neuman also emphasized the cultural fit of companies.
This acquisition occurs just before the next earnings report on May 15, 2023.
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