NOVA Entertainment just invested in a home loan app

As radio look to diversify revenue opportunities beyond the 30-second spot, networks are starting to make investments outside of their core business – and we should expect to see a lot more of this in the near future, too.

Last year, for example, the Scaleup Mediafund was established by News Corp Australia, FOX SPORTS and NOVA Entertainment. The idea is to give Australian start-ups access to advertising and marketing inventory in exchange for equity.

And now an Adelaide-based “digital disrupter” in the home loan market announced another round of capital raising this week, which included NE as a strategic investor.

Radio Today has learned that NE’s investment in Joust is the media company’s first foray into the start-up space and is independent of the Scaleup Mediafund.

Details of the deal terms between NE and Joust are unknown, but it’s possible the definition of “strategic investor” includes a cash injection and a platform to promote Joust across NE’s on-air and online assets.

Joust says it has successfully raised almost $2million since its inception in 2015 and its co-founder and MD Mark Bevan said that having NE onboard gives the fin-tech start-up a platform to expand beyond South Australia and Victoria.

“We have been thrilled with the response to our pilot from the South Australian and Victorian public.  We now have eleven Banks on the Joust platform and the continued support from existing investors and now NOVA Entertainment, gives us the confidence to expand to the Sydney market next month,” he said.

Bevan also said that 650 customers had already used Joust – a Startup of the Year finalist in the 2017 Fintech Business Awards – to seek a better home loan interest rate and that the value of home loans “jousted” was already more than $250million.

The new capital raising provides the startup with funding to further expand its advertising and marketing activities into the New South Wales market beginning in March 2017.