# AudioMob Financial Model

Non-intrusive in-game audio ad platform bridging music/brand advertisers to mobile game publishers.

- Canonical: https://finamodel.com/startups/audiomob
- Excel download: https://finamodel.com/startup-models/audiomob.xlsx
- Category: Marketplace
- Model type: SaaS ARR / Valuation
- Funding round: Series A
- Funding: $2M
- Founded: 2020
- Geography: UK-based (the7stars media agency is UK); global supply (2.5bn audience reach). No explicit geographic restriction stated.
- Customer: B2B

## About the company

AudioMob places non-intrusive audio advertising inside mobile games, connecting music labels and brands with game publishers. Its Unity plug-in creates new audio inventory without replacing existing display inventory, while the ad platform can sell placements programmatically or as managed campaigns.

The deck reported music clients including Universal, Warner, Sony, and BMG, alongside a large agency pipeline. AudioMob's pitch rests on materially higher engagement than conventional game banners and on publisher economics that do not harm retention or in-app purchases.

This model is a two-sided advertising marketplace. Integrated games, impressions per game, fill rate, CPM, and advertiser budgets determine gross media spend; AudioMob's take rate produces net revenue. The P&L then tracks ad-serving infrastructure, publisher economics, sales costs, and the pace at which demand and supply scale together.

## What's included

- 5-year monthly revenue build with stage-appropriate growth assumptions
- Full P&L, headcount plan, and operating-expense schedule
- Cash-flow statement, runway, and burn-rate tracking
- Valuation via exit multiple with a DCF cross-check
- Returns analysis with MOIC and IRR
- Unit economics including CAC, LTV, payback, and cohort retention

## Product & value proposition

Two products:
1. **Unity Plugin** - drops audio ad slots directly into mobile games without touching existing display/interstitial inventory. Creates net-new ad revenue for publishers.
2. **AudioMob Ad Platform** - replaces existing display banner slots with audio ads, converting them to higher-value audio inventory.

Value proposition:
- For publishers: incremental revenue (600%+ banner CPM uplift), zero retention damage (D7 retention +0.43%; 0% IAP damage), non-intrusive format.
- For advertisers: 1000%+ average CTR increase vs standard banners; 25-second audio CTR of 3.26% vs 0.01–0.3% standard banner.
- 61% of mobile players leave audio on - the core insight enabling the format.

## Market

- TAM: $39B
- SAM: $4B
- SOM: $247M
- Audio advertising spend growth: 20%+ in 2020; CPM range $5–$30
- Mobile gaming app store spend growth: 71% in 2020
- Sources cited: Forbes, Spotify, Dax, iHeatMedia, Business of Apps, Google, Apple

## Revenue model

- **Ad platform take-rate**: AudioMob acts as intermediary (bridge) between demand (advertisers/music labels) and supply (mobile game publishers). Take-rate percentage not disclosed in deck.
- **CPM pricing**: Audio ads priced at $5–$30 CPM; exact AudioMob net CPM/rev-share split not stated.
- **Two distribution channels**:
  - Unity Plugin: sold/distributed to game developers directly via Unity asset store integration.
  - Ad Platform: programmatic/managed-service placement into existing mobile game ad slots.
- No subscription, SaaS, or licensing fees mentioned. Pure ad revenue share model.

## Traction & metrics

As of H1 2021:
- CTR: 1000%+ average CTR increase
- Audience reach: 2.5bn (access to most mobile games)
- Churn: 0% - 100% of music clients re-spending
- Named demand-side clients: Universal Music Group ($7.1bn revenue), Warner Music Group ($4.474bn revenue), Sony Music ($7.82bn revenue), BMG ($602m revenue)
- Agency pipeline: the7stars (£200M+ media spend/year), Dentsu Aegis Network (thousands of brands), Next Broadcast Media (100+ brands, $1bn revenue)
- Named brand prospects: P&G / Pampers, Intel, KitKat, Jeep
- Unity Plugin case study: 600%+ banner CPM uplift; D7 retention +0.43%; 0% IAP damage
- Ad Platform case study: 3.26% CTR on 25-second audio ads vs 0.01–0.3% standard banner
- Prior raise: $1.5M (Business Insider coverage cited)
- Google investment: $2M (TechCrunch: Google invests in Black Founders)

## Unit economics

- CPM range: $5–$30 - upper bound consistent with premium audio/podcast CPMs.
- CTR uplift implies significant engagement premium for advertisers, supporting premium CPM pricing.

## Competition / moat

Competitive positioning: AudioMob occupies the "Audio Centric + User Centric" quadrant - non-intrusive audio ad serving. Competitors mapped across four quadrants:
- Audio-centric but intrusive: Pandora, Spotify, SoundCloud, adswizz, Instreamatic, Q.SIC
- Display / user-centric (non-audio): Tapjoy, AdColony, Vungle, InMobi, MobFox, Teads, OGURY, PubMatic, RubIcon, venatus
- In-game (emerging): AdInMo, anzu.io, Bidstack, Admix, Adverty, Frameplay, Sayollo, RapidFire

Moat claims:
- First-mover in non-intrusive in-game audio ads
- Exclusive relationships with all four major music groups (UMG, Warner, Sony, BMG) - 0% churn, 100% respend
- 2.5bn audience reach via publisher integrations
- Dual-product (Unity Plugin + Ad Platform) covers both new and existing inventory

Exit comps cited: AppNexus ($1.5B+, AT&T 2018), AdMob ($750M, Google 2009), Vungle ($750M, Blackstone 2019), MoPub ($350M, Twitter 2013).

## Team & funding ask / use of funds

**Team**:
- Christian Facey, CEO - Forbes 30 Under 30; ex-Google strategist, ex-Facebook; game developer and music producer.
- Wilfred Obeng, CTO - Forbes 30 Under 30; ex-Google and Goldman Sachs engineer; programmatic adtech expertise; clients include Amazon, Hilton, IHG.

**Funding**:
- Round: Series A
- Prior raises: $1.5M seed (Business Insider) + $2M Google Black Founders fund

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## Recommended financial model

**Archetype + why**: AdTech marketplace / programmatic ad revenue model. AudioMob is a two-sided ad marketplace - revenue is a function of impression volume × CPM × take-rate. This is standard for mobile ad networks (cf. AdMob, MoPub). Not SaaS (no recurring subscription). Not DTC. Not a 3-statement standalone without a proper revenue build.

**Forecast horizon & granularity**: 5 years (2021–2025), quarterly for Years 1–2, annual for Years 3–5. Series A investors want to see the path to scale, not just Year 1.

**Key drivers & assumptions**:

*Supply side (publisher inventory)*:
- Number of integrated mobile games: start ~50 games at close, grow to ~500 by Y3 based on agency pipeline momentum
- Average monthly impressions per game: 10M–50M impressions/month depending on game DAU
- Fill rate: 40% in Year 1, scaling to 65% by Year 3 (early-stage audio demand constrained)
- Audio CPM: $8–$15 net to publisher]

*Demand side (advertiser spend)*:
- Number of active advertiser accounts: 4 music label clients at H1 2021; model agency channel opening Y2 (Dentsu, Next Broadcast, the7stars) adding brand advertisers
- Average spend per music label client per quarter: £500K–£2M (the7stars alone spends £200M+/year; label budgets are a small slice of that)
- Brand advertiser ramp: 3–5 brands in Year 2, 15–25 by Year 3

*Monetisation*:
- AudioMob take-rate: 30–40% of gross ad spend (standard for mobile ad networks; not disclosed in deck)
- Revenue recognition: net revenue = gross ad spend × take-rate

*Unit economics*:
- CAC (publisher): low - Unity Plugin is self-serve/plugin model; marginal cost per game added is near zero
- CAC (advertiser): sales-led at Series A; estimate £50K–£150K blended CAC for enterprise music/agency clients
- Gross margin: 70–80% (software marketplace; main COGS = cloud/infra and ad serving costs)

*Cost structure*:
- Headcount: primary cost driver; 15–25 FTE at Series A close, scaling to 60–80 by Y3 (engineering, sales, ad ops)
- Infrastructure / ad serving costs: 8–12% of revenue
- S&M: 20–30% of revenue through Y2, declining as flywheel builds

**Scenarios (Base / Bull / Bear - which variables flex)**:
- **Bear**: Fill rate stays low (25–30%); agency channel delays by 12 months; take-rate compressed to 25% by publisher negotiation.
- **Base**: Fill rate reaches 55% by Y3; agency channel opens Y2; take-rate holds at 35%.
- **Bull**: 0% churn continues; major agency conglomerate (Dentsu) activates full brand roster in Y2; fill rate hits 70%+ driven by brand demand exceeding supply.

**Required sheets / outputs**:
1. Assumptions dashboard (all drivers in one place, colour-coded)
2. Supply model: games integrated × impressions × fill rate × CPM → gross inventory value
3. Demand model: advertiser accounts × avg. spend → gross ad spend
4. Revenue bridge: gross ad spend → net revenue (take-rate)
5. P&L: Revenue, COGS (ad serving infra), Gross Profit, OpEx (S&M, R&D, G&A), EBITDA
6. Headcount plan (by department)
7. Cash flow & runway (Series A proceeds vs. burn)
8. Scenario toggle (Bear / Base / Bull)
9. Comparable exits summary (AppNexus, AdMob, Vungle, MoPub) for implied valuation at exit

## Frequently asked questions

### Is the AudioMob financial model free?

Yes. The AudioMob model is a free Excel download with live formulas.

### Can I change the assumptions?

Yes. The workbook is editable and its live formulas recalculate when assumptions change.