NewzIntel.com

Category: Sport

  • MIL-OSI New Zealand: Lifestyle and Health – Making Exercise More Affordable Could Transform Health in Aotearoa

    Source: Exercise New Zealand

    A new report reveals that reducing the cost of exercise facilities could significantly increase physical activity levels in Aotearoa, delivering major health and economic benefits. The 2024 HFA-Portas Price Elasticity Report identifies affordability as the primary barrier preventing more New Zealanders from joining gyms, despite clear evidence of the health benefits of structured exercise.

    Physical inactivity is a growing public health crisis, contributing to preventable chronic diseases such as heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and obesity. Alarmingly, the report finds that 53.5% of New Zealanders fail to meet the World Health Organization’s (WHO) recommended physical activity levels, placing an increasing strain on the healthcare system. Childhood and adolescent obesity rates have also reached unprecedented levels, elevating the risk of lifelong health issues.

    Key Findings from the Report:

    • 67% of non-gym members cite affordability as their main reason for not joining.
    • Gym users are 54% more likely to meet WHO exercise guidelines than non-users.
    • A 10% reduction in membership fees could encourage up to 291,000 more Kiwis to join structured exercise facilities.

    Increased participation could:

    • Prevent 7,600 cases of chronic disease annually.
    • Save 1,600 disability-adjusted life years (DALYs).
    • Generate $148 million in annual health savings.
    • Improve life satisfaction for 35,000 people and enhance community trust for 33,700.
    • Stimulate $209 million in additional consumer spending.
    • Create 4,500+ new jobs in the exercise industry.

    Richard Beddie, CEO of ExerciseNZ, says the findings present a compelling case for affordability initiatives to boost participation. “New Zealanders recognise the benefits of exercise, but for many, cost remains a barrier. This report shows that even a modest reduction in gym fees could profoundly impact our nation’s health, economy, and social wellbeing. Exercise facilities must be recognised as critical health infrastructure and supported accordingly.”

    The report’s release coincides with ExerciseNZ’s upcoming ‘Fit for Office’ initiative, where New Zealand MPs will have their physical activity levels tracked via heart rate monitors and displayed on a competitive leaderboard. “This initiative highlights that everyone, including busy MPs, can stay active and benefit from exercise,” says Beddie.

    ExerciseNZ urges policymakers, industry leaders, and community organisations to collaborate on improving affordability through potential subsidies or membership incentives. This is about more than just gyms—it’s about improving public health, reducing healthcare costs, and fostering stronger communities.

    MIL OSI New Zealand News –

  • MIL-OSI Economics: Sony and JLPGA Sign Official DX Partner Agreement

    Source: Sony

    Tokyo, Japan — Sony Group Corporation (“Sony”) and the Japan Ladies Professional Golfers’ Association (“JLPGA”) announced today that they have signed a three-year partnership agreement under which Sony will be the JLPGA’s Official DX Partner from FY2025 to 2027.

    MIL OSI Economics –

  • MIL-OSI Australia: Wimmera pair join forces to take on state’s best

    Source: Victoria Country Fire Authority

    Claire Longstaff from Horsham and Isabella Orszulak from Warracknabeal

    Two young women from the Wimmera are teaming up to make their mark at this year’s CFA/VFBV Firefighting State Championships, set to take place during the last two weekends in March at Mooroopna.

    Claire Longstaff from Horsham and Isabella Orszulak from Warracknabeal have competed against each other for years at local demonstrations, but when female events were introduced at the State Championships, they saw an opportunity to combine their strengths.

    “We go to a lot of demos together and have been friends for years,” Isabella said.

    “When they first brought in the female events, it was a great chance to work together, especially since we were both the only senior female runners representing our towns at the time.”

    Claire said their partnership has been a game changer.

    “Teaming up with Isabella has been a great experience. We push each other to do our best, and it’s been exciting to see more women getting involved in the sport,” Claire said.

    The duo will take on a range of events, including the one-person and two-person races, the hydrant race, and the two-person water event.

    After making the step up from Juniors, Isabella admitted that competing at a senior level was initially daunting but became second nature over time.

    “It wasn’t intimidating at first, but once you turn 16 and start running with seniors, you gradually find your footing at training sessions,” she said.

    “Now, I love it.”

    This year, she is looking forward to the challenge and hopes to improve on her personal bests.

    “Hopefully, we can secure a few wins and maybe even break some PBs.”

    For Claire, the Championships are about more than just winning, they’re an opportunity to connect with athletes from across Victoria and beyond, enjoy the camaraderie, and inspire more women to get involved.

    “It’s just a great atmosphere to be part of, you have people from all around the state and even from places as far away as Western Australia all in the same location,” Claire said.

    “If you’ve ever thought about being involved, I’d definitely recommend it.”

    And when it comes to competition, Claire is ready for the challenge.

    “We’ve got to show these blokes who’s boss,” she laughed.

    If you’re interested in witnessing the CFA State Championships up close, all members of the community are welcome to experience the action, you can find out more information here.

    Submitted by CFA Media

    MIL OSI News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Attorney General Pamela Bondi Announces 29 Wanted Defendants from Mexico Taken into U.S. Custody

    Source: US State of North Dakota

    Today, the United States secured custody of 29 defendants from Mexico who are facing charges in districts around the country relating to racketeering, drug-trafficking, murder, illegal use of firearms, money laundering, and other crimes. The defendants taken into U.S. custody today include leaders and managers of drug cartels recently designated as Foreign Terrorist Organizations and Specially Designated Global Terrorists, such as the Sinaloa Cartel, Cártel de Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG), Cártel del Noreste (formerly Los Zetas), La Nueva Familia Michoacana, and Cártel de Golfo (Gulf Cartel).  These defendants are collectively alleged to have been responsible for the importation into the United States of massive quantities of poison, including cocaine, methamphetamine, fentanyl, and heroin, as well as associated acts of violence.

    “As President Trump has made clear, cartels are terrorist groups, and this Department of Justice is devoted to destroying cartels and transnational gangs,” said Attorney General Pamela Bondi. “We will prosecute these criminals to the fullest extent of the law in honor of the brave law enforcement agents who have dedicated their careers — and in some cases, given their lives — to protect innocent people from the scourge of violent cartels. We will not rest until we secure justice for the American people.”

    “The FBI and our partners will scour the ends of the earth to bring terrorists and cartel members to justice,” said FBI Director Kash Patel. “The era of harming Americans and walking free is over.”

    “Today’s actions are a consequence of a White House that negotiates from a position of strength, and an Attorney General who is willing to lead the Department with courage and ferocity,” said Acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove. “By prosecuting these defendants to the maximum extent allowable under the law, we honor the memory of Special Agent Camarena, Deputy Sherrif Byrd, and other victims who are far too numerous, as well as decades of hard work in the trenches by our law enforcement partners.”

    “Today, 29 fugitive cartel members have arrived in the United States from Mexico, including one name that stands above the rest for the men and women of the DEA — Rafael Caro Quintero. Caro Quintero, a cartel kingpin who unleashed violence, destruction, and death across the United States and Mexico, has spent four decades atop DEA’s most wanted fugitives list, and today we can proudly say he has arrived in the United States where justice will be served,” said DEA Acting Administrator Derek S. Maltz. “This moment is extremely personal for the men and women of DEA who believe Caro Quintero is responsible for the brutal torture and murder of DEA Special Agent Enrique “Kiki” Camarena. It is also a victory for the Camarena family. Today sends a message to every cartel leader, every trafficker, every criminal poisoning our communities: You will be held accountable. No matter how long it takes, no matter how far you run, justice will find you.”

    Many of the defendants were subject to longstanding U.S. extradition requests that were not honored during the prior Administration, but that the Mexican government elected to transfer to the current U.S. government in response to the Justice Department’s efforts pursuant to President Trump’s directive in Executive Order 14157, entitled Designating Cartels and Other Organizations as Foreign Terrorist Organizations and Specially Designated Global Terrorists, to pursue total elimination of these Cartels. Federal prosecutors will evaluate whether additional terrorism and violence charges are appropriate based on the policy set forth in Executive Order 14157, and whether capital punishment is available based on Executive Order 14164, entitled Restoring the Death Penalty and Protecting Public Safety, as well as the Attorney General’s Feb. 5 guidance regarding the death penalty.

    • Rafael Caro Quintero, who is alleged to have been among those responsible for the 1985 murder of DEA agent Enrique “Kiki” Camarena and others.
    • Martin Sotelo, who is alleged to have participated in the 2022 murder of Deputy Sheriff Ned Byrd.
    • Antonio Oseguera Cervantes, who allegedly helped lead CJNG and is reportedly the brother of Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, also known as “El Mencho.”
    • Ramiro Perez Moreno and Lucio Hernandez Lechuga, who are alleged to be high-ranking members of Los Zetas.

    A complete list of defendants, as well as districts where they are charged and will appear in federal court in the coming days:

    Mexico Defendants

      Name

    Arraignment

    Jurisdiction

    		 Statutory Maximum
    1 CANOBBIO-INZUNZA, Jose Angel Northern District Illinois Up to life imprisonment
    2. VALENCIA GONZALEZ, Norberto Northern District of Illinois Up to life imprisonment
    3. MARTIN SOTELO, Alder, also known as “Alder Martin-Sotelo” and “Alder Alfonso Marin”

    Middle District of North Carolina

    North Carolina State Court

    Federal: Maximum 10 years imprisonment

    State: Maximum of life imprisonment or death
    4. CRUZ SANCHEZ, Evaristo Southern District of Texas Up to life imprisonment
    5. GARCIA VILLANO, also known as “La Kena,” “19,” and “Ciclone 19” Southern District of Texas Up to life imprisonment
    6. HERNANDEZ LECHUGA, Lucio Eastern District of Texas Up to life imprisonment
    7. PEREZ MORENO, Ramiro Eastern District of Texas Up to life imprisonment
    8. RODRIGUEZ DIAZ, Miguel Angel, also known as “Metro” Eastern District of Texas Up to life imprisonment
    9. VILLARREAL HERNANDEZ, Jose Rodolfo Northern District of Texas Death or life imprisonment
    10. CARO QUINTERO, Rafael Eastern District of New York Death or life imprisonment
    11. CARRILLO FUENTES, Vicente Eastern District of New York Death or life imprisonment
    12. CABRERA CABRERA, Jose Bibiano District of Arizona Up to life imprisonment
    13. CLARK, Andrew Central District of California Death or life imprisonment
    14. INFANTE, Hector Eduardo Central District of California Up to life imprisonment
    15. LIMON LOPEZ, Jesus Humberto District of Arizona Up to life imprisonment
    16. TAPIA QUINTERO, Jose Guadalupe District of Arizona Up to life imprisonment
    17. TORRES ACOSTA, Inez Enrique Southern District of California Up to life imprisonment
    18. GALAVIZ VEGA, Jesus Western District of Texas Up to life imprisonment
    19. MENDEZ ESTEVANE, Luis Geraldo Western District of Texas Death or life imprisonment
    20. MONSIVAIS TREVINO, Carlos Alberto Western District of Texas Up to life imprisonment
    21. ALGREDO VAZQUEZ, Carlos District of Columbia Up to life imprisonment
    22. LOPEZ IBARRA, Rodolfo District of Columbia Up to life imprisonment
    23. OSEGUERA CERVANTES, Antonio District of Columbia Up to life imprisonment
    24. RANGEL BUENDIA, Alfredo District of Columbia Up to life imprisonment
    25. TREVINO MORALES, Miguel Angel, also known as “Z-40” District of Columbia Up to life imprisonment
    26. TREVINO MORALES, Omar, also known as “Z-42”) District of Columbia Up to life imprisonment
    27. VALENCIA SALAZAR, Erick District of Columbia Up to life imprisonment
    28. MENDEZ VARGAS, Jesus Southern District of New York Up to life imprisonment
    29. PALACIOS GARCIA, Itiel Southern District of New York Up to life imprisonment

    Attorney General Pamela Bondi thanked the law enforcement officers of the Drug Enforcement Administration, FBI, U.S. Marshal’s Service, and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement – Homeland Security Investigations, and Hidalgo County Sheriff’s Office for their valuable contributions to these investigations.

    The Attorney General also thanked the Justice Department Criminal Division’s Narcotic and Dangerous Drug Section and its Office of International Affairs, and the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices for the District of Arizona, Central District of California, Southern District of California, the District of Columbia, Middle District of North Carolina, Northern District of Illinois, Eastern District of New York, Southern District of New York, Northern District of Texas, Eastern District of Texas, Southern District of Texas, and Western District of Texas for handling the prosecutions of these cases.

    An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Attorney General Pamela Bondi Announces 29 Wanted Defendants from Mexico Taken into U.S. Custody

    Source: United States Attorneys General

    Today, the United States secured custody of 29 defendants from Mexico who are facing charges in districts around the country relating to racketeering, drug-trafficking, murder, illegal use of firearms, money laundering, and other crimes. The defendants taken into U.S. custody today include leaders and managers of drug cartels recently designated as Foreign Terrorist Organizations and Specially Designated Global Terrorists, such as the Sinaloa Cartel, Cártel de Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG), Cártel del Noreste (formerly Los Zetas), La Nueva Familia Michoacana, and Cártel de Golfo (Gulf Cartel).  These defendants are collectively alleged to have been responsible for the importation into the United States of massive quantities of poison, including cocaine, methamphetamine, fentanyl, and heroin, as well as associated acts of violence.

    “As President Trump has made clear, cartels are terrorist groups, and this Department of Justice is devoted to destroying cartels and transnational gangs,” said Attorney General Pamela Bondi. “We will prosecute these criminals to the fullest extent of the law in honor of the brave law enforcement agents who have dedicated their careers — and in some cases, given their lives — to protect innocent people from the scourge of violent cartels. We will not rest until we secure justice for the American people.”

    “The FBI and our partners will scour the ends of the earth to bring terrorists and cartel members to justice,” said FBI Director Kash Patel. “The era of harming Americans and walking free is over.”

    “Today’s actions are a consequence of a White House that negotiates from a position of strength, and an Attorney General who is willing to lead the Department with courage and ferocity,” said Acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove. “By prosecuting these defendants to the maximum extent allowable under the law, we honor the memory of Special Agent Camarena, Deputy Sherrif Byrd, and other victims who are far too numerous, as well as decades of hard work in the trenches by our law enforcement partners.”

    “Today, 29 fugitive cartel members have arrived in the United States from Mexico, including one name that stands above the rest for the men and women of the DEA — Rafael Caro Quintero. Caro Quintero, a cartel kingpin who unleashed violence, destruction, and death across the United States and Mexico, has spent four decades atop DEA’s most wanted fugitives list, and today we can proudly say he has arrived in the United States where justice will be served,” said DEA Acting Administrator Derek S. Maltz. “This moment is extremely personal for the men and women of DEA who believe Caro Quintero is responsible for the brutal torture and murder of DEA Special Agent Enrique “Kiki” Camarena. It is also a victory for the Camarena family. Today sends a message to every cartel leader, every trafficker, every criminal poisoning our communities: You will be held accountable. No matter how long it takes, no matter how far you run, justice will find you.”

    Many of the defendants were subject to longstanding U.S. extradition requests that were not honored during the prior Administration, but that the Mexican government elected to transfer to the current U.S. government in response to the Justice Department’s efforts pursuant to President Trump’s directive in Executive Order 14157, entitled Designating Cartels and Other Organizations as Foreign Terrorist Organizations and Specially Designated Global Terrorists, to pursue total elimination of these Cartels. Federal prosecutors will evaluate whether additional terrorism and violence charges are appropriate based on the policy set forth in Executive Order 14157, and whether capital punishment is available based on Executive Order 14164, entitled Restoring the Death Penalty and Protecting Public Safety, as well as the Attorney General’s Feb. 5 guidance regarding the death penalty.

    • Rafael Caro Quintero, who is alleged to have been among those responsible for the 1985 murder of DEA agent Enrique “Kiki” Camarena and others.
    • Martin Sotelo, who is alleged to have participated in the 2022 murder of Deputy Sheriff Ned Byrd.
    • Antonio Oseguera Cervantes, who allegedly helped lead CJNG and is reportedly the brother of Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, also known as “El Mencho.”
    • Ramiro Perez Moreno and Lucio Hernandez Lechuga, who are alleged to be high-ranking members of Los Zetas.

    A complete list of defendants, as well as districts where they are charged and will appear in federal court in the coming days:

    Mexico Defendants

      Name

    Arraignment

    Jurisdiction

    		 Statutory Maximum
    1 CANOBBIO-INZUNZA, Jose Angel Northern District Illinois Up to life imprisonment
    2. VALENCIA GONZALEZ, Norberto Northern District of Illinois Up to life imprisonment
    3. MARTIN SOTELO, Alder, also known as “Alder Martin-Sotelo” and “Alder Alfonso Marin”

    Middle District of North Carolina

    North Carolina State Court

    Federal: Maximum 10 years imprisonment

    State: Maximum of life imprisonment or death
    4. CRUZ SANCHEZ, Evaristo Southern District of Texas Up to life imprisonment
    5. GARCIA VILLANO, also known as “La Kena,” “19,” and “Ciclone 19” Southern District of Texas Up to life imprisonment
    6. HERNANDEZ LECHUGA, Lucio Eastern District of Texas Up to life imprisonment
    7. PEREZ MORENO, Ramiro Eastern District of Texas Up to life imprisonment
    8. RODRIGUEZ DIAZ, Miguel Angel, also known as “Metro” Eastern District of Texas Up to life imprisonment
    9. VILLARREAL HERNANDEZ, Jose Rodolfo Northern District of Texas Death or life imprisonment
    10. CARO QUINTERO, Rafael Eastern District of New York Death or life imprisonment
    11. CARRILLO FUENTES, Vicente Eastern District of New York Death or life imprisonment
    12. CABRERA CABRERA, Jose Bibiano District of Arizona Up to life imprisonment
    13. CLARK, Andrew Central District of California Death or life imprisonment
    14. INFANTE, Hector Eduardo Central District of California Up to life imprisonment
    15. LIMON LOPEZ, Jesus Humberto District of Arizona Up to life imprisonment
    16. TAPIA QUINTERO, Jose Guadalupe District of Arizona Up to life imprisonment
    17. TORRES ACOSTA, Inez Enrique Southern District of California Up to life imprisonment
    18. GALAVIZ VEGA, Jesus Western District of Texas Up to life imprisonment
    19. MENDEZ ESTEVANE, Luis Geraldo Western District of Texas Death or life imprisonment
    20. MONSIVAIS TREVINO, Carlos Alberto Western District of Texas Up to life imprisonment
    21. ALGREDO VAZQUEZ, Carlos District of Columbia Up to life imprisonment
    22. LOPEZ IBARRA, Rodolfo District of Columbia Up to life imprisonment
    23. OSEGUERA CERVANTES, Antonio District of Columbia Up to life imprisonment
    24. RANGEL BUENDIA, Alfredo District of Columbia Up to life imprisonment
    25. TREVINO MORALES, Miguel Angel, also known as “Z-40” District of Columbia Up to life imprisonment
    26. TREVINO MORALES, Omar, also known as “Z-42”) District of Columbia Up to life imprisonment
    27. VALENCIA SALAZAR, Erick District of Columbia Up to life imprisonment
    28. MENDEZ VARGAS, Jesus Southern District of New York Up to life imprisonment
    29. PALACIOS GARCIA, Itiel Southern District of New York Up to life imprisonment

    Attorney General Pamela Bondi thanked the law enforcement officers of the Drug Enforcement Administration, FBI, U.S. Marshal’s Service, and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement – Homeland Security Investigations, and Hidalgo County Sheriff’s Office for their valuable contributions to these investigations.

    The Attorney General also thanked the Justice Department Criminal Division’s Narcotic and Dangerous Drug Section and its Office of International Affairs, and the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices for the District of Arizona, Central District of California, Southern District of California, the District of Columbia, Middle District of North Carolina, Northern District of Illinois, Eastern District of New York, Southern District of New York, Northern District of Texas, Eastern District of Texas, Southern District of Texas, and Western District of Texas for handling the prosecutions of these cases.

    An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-Evening Report: First Vegas, then the world? Why the NRL is eyeing international markets

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tim Harcourt, Industry Professor and Chief Economist, University of Technology Sydney

    This weekend, Australia’s National Rugby League (NRL) continues to trumpet its now annual pilgrimage to open its season in Las Vegas.

    While it’s only the second year of a five-year arrangement, the NRL claims its Vegas experiment has been a great success at a time when the league has been in excellent health on and off the field.

    But why is the Australian league hosting games in Las Vegas? And has this experiment paid dividends?

    The NRL has made the bold decision to play games at Las Vegas.

    The NRL’s Vegas play

    There are a few reasons behind the NRL’s Vegas venture, with money at the heart of it.

    It’s partly about future TV revenue and trying to grab a slice of the US sports gambling market.

    And then there’s sponsors – it’s allowed the NRL to fish in the larger US pond in terms of corporate involvement in the game.

    According to NRL CEO Andrew Abdo:

    Outside of the benefit we get here domestically, in America we’ve now got sponsors that are incremental. We would not have had these sponsors had we not been growing in America. We’ve got a successful travel experience for fans, and we’ve got incremental subscriptions on Watch NRL, so you’ve got real revenue coming in which allows to us to now invest in expansion, and invest in a better product here.

    The move is also part of a grand vision to grow the game internationally.

    The NRL has announced a team from Papua New Guinea will join the league in 2028. It is also aiming for more integration with the Super League in England, perhaps one day eyeing franchises in the US and the Pacific.

    The NRL is also conscious of the US National Football League’s venture into Melbourne in 2026 and the competition that could bring for Pacific talent.



    Read more:
    It’s the most American of sports, so why is the NFL looking to Melbourne for international games?

    There may also be some football diplomacy at play. For example, some Sharks players visited the Los Angles firefighters who fought the recent wildfires for some lessons on leadership and crisis management.

    What happened last year?

    The Vegas venture started a year ago with the Sydney Roosters playing the Brisbane Broncos and the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles playing the South Sydney Rabbitohs in a groundbreaking double-header.

    These matches were the first NRL regular season games held outside Australia and New Zealand.

    The crowd at Allegiant Stadium, which holds 65,000 fans, surpassed all expectations, with 40,746 turning up when about 25,000 were expected.

    According to Steve Hill, CEO of the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, more than 14,000 fans flew from Australia for the games and many Aussie expats living in the US also made the trip.

    In terms of TV audiences in Australia, the experiment was a big hit.

    The Manly-South Sydney clash was the most-watched NRL game ever on Fox Sports, with 838,000 fans tuning in. The Roosters-Broncos contest drew a Fox Sports audience of 786,000.

    According to NRL chairman Peter V’Landys:

    There was a lot of success in Vegas last year that we didn’t even plan, and for me that was record viewership in Australia and […] record attendances at pubs and clubs.

    Stateside reaction

    Of course a lot of Aussies tuned in, but how about US viewers?

    Around 61,000 tuned into Manly-South Sydney while 44,000 watched the Roosters and Broncos, which is well below the threshold of 100,000 viewers for profitable sports broadcasting, according to TV ratings experts Sports Media Watch in the US.

    The NRL set up fan zones and other activities in the build-up to the games in Las Vegas to attract US fans and entertain the visting Aussie tourists.

    This year there will be even more on offer: there are four games instead of two, with the NRL bringing over the Canberra Raiders and the New Zealand Warriors, and reigning four-time premiers the Penrith Panthers and the Cronulla Sharks.

    In addition, there’s an English Super League game, with the Wigan Warriors taking on Warrington Wolves, as well as an Australia-England women’s Test match.

    Is it worth it?

    So, has it been worth all the expense for the NRL?

    According to V’Landys, the competition’s bottom line has been largely unaffected despite the significant costs of the games:

    This year there’s a possibility that we’ll actually return a profit on Vegas and if not, it’ll be a small loss.

    But he’s not leaving anything to chance. In fact, in a televised plea on US TV show Fox and Friends, V’Landys invited President Donald Trump to attend the game.

    Will the president attend? Unlike a major US event like the Superbowl, where Trump was the first sitting president to attend, there’s not a big domestic constituency for rugby league, so chances are he won’t join the revelry in Vegas.

    But it sounds like the NRL, on current projections, won’t need him.

    With the introduction of a new team in PNG in 2028 and a possible 19th outfit in Perth soon after, the NRL has showcased an impressive vision to take the game into new markets.

    Even if a tiny proportion of the US market jumps on board rugby league, it can only help take the game closer to to its goal of being the undisputed number one sport in Australia.

    Tim Harcourt does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. First Vegas, then the world? Why the NRL is eyeing international markets – https://theconversation.com/first-vegas-then-the-world-why-the-nrl-is-eyeing-international-markets-250622

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-OSI: Compass Diversified Reports Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2024 Financial Results

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    WESTPORT, Conn., Feb. 27, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Compass Diversified (NYSE: CODI) (“CODI” or the “Company”), an owner of leading middle market branded consumer and industrial businesses, announced today its consolidated operating results for the three months and full year ended December 31, 2024.

    “In 2024, we once again delivered strong financial results, achieving double digit sales growth and over 30% growth in our Adjusted EBITDA for the full year,” said Elias Sabo, CEO of Compass Diversified. “In the fourth quarter, we saw both sales and earnings growth accelerate, driven by continued strong performance from our consumer businesses as well as improving performance in our industrial businesses. Our differentiated business model, strong operating companies, and permanent capital base position us to create long-term value for all stakeholders. I want to take this opportunity to thank the CODI team as well as our subsidiary management teams and employees for their hard work fostering innovation, driving exceptional results, and exceeding expectations.”

    Fourth Quarter 2024 – Financial Highlights (vs Q4 2023)

    • Net sales were $620.3 million, up 13.8%
      • Branded consumer net sales increased 15.2% to $403.0 million
      • Industrial net sales increased 11.4% to $217.2 million
    • Subsidiary Adjusted EBITDA, a non-GAAP financial measure, was $140.9 million, up 25%
      • Branded consumer Adjusted EBITDA increased 29.0%
      • Industrial Adjusted EBITDA increased 5.2%
    • Adjusted EBITDA, a non-GAAP financial measure, was $118.2 million, up 29.0%

    Recent Business Highlights

    • Sold Ergobaby for an enterprise value of $104 million on December 27, 2024
    • In Q4 2024 – raised ~$90 million via issuance of preferred shares
      • More than $115 million for full year 2024
      • Flexible, low-cost source of capital
    • In Q4 2024 – re-purchased more than 400,000 common shares
      • Average price of $23.19 per share
    • In January 2025 – raised $300 million in incremental term loan A
      • Initial funding of $200 million; additional $100 million available with six month delayed draw
      • Matures in July 2027, consistent with existing term loan A

    Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2024 Financial Results

    Net sales in the fourth quarter of 2024 were $620.3 million, up 13.8% compared to $544.9 million in the fourth quarter of 2023. For the full year 2024, net sales were $2.2 billion, up 11.9% compared to $2.0 billion a year ago. Growth was driven by the Company’s acquisition of The Honey Pot Co. in January 2024 and continued strong sales growth at Lugano and BOA. On a pro forma basis, assuming CODI had acquired The Honey Pot Co. on January 1, 2023, net sales were up 7% in the full year 2024.

    Branded consumer net sales increased 8% in the fourth quarter of 2024 to $403.0 million compared to the fourth quarter of 2023. On a pro forma basis, branded consumer net sales increased 10% to $1.5 billion in the full year 2024 compared to a year ago.

    Industrial net sales increased 11% in the fourth quarter of 2024 to $217.2 million compared to the fourth quarter of 2023 and remained relatively flat at $729.4 million in the full year 2024 compared to a year ago.

    Operating income for the fourth quarter of 2024 was $60.6 million compared to operating loss of $4.6 million in the fourth quarter of 2023. The increase was primarily due to a $56.8 million non-cash impairment expense associated with PrimaLoft in the fourth quarter of 2023. For the full year 2024, operating income increased 170% to $230.1 million compared to $85.2 million a year ago. The increase was due to an increase in net sales year-over-year, as well as non-cash impairment charges taken in 2023 of $89.4 million.

    Net income in the fourth quarter of 2024 was $23.8 million compared to net income of $139.4 million in the fourth quarter of 2023. For the full year 2024, net income was $47.4 million compared to $262.4 million a year ago. The decreases in net income were due primarily to the $179.5 million gain on the sale of Marucci Sports in November 2023 and the $98.0 million gain on the sale of Advanced Circuits in February 2023.

    Income from continuing operations in the fourth quarter of 2024 was $22.2 million compared to loss from continuing operations of $37.1 million in the fourth quarter of 2023. For the full year 2024, income from continuing operations was $42.3 million compared to loss from continuing operations of $44.8 million a year ago. The increases in net income from continuing operations were primarily due to the non-cash impairment expenses associated with PrimaLoft and Velocity Outdoor in 2023.

    Adjusted Earnings (see “Note Regarding Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures” below) for the fourth quarter of 2024 was $46.6 million compared to $34.7 million a year ago. For the full year 2024, Adjusted Earnings was $161.6 million compared to $101.2 million a year ago. CODI’s weighted average number of shares outstanding in the fourth quarter of 2024 was 75.51 million compared to 72.43 million in the prior year fourth quarter. For the full year 2024, CODI’s weighted average number of shares outstanding was 75.45 million compared to 72.11 million in 2023.

    Adjusted EBITDA (see “Note Regarding Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures” below) in the fourth quarter of 2024 was $118.2 million, up 29% compared to $91.6 million in the fourth quarter of 2023. For the full year 2024, Adjusted EBITDA was $424.8 million, up 30% compared to $326.5 million a year ago. The increases were primarily due to strong results at Lugano. Management fees incurred during the fourth quarter and full year were $19.5 million and $74.8 million, respectively.

    Liquidity and Capital Resources

    As of December 31, 2024, CODI had approximately $59.7 million in cash and cash equivalents, $113.5 million outstanding on its revolver, $375.0 million outstanding in term loans, $1.0 billion outstanding in 5.250% Senior Notes due 2029 and $300.0 million outstanding in 5.000% Senior Notes due 2032.

    As of December 31, 2024, the Company had no significant debt maturities until 2027 and had net borrowing availability of approximately $486.6 million under its revolving credit facility.

    Fourth Quarter 2024 Distributions

    On January 3, 2025, CODI’s Board of Directors (the “Board”) declared a fourth quarter distribution of $0.25 per share on the Company’s common shares. The cash distribution was paid on January 23, 2025, to all holders of record of common shares as of January 16, 2025.

    The Board also declared a quarterly distribution of $0.453125 per share on the Company’s 7.250% Series A Preferred Shares (the “Series A Preferred Shares”). The distribution on the Series A Preferred Shares covered the period from, and including, October 30, 2024, up to, but excluding, January 30, 2025. The cash distribution was paid on January 30, 2025, to all holders of record of Series A Preferred Shares as of January 15, 2025.

    The Board also declared a quarterly distribution of $0.4921875 per share on the Company’s 7.875% Series B Preferred Shares (the “Series B Preferred Shares”). The distribution on the Series B Preferred Shares covered the period from, and including, October 30, 2024, up to, but excluding, January 30, 2025. The cash distribution for such period was paid on January 30, 2025, to all holders of record of Series B Preferred Shares as of January 15, 2025.

    The Board also declared a quarterly distribution of $0.4921875 per share on the Company’s 7.875% Series C Preferred Shares (the “Series C Preferred Shares”). The distribution on the Series C Preferred Shares covered the period from, and including, October 30, 2024, up to, but excluding, January 30, 2025. The cash distribution was paid on January 30, 2025, to all holders of record of Series C Preferred Shares as of January 15, 2025.

    CODI expects all cash distributions paid in the 2024 taxable year to be qualified dividends (assuming requisite holding periods are met) since CODI’s earnings and profits in the 2024 taxable year are expected to exceed cash distributions.

    2025 Outlook

    For the full year 2025, CODI expects its current subsidiaries to produce consolidated Subsidiary Adjusted EBITDA (see “Note Regarding Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures” below) of between $570 million and $610 million. Of this range, CODI expects its branded consumer vertical to produce $440 million to $465 million and its industrial vertical to produce $130 million to $145 million. This estimate is based on the summation of the Company’s expectations for its current subsidiaries in 2025, and is absent additional acquisitions or divestitures, and excludes corporate expenses such as interest expense, management fees paid by CODI and corporate overhead.

    CODI further expects Adjusted EBITDA (see “Note Regarding Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures” below) including management fees and corporate expenses to be between $480 million and $520 million for the full year 2025.

    In addition, the Company expects to earn between $170 million and $190 million in Adjusted Earnings (see “Note Regarding Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures” below) for the full year 2025.

    In reliance on the unreasonable efforts exception provided under Item 10(e)(1)(i)(B) of Regulation S-K, CODI has not reconciled 2025 consolidated Subsidiary Adjusted EBITDA, 2025 Adjusted EBITDA or 2025 Adjusted Earnings to their comparable GAAP measure because it does not provide guidance on Income (Loss) from Continuing Operations or Net Income (Loss) or the applicable reconciling items as a result of the uncertainty regarding, and the potential variability of, these items. For the same reasons, CODI is unable to address the probable significance of the unavailable information, which could be material to future results.

    Conference Call

    Management will host a conference call on Thursday, February 27, 2025, at 5:00 p.m. E.T. / 2:00 p.m. P.T. with the Company’s Chief Executive Officer, Elias Sabo, the Company’s Chief Financial Officer, Stephen Keller, and Pat Maciariello, the Chief Operating Officer of Compass Group Management. A live webcast of the call will be available on the Investor Relations section of CODI’s website. To access the call by phone, please go to this link (registration link) and you will be provided with dial in details. To avoid delays, we encourage participants to dial into the conference call 15 minutes ahead of the scheduled start time. A replay of the webcast will also be available for a limited time on the Company’s website.

    Note Regarding Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures

    Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted Earnings are non-GAAP measures used by the Company to assess its performance. We have reconciled Adjusted EBITDA to Income (Loss) from Continuing Operations and Adjusted Earnings to Net Income (Loss) on the attached schedules. We consider Income (Loss) from Continuing Operations to be the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure to Adjusted EBITDA and Net Income (Loss) to be the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure to Adjusted Earnings. We believe that Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted Earnings provides useful information to investors and reflect important financial measures as each excludes the effects of items which reflect the impact of long-term investment decisions, rather than the performance of near-term operations. When compared to Net Income (Loss) and Income (Loss) from Continuing Operations, Adjusted Earnings and Adjusted EBITDA, respectively, are each limited in that they do not reflect the periodic costs of certain capital assets used in generating revenues of our businesses or the non-cash charges associated with impairments, as well as certain cash charges. The presentation of Adjusted EBITDA allows investors to view the performance of our businesses in a manner similar to the methods used by us and the management of our businesses, provides additional insight into our operating results and provides a measure for evaluating targeted businesses for acquisition. The presentation of Adjusted Earnings provides insight into our operating results.

    Pro forma net sales is defined as net sales including the historical net sales relating to the pre-acquisition periods of The Honey Pot Co., assuming that the Company acquired The Honey Pot Co. on January 1, 2023. We have reconciled pro forma net sales to net sales, the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure, on the attached schedules. We believe that pro forma net sales is useful information for investors as it provides a better understanding of sales performance, and relative changes thereto, on a comparable basis. Pro forma net sales is not necessarily indicative of what the actual results would have been if the acquisition had in fact occurred on the date or for the periods indicated nor does it purport to project net sales for any future periods or as of any date.

    In reliance on the unreasonable efforts exception provided under Item 10(e)(1)(i)(B) of Regulation S-K, we have not reconciled 2025 consolidated Subsidiary Adjusted EBITDA, 2025 Adjusted EBITDA or 2025 Adjusted Earnings to their comparable GAAP measures because we do not provide guidance on Net Income (Loss) from Continuing Operations or Net Income (Loss) or the applicable reconciling items as a result of the uncertainty regarding, and the potential variability of, these items. For the same reasons, we are unable to address the probable significance of the unavailable information, which could be material to future results.

    Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted Earnings and pro forma net sales are not meant to be a substitute for GAAP measures and may be different from or otherwise inconsistent with non-GAAP financial measures used by other companies.

    About Compass Diversified

    Since its IPO in 2006, CODI has consistently executed its strategy of owning and managing a diverse set of highly defensible, middle-market businesses across the branded consumer, industrial, healthcare, and critical outsourced services sectors. The Company leverages its permanent capital base, long-term disciplined approach, and actionable expertise to maintain controlling ownership interests in each of its subsidiaries, maximizing its ability to impact long-term cash flow generation and value creation. The Company provides both debt and equity capital for its subsidiaries, contributing to their financial and operating flexibility. CODI utilizes the cash flows generated by its subsidiaries to invest in the long-term growth of the Company and has consistently generated strong returns through its culture of transparency, alignment and accountability. For more information, please visit compassdiversified.com.

    Forward Looking Statements

    Certain statements in this press release may be deemed forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements as to our future performance or liquidity, such as expectations regarding our results of operations and financial condition, our 2025 consolidated Subsidiary Adjusted EBITDA, our 2025 Adjusted EBITDA, our 2025 Adjusted Earnings, our pending acquisitions and divestitures, and other statements with regard to the future performance of CODI. We may use words such as “plans,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “expect,” “intend,” “will,” “should,” “may,” “seek,” “look,” and similar expressions to identify forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release involve risks and uncertainties. Actual results could differ materially from those implied or expressed in the forward-looking statements for any reason, including the factors set forth in “Risk Factors” and elsewhere in CODI’s annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2024 and its quarterly reports on Form 10-Q. Other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially include: changes in the economy, financial markets and political environment, including changes in inflation, interest rates and U.S. tariff and import/export regulations; risks associated with possible disruption in CODI’s operations or the economy generally due to terrorism, war, natural disasters, social, civil and political unrest or the COVID-19 pandemic; future changes in laws or regulations (including the interpretation of these laws and regulations by regulatory authorities); environmental risks affecting the business or operations of our subsidiaries; disruption in the global supply chain, labor shortages and high labor costs; our business prospects and the prospects of our subsidiaries; the impact of, and ability to successfully complete and integrate, acquisitions that we may make; the ability to successfully complete when we’ve executed divestitures agreements; the dependence of our future success on the general economy and its impact on the industries in which we operate; the ability of our subsidiaries to achieve their objectives; the adequacy of our cash resources and working capital; the timing of cash flows, if any, from the operations of our subsidiaries; and other considerations that may be disclosed from time to time in CODI’s publicly disseminated documents and filings. Undue reliance should not be placed on such forward-looking statements as such statements speak only as of the date on which they are made. Although, except as required by law, CODI undertakes no obligation to revise or update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, you are advised to consult any additional disclosures that CODI may make directly to you or through reports that it in the future may file with the SEC, including annual reports on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and current reports on Form 8-K.

    Investor Relations

    Compass Diversified
    irinquiry@compassdiversified.com

    Gateway Group
    Cody Slach
    949.574.3860
    CODI@gateway-grp.com

    Media Relations
    Compass Diversified
    mediainquiry@compassdiversified.com

    The IGB Group        
    Leon Berman
    212-477-8438
    lberman@igbir.com

    Compass Diversified Holdings
    Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets
           
    (in thousands) December 31, 2024   December 31, 2023
           
    Assets      
    Current assets      
    Cash and cash equivalents $ 59,727   $ 446,684
    Accounts receivable, net   444,386     308,183
    Inventories, net   962,408     723,194
    Prepaid expenses and other current assets   101,129     88,844
    Current assets of discontinued operations   —     36,915
    Total current assets   1,567,650     1,603,820
    Property, plant and equipment, net   244,746     191,283
    Goodwill   982,253     859,907
    Intangible assets, net   1,049,186     879,078
    Other non-current assets   208,587     195,010
    Non-current assets of discontinued operations   —     87,883
    Total assets $ 4,052,422   $ 3,816,981
           
    Liabilities and stockholders’ equity      
    Current liabilities      
    Accounts payable $ 104,304   $ 91,089
    Accrued expenses   197,829     151,443
    Due to related parties   18,036     16,025
    Current portion, long-term debt   15,000     10,000
    Other current liabilities   49,617     34,812
    Current liabilities of discontinued operations   —     8,986
    Total current liabilities   384,786     312,355
    Deferred income taxes   119,948     118,882
    Long-term debt   1,759,290     1,661,879
    Other non-current liabilities   225,334     203,207
    Non-current liabilities of discontinued operations   —     1,277
    Total liabilities   2,489,358     2,297,600
    Stockholders’ equity      
    Total stockholders’ equity attributable to Holdings   1,296,793     1,326,750
    Noncontrolling interest   266,271     175,875
    Noncontrolling interest of discontinued operations   —     16,756
    Total stockholders’ equity   1,563,064     1,519,381
    Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity $ 4,052,422   $ 3,816,981
           
    Compass Diversified Holdings
    Consolidated Statements of Operations
            
      Three months ended December 31,   Year ended December 31,
    (in thousands, except per share data)   2024       2023       2024       2023  
    Net revenues $ 620,255     $ 544,915     $ 2,198,233     $ 1,965,017  
    Cost of revenues   349,238       312,972       1,197,873       1,132,014  
    Gross profit   271,017       231,943       1,000,360       833,003  
    Operating expenses:              
    Selling, general and administrative expense   166,256       140,831       587,520       502,013  
    Management fees   19,453       16,784       74,767       67,945  
    Amortization expense   24,735       22,088       99,760       88,396  
    Impairment expense   —       56,832       8,182       89,400  
    Operating income (loss)   60,573       (4,592 )     230,131       85,249  
    Other income (expense):              
    Interest expense, net   (29,189 )     (24,827 )     (106,683 )     (105,179 )
    Amortization of debt issuance costs   (1,004 )     (1,004 )     (4,018 )     (4,038 )
    Gain (loss) on sale of Crosman   —           (24,218 )     —  
    Other income (expense), net   412       (350 )     (3,902 )     1,779  
    Net income (loss) before income taxes   30,792       (30,773 )     91,310       (22,189 )
    Provision for income taxes   8,567       6,290       49,012       22,639  
    Income (loss) from continuing operations   22,225       (37,063 )     42,298       (44,828 )
    Income (loss) from discontinued operations, net of income tax   (7,006 )     (3,026 )     (6,905 )     24,208  
    Gain on sale of discontinued operations   8,612       179,530       11,957       283,025  
    Net income   23,831       139,441       47,350       262,405  
    Less: Net income (loss) attributable to noncontrolling interest   13,631       2,828       37,426       16,423  
    Less: Net income (loss) from discontinued operations attributable to noncontrolling interest   (1,721 )     (824 )     (2,884 )     (304 )
    Net income attributable to Holdings $ 11,921     $ 137,437     $ 12,808     $ 246,286  
                   
    Basic income (loss) per common share attributable to Holdings              
    Continuing operations $ (0.10 )   $ (0.75 )   $ (1.25 )   $ (1.81 )
    Discontinued operations   0.04       2.45       0.11       4.27  
      $ (0.06 )   $ 1.70     $ (1.14 )   $ 2.46  
                   
    Basic weighted average number of common shares outstanding   75,505       72,429       75,454       72,105  
                   
    Cash distributions declared per Trust common share $ 0.25     $ 0.25     $ 1.00     $ 1.00  
                                   
    Compass Diversified Holdings
    Net Income to Non-GAAP Adjusted Earnings and Non-GAAP Adjusted EBITDA – 2024
    (Unaudited)
           
      Three months ended   Year ended
    (in thousands) March 31, 2024   June 30, 2024   September 30, 2024   December 31, 2024   December 31, 2024
    Net income (loss) $ 5,781     $ (13,723 )   $ 31,461     $ 23,831     $ 47,350  
    Income (loss) from discontinued operations, net of tax   317       872       (1,088 )     (7,006 )     (6,905 )
    Gain on sale of discontinued operations, net of tax   3,345       —       —       8,612       11,957  
    Net income (loss) from continuing operations $ 2,119     $ (14,595 )   $ 32,549     $ 22,225     $ 42,298  
    Less: income from continuing operations attributable to noncontrolling interest   7,765       6,041       9,989       13,631       37,426  
    Net income (loss) attributable to Holdings – continuing operations $ (5,646 )   $ (20,636 )   $ 22,560     $ 8,594     $ 4,872  
    Adjustments:                                      
    Distributions paid – preferred shares   (6,045 )     (6,101 )     (6,345 )     (6,967 )     (25,458 )
    Amortization expense – intangible assets and inventory step-up   27,116       26,642       24,956       26,341       105,055  
    Impairment expense   8,182       —       —       —       8,182  
    Loss (gain) on sale of Crosman   —       24,606       (388 )     —       24,218  
    Tax effect – loss on sale of Crosman   —       7,254       —       —       7,254  
    Non-controlling shareholder compensation   4,071       3,680       4,537       4,057       16,345  
    Acquisition expense   3,479       —       —       1,872       5,351  
    Integration services fee   —       875       875       875       2,625  
    Other   274       130       964       11,820       13,188  
    Adjusted earnings $ 31,431     $ 36,450     $ 47,159     $ 46,592     $ 161,632  
    Plus (less):                                      
    Depreciation expense   10,730       10,339       10,180       12,642       43,891  
    Income tax provision   9,996       19,830       10,619       8,567       49,012  
    Interest expense   23,575       26,561       27,358       29,189       106,683  
    Amortization of debt issuance costs   1,005       1,004       1,005       1,004       4,018  
    Income from continuing operations attributable to noncontrolling interest   7,765       6,041       9,989       13,631       37,426  
    Tax effect – loss on sale of Crosman   —       (7,254 )     —       —       (7,254 )
    Preferred distributions   6,045       6,101       6,345       6,967       25,458  
    Other   2,879       1,375       60       (412 )     3,902  
    Adjusted EBITDA $ 93,426     $ 100,447     $ 112,715     $ 118,180     $ 424,768  
                                           
    Compass Diversified Holdings
    Net Income (Loss) to Non-GAAP Adjusted Earnings and Non-GAAP Adjusted EBITDA – 2023
    (Unaudited)
                       
      Three months ended   Year ended
    (in thousands) March 31, 2023   June 30, 2023   September 30, 2023   December 31, 2023   December 31, 2023
    Net income (loss) $ 109,601     $ 17,123     $ (3,760 )   $ 139,441     $ 262,405  
    Income (loss) from discontinued options, net of tax   10,939       5,437       10,858       (3,026 )     24,208  
    Gain on sale of discontinued operations, net of tax   97,989       4,232       1,274       179,530       283,025  
    Net income (loss) from continuing operations $ 673     $ 7,454     $ (15,892 )   $ (37,063 )   $ (44,828 )
    Less: income (loss) from continuing operations attributable to noncontrolling interest   4,398       3,428       5,769       2,828       16,423  
    Net income (loss) attributable to Holdings – continuing operations $ (3,725 )   $ 4,026     $ (21,661 )   $ (39,891 )   $ (61,251 )
    Adjustments:                  
    Distributions paid – preferred shares   (6,045 )     (6,046 )     (6,045 )     (6,045 )     (24,181 )
    Amortization expense – intangible assets and inventory step-up   23,283       22,111       22,090       22,088       89,572  
    Impairment expense   —       —       32,568       56,832       89,400  
    Tax effect – impairment expense   —       —       (4,308 )     978       (3,330 )
    Non-controlling interest – impairment expense   —       —       —       (5,382 )     (5,382 )
    Non-controlling shareholder compensation   1,329       2,895       2,438       2,789       9,451  
    Integration services fee   1,187       1,188           —       2,375  
    Other   432       348       349       3,377       4,506  
    Adjusted earnings $ 16,461     $ 24,522     $ 25,431     $ 34,746     $ 101,160  
    Plus (less):                  
    Depreciation expense   11,006       11,958       11,853       11,142       45,959  
    Income tax provision   7,471       4,421       4,457       6,290       22,639  
    Interest expense   26,180       26,613       27,559       24,828       105,180  
    Amortization of debt issuance costs   1,005       1,024       1,005       1,004       4,038  
    Income from continuing operations attributable to noncontrolling interest   4,398       3,428       5,769       2,828       16,423  
    Tax effect – impairment expense   —       —       4,308       (978 )     3,330  
    Non-controlling interest – impairment expense   —       —       —       5,382       5,382  
    Distributions paid – preferred shares   6,045       6,046       6,045       6,045       24,181  
    Other   (1,160 )     75       (1,044 )     349       (1,780 )
    Adjusted EBITDA $ 71,406     $ 78,087     $ 85,383     $ 91,636     $ 326,512  
                                           
    Compass Diversified Holdings
    Net Income (Loss) from Continuing Operations to Non-GAAP Consolidated Adjusted EBITDA Reconciliation
    Three Months Ended December 31, 2024
    (Unaudited)
                                                 
    (in thousands)   Corporate     5.11     BOA   Lugano   PrimaLoft   THP   Velocity Outdoor   Altor Solutions   Arnold   Sterno   Consolidated
    Net income (loss) from continuing operations   $ (8,045 )   $ 2,040     $ 4,543     $ 35,133   $ (5,314 )   $ (1,997 )   $ (1,483 )   $ (441 )   $ (9,138 )   $ 6,927     $ 22,225  
    Adjusted for:                                            
    Provision (benefit) for income taxes     (2,095 )     (266 )     1,042       11,294     (2,010 )     (305 )     (264 )     (912 )     (196 )     2,280       8,568  
    Interest expense, net     29,134       (11 )     (5 )     —     (55 )     (24 )     (1 )     —       151       —       29,189  
    Intercompany interest     (41,740 )     3,252       4,409       15,596     4,390       2,725       1,635       5,159       1,808       2,766       —  
    Depreciation and amortization     51       5,536       5,343       2,763     5,331       4,163       1,363       9,303       2,511       3,623       39,987  
    EBITDA     (22,695 )     10,551       15,332       64,786     2,342       4,562       1,250       13,109       (4,864 )     15,596       99,969  
    Other (income) expense     —       (46 )     489       280     176       8       (1,177 )     24       —       (167 )     (413 )
    Non-controlling shareholder compensation     —       499       1,331       775     559       517       (153 )     247       5       277       4,057  
    Acquisition expenses     —       —       —       —     —       —       —       1,872       —       —       1,872  
    Integration services fee     —       —       —       —     —       875       —       —       —       —       875  
    Other     —       —       —       —     —       —       1,500       696       9,546       78       11,820  
    Adjusted EBITDA   $ (22,695 )   $ 11,004     $ 17,152     $ 65,841   $ 3,077     $ 5,962     $ 1,420     $ 15,948     $ 4,687     $ 15,784     $ 118,180  
                                                                                           
    Compass Diversified Holdings
    Net Income (Loss) from Continuing Operations to Non-GAAP Consolidated Adjusted EBITDA Reconciliation
    Three Months Ended December 31, 2023
    (Unaudited)
                                           
    (in thousands) Corporate     5.11     BOA   Lugano   PrimaLoft   Velocity Outdoor   Altor Solutions   Arnold   Sterno   Consolidated
    Net income (loss) from continuing operations $ (12,982 )   $ 9,840     $ 1,345     $ 20,847     $ (64,383 )   $ (3,183 )   $ 4,260   $ 3,523     $ 3,670     $ (37,063 )
    Adjusted for:                                      
    Provision (benefit) for income taxes   301       1,004       639       4,293       (2,549 )     289       1,797     921       (406 )     6,289  
    Interest expense, net   24,732       (4 )     (9 )     —       (2 )     120       —     (11 )     —       24,826  
    Intercompany interest   (33,291 )     4,546       2,548       10,177       4,780       3,440       2,303     1,728       3,769       —  
    Depreciation and amortization   366       6,143       5,496       2,258       5,394       3,259       4,183     2,193       4,943       34,235  
    EBITDA   (20,874 )     21,529       10,019       37,575       (56,760 )     3,925       12,543     8,354       11,976       28,287  
    Other (income) expense   (1 ) —   (412 ) —   (19 )     (75 )     (66 )     (31 )     1,239     (4 )     (280 )     351  
    Non-controlling shareholder compensation   —       203       950       162       761       228       186     1       298       2,789  
    Impairment expense   —       —       —       —       57,810       (978 )     —     —       —       56,832  
    Other   —       —       3,072       —       —       —       —     —       305       3,377  
    Adjusted EBITDA $ (20,875 )   $ 21,320     $ 14,022     $ 37,662     $ 1,745     $ 3,144     $ 13,968   $ 8,351     $ 12,299     $ 91,636  
                                           
    Compass Diversified Holdings
    Net Income (Loss) from Continuing Operations to Non-GAAP Consolidated Adjusted EBITDA Reconciliation
    Year ended December 31, 2024
    (Unaudited)
                                                 
    (in thousands)   Corporate     5.11     BOA   Lugano   PrimaLoft   THP   Velocity Outdoor   Altor Solutions   Arnold   Sterno   Consolidated
    Net income (loss) from continuing operations   $ (35,634 )   $ 20,634     $ 20,791     $ 94,390   $ (10,575 )   $ (9,761 )   $ (54,851 )   $ 5,635   $ (2,969 )   $ 14,638     $ 42,298
    Adjusted for:                                            
    Provision (benefit) for income taxes     (2,095 )     4,526       4,962       31,304     (3,741 )     (2,894 )     6,810       2,280     2,986       4,874       49,012
    Interest expense, net     106,414       (14 )     (21 )     3     (70 )     (52 )     52       —     371       —       106,683
    Intercompany interest     (157,585 )     13,366       20,125       56,013     17,916       10,552       9,255       10,771     7,121       12,466       —
    Depreciation and amortization     677       22,734       21,594       10,334     21,318       18,974       8,042       21,553     9,265       18,473       152,964
    EBITDA     (88,223 )     61,246       67,451       192,044     24,848       16,819       (30,692 )     40,239     16,774       50,451       350,957
    Other (income) expense     462       40       511       219     181       3       24,557       2,746     (9 )     (590 )     28,120
    Non-controlling shareholder compensation     —       2,129       5,683       2,437     2,382       1,674       403       988     18       631       16,345
    Impairment expense     —       —       —       —     —           8,182       —     —       —       8,182
    Acquisition expenses     —       —       —       —     —       3,479       —       1,872     —       —       5,351
    Integration services fee     —       —       —       —     —       2,625       —       —     —       —       2,625
    Other     —       —       —       —     —       90       1,500       696     10,426       476       13,188
    Adjusted EBITDA   $ (87,761 )   $ 63,415     $ 73,645     $ 194,700   $ 27,411     $ 24,690     $ 3,950     $ 46,541   $ 27,209     $ 50,968     $ 424,768
                                                                                       
    Compass Diversified Holdings
    Net Income (Loss) from Continuing Operations to Non-GAAP Consolidated Adjusted EBITDA Reconciliation
    Year ended December 31, 2023
    (Unaudited)
                                           
    (in thousands) Corporate     5.11     BOA   Lugano   PrimaLoft   Velocity Outdoor   Altor Solutions   Arnold   Sterno   Consolidated
    Net income (loss) from continuing operations $ (60,454 )   $ 21,690     $ 16,496     $ 52,315     $ (69,883 )   $ (40,045 )   $ 16,504   $ 10,434     $ 8,115     $ (44,828 )
    Adjusted for:                                      
    Provision (benefit) for income taxes   301       4,994       2,863       14,589       (5,673 )     (5,616 )     5,890     4,185       1,106       22,639  
    Interest expense, net   104,855       (8 )     (18 )     4       (11 )     352       —     5       —       105,179  
    Intercompany interest   (126,240 )     20,244       7,580       32,837       18,123       13,510       10,486     6,806       16,654       —  
    Depreciation and amortization   1,498       26,009       22,932       9,229       21,478       13,282       16,741     8,441       19,959       139,569  
    EBITDA   (80,040 )     72,929       49,853       108,974       (35,966 )     (18,517 )     49,621     29,871       45,834       222,559  
    Other (income) expense   (128 )     (515 )     98       (80 )     62       (1,210 )     1,440     (5 )     (1,441 )     (1,779 )
    Non-controlling shareholder compensation   —       1,191       3,019       1,474       980       914       986     27       860       9,451  
    Impairment expense   —       —       —       —       57,810       31,590       —     —       —       89,400  
    Integration services fee   —       —       —       —       2,375       —       —     —       —       2,375  
    Other   —       —       3,072       —       —       —       —     —       1,434       4,506  
    Adjusted EBITDA $ (80,168 )   $ 73,605     $ 56,042     $ 110,368     $ 25,261     $ 12,777     $ 52,047   $ 29,893     $ 46,687     $ 326,512  
                                                                                 
    Compass Diversified Holdings
    Adjusted EBITDA
    (Unaudited)
                     
        Three months ended December 31,   Year ended December 31,
    (in thousands)     2024       2023       2024       2023  
                     
    Branded Consumer                
    5.11   $ 11,004     $ 21,320     $ 63,415     $ 73,605  
    BOA     17,152       14,022       73,645       56,042  
    Lugano     65,841       37,662       194,700       110,368  
    PrimaLoft     3,077       1,745       27,411       25,261  
    The Honey Pot Co. (1)     5,962       —       24,690       —  
    Velocity Outdoor     1,420       3,144       3,950       12,777  
    Total Branded Consumer   $ 104,456     $ 77,893     $ 387,811     $ 278,053  
                     
    Industrial                
    Altor Solutions   $ 15,948     $ 13,968     $ 46,541     $ 52,047  
    Arnold Magnetics     4,687       8,351       27,209       29,893  
    Sterno     15,784       12,299       50,968       46,687  
    Total Industrial   $ 36,419     $ 34,618     $ 124,718     $ 128,627  
    Corporate expense     (22,695 )     (20,874 )     (87,761 )     (80,168 )
    Total Adjusted EBITDA   $ 118,180     $ 91,637     $ 424,768     $ 326,512  
                                     
    (1 )   The above results for The Honey Pot Co. do not include management’s estimate of Adjusted EBITDA, before the Company’s ownership of $3.9 million for the year ended December 31, 2024, and $7.8 million and $28.7 million, respectively, for the three months and year ended December 31, 2023. The Honey Pot Co. was acquired on January 31, 2024.
         
    Compass Diversified Holdings
    Net Sales to Pro Forma Net Sales Reconciliation
    (unaudited)
             
        Three months ended December 31,   Year ended December 31,
    (in thousands)     2024     2023     2024     2023
                     
    Net Sales   $ 620,255   $ 544,915   $ 2,198,233   $ 1,965,017
    Acquisitions (1)     —     24,905     10,671     107,311
    Pro Forma Net Sales   $ 620,255   $ 569,820   $ 2,208,904   $ 2,072,328
                             
    (1 )   Acquisitions reflects the net sales for The Honey Pot Co. on a proforma basis as if we had acquired this business on January 1, 2023.
         
    Compass Diversified Holdings
    Subsidiary Pro Forma Net Sales
    (unaudited)
                 
        Three months ended December 31,   Year ended December 31,
    (in thousands)     2024     2023     2024     2023
                     
    Branded Consumer                
    5.11   $ 144,768   $ 147,394   $ 532,161   $ 533,089
    BOA     48,141     42,435     190,811     155,825
    Lugano     149,685     104,750     470,666     308,321
    PrimaLoft     12,708     9,434     74,226     67,053
    The Honey Pot (1)     28,697     24,905     115,260     107,311
    Velocity Outdoor     19,008     45,842     96,427     172,190
    Total Branded Consumer   $ 403,007   $ 374,760   $ 1,479,551   $ 1,343,789
                     
    Industrial                
    Altor Solutions     81,322     56,417     239,068     238,030
    Arnold Magnetics     41,292     44,632     171,837     166,679
    Sterno     94,634     94,011     318,448     323,830
    Total Industrial   $ 217,248   $ 195,060   $ 729,353   $ 728,539
                     
    Total Subsidiary Net Sales   $ 620,255   $ 569,820   $ 2,208,904   $ 2,072,328
                             
    (1 )   Net sales for The Honey Pot are pro forma as if we had acquired this business on January 1, 2023.
         


    Compass Diversified Holdings
    Condensed Consolidated Cash Flows

        Three months ended December 31,   Year ended December 31,
    (in thousands)     2024       2023       2024       2023  
                     
    Net cash provided by (used in) operating activities   $ 9,974     $ 21,128     $ (67,636 )   $ 78,080  
    Net cash provided by (used in) investing activities     (70,199 )     466,213       (422,450 )     570,503  
    Net cash provided by (used in) financing activities     49,732       (102,236 )     100,614       (260,163 )
    Foreign currency impact on cash     (1,727 )     636       (1,278 )     786  
    Net increase (decrease) in cash and cash equivalents     (12,220 )     385,741       (390,750 )     389,206  
    Cash and cash equivalents – beginning of the period(1)     71,947       64,736       450,477       61,271  
    Cash and cash equivalents – end of the period   $ 59,727     $ 450,477     $ 59,727     $ 450,477  
                                     
    (1 )   Includes cash from discontinued operations of $3.8 million at January 1, 2024 and $8.5 million at January 1, 2023.
         
    Compass Diversified Holding
    Selected Financial Data – Cash Flows
                     
        Three months ended December 31,   Year ended December 31,
    (in thousands)     2024       2023       2024       2023  
                     
    Changes in operating assets and liabilities   $         (37,286 )   $         (24,390 )   $         (292,884 )   $         (160,281 )
    Purchases of property and equipment   $         (22,858 )   $         (17,239 )   $         (56,701 )   $         (55,016 )
    Distributions paid – common shares   $         (18,913 )   $         (17,955 )   $         (75,490 )   $         (71,967 )
    Distributions paid – preferred shares   $         (6,967 )   $         (6,045 )   $         (25,458 )   $         (24,181 )

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: Atomic Data and Minnesota United FC Extend Partnership for Five Years

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    MINNEAPOLIS, Feb. 27, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Atomic Data and Minnesota United FC (MNUFC) announced today that they have renewed their long-standing partnership through 2029. The agreement marks the latest step in a partnership that has served cutting-edge stadium technology, next-gen Wi-Fi, and modern work solutions to hundreds of thousands of fans and staff alike.

    Atomic Data and MNUFC have built a true partnership of trust that began many years before Allianz Field opened its doors in 2019. From the pre-MLS days at National Sports Center, to the temporary home at Huntington Bank Stadium, and finally to Allianz Field in Saint Paul and the Golden Valley team headquarters, Atomic Data and MNUFC have grown and won together since 2012.

    “Minnesota United is thrilled to announce the extension of our partnership with one of our most valued and long-standing supporters, Atomic Data. Atomic Data has been the driving force behind the development of our technology infrastructure, designing and implementing the IT platforms that support our offices and Allianz Field,” said MNUFC Chief Administrative Officer and Chief Financial Officer Gretchen Korf. “Their expertise and support has been instrumental throughout our club’s journey. We are deeply grateful for their continued partnership and look forward to the continued success we can achieve together.”

    MNUFC and Allianz Field will continue to benefit from Atomic Data’s sports and entertainment suite of services known as Game Day Technologies®. The venue and office solutions include match day IT support, 24×7 monitoring, cybersecurity services, and network infrastructure management.

    Yagya Mahadevan, Game Day Technology Director at Atomic Data, relayed his excitement about the extended deal: “Minnesota United FC is one of Atomic Data’s oldest partners, and much of what we do for venues today was initially conceived and implemented for them. The trust that MNUFC continues to place in Atomic Data is humbling and we’re all excited to see what we’ll achieve together over the next five years and beyond.”

    About Atomic Data & Game Day Technologies
    Atomic Data, trusted IT provider for hundreds of enterprises, sports teams, and large venues, is on a mission to deliver always-on, custom-tailored technology solutions and objective IT leadership.

    Game Day Technologies® powered by Atomic Data enables owners and teams to right size and modernize their venues, districts, training facilities, and back offices with objective, holistic technology oversight and activation.

    About Minnesota United:

    Professional soccer has been a part of Minnesota for over four decades, and since 2013, Minnesota United FC has been at the forefront of growing the game at all levels. MNUFC currently competes in three different levels established by Major League Soccer: Minnesota United FC (MLS), MNUFC2 (MLS NEXT Pro) and the MNUFC Academy (MLS NEXT). Allianz Field – constructed in 2019 in the Midway neighborhood of Saint Paul, Minnesota – is the home to Minnesota United games, and the club trains at the National Sports Center in Blaine, Minnesota. In 2025, MNUFC’s first team returns to the pitch for its ninth season in MLS.

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Millbrook — Millbrook RCMP charge a man with Attempt to Commit Murder

    Source: Royal Canadian Mounted Police

    Millbrook RCMP has charged a man with multiple offences, including Attempt to Commit Murder, following stabbings in the community.

    Yesterday, at approximately 1:45 p.m., RCMP officers responded to a report of stabbings that occurred at a residence on Coach Rd. RCMP officers learned that a man stabbed and robbed a man and then stabbed a woman before fleeing the scene in the male victim’s SUV. The three people are known to one another.

    The 64-year-old man and 41-year-old woman, both of Truro, suffered serious injuries. They were transported to hospital by EHS.

    A short time later, RCMP officers received information that the man involved had robbed a nearby gas station and continued to flee.

    Nearby officers quickly located the vehicle, a Kia Sportage, travelling south at Exit 10 on Hwy. 102 where it crashed into the ditch. At the scene, the 40-year-old Truro man was safely arrested. The man was in possession of two knives at the time he was arrested.

    Harry Arthur Cope has been charged with:

    • Attempt to Commit Murder (two counts)
    • Aggravated Assault (two counts)
    • Assault with a Weapon (two counts)
    • Uttering Threats (two counts)
    • Possession of a Weapon for a Dangerous Purpose (two counts)
    • Robbery (two counts)
    • Failure to Comply with a Probation Order (four counts)

    Cope was held in custody and will appear in Truro Provincial Court today.

    The investigation, led by Millbrook RCMP with assistance from Colchester County District RCMP, is ongoing.

    File# 2025-255350

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: Members of public welcome to watch 15th National Games Triathlon test event

    Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

         The 15th National Games Triathlon test event will be held at the Central Harbourfront and Victoria Harbour on March 1 (Saturday) and 2 (Sunday). Members of the public are welcome to watch the races on-the-spot.
     
         A total of around 110 athletes from the Mainland, Hong Kong, and Macao will compete in the men’s individual, women’s individual, and mixed relay events, of whom 6 male athletes and 5 female athletes are from Hong Kong. The women’s individual and men’s individual races are scheduled for 8am and 10.30am respectively on March 1. The mixed relay race will take place at 2pm on March 2. It will be participated by 15 teams, each of which will comprise 2 male athletes and 2 female athletes.
     
         The starting point of the races will be located at the waterfront of the Wan Chai Temporary Promenade. Athletes will complete the swimming segment, immediately followed by the cycling segment and running segment. The cycling route will be between Golden Bauhinia Square in Wan Chai and International Finance Centre in Central, and the running route will mainly loop around the Central Harbourfront Promenade, passing by several iconic Hong Kong landmarks, including the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, the Central Government Offices, the Legislative Council Complex, the Hong Kong Observation Wheel, with the finish line located at the Central Harbourfront Event Space. It is the first time that Hong Kong holds a triathlon mixed relay event and that part of the course and public seats are placed in the Central Harbourfront Event Space to facilitate the public viewing of the races.
     
         Members of the public who wish to have a close sight of the athletes competing in the races may visit the public viewing area at the Central and Western District Promenade (Central Section), which is accessible from MTR Admiralty Station Exit A via Tamar Park. No seating will be arranged. Tickets have been distributed to the public through the Triathlon Association of Hong Kong China. For those who possess a ticket may watch the event at the spectator stand in the Central Harbourfront Event Space after security check. Locations of the public viewing area and public entrance can be found in the annex. A small number of tickets have been reserved for each event day. Members of the public may get a ticket at the public entrance for admission while stocks last.
     
          Radio Television Hong Kong (RTHK) will provide live webcast of the events on the two days (RTHK weblink: www.rthk.hk/nationalgames and RTHK YouTube channel: www.youtube.com/RTHK).
     
         To facilitate the arrangement for the event, the Police will implement intermittent road closures and temporary road closure measures in the vicinities of Central Harbourfront and Wan Chai North (including Lung Wo Road, Yiu Sing Street, Lung Hop Street, Expo Drive, Expo Drive Central, and Expo Drive East). Intermittent road closures will be implemented from 5am to 8am on February 28, while temporary road closure measures will be put in place from 2am to 2pm on March 1 and from 8am to 6pm on March 2.
     
         In addition, the Police will set up a temporary restricted flying zone (RFZ), extending two kilometres outwards, from the race track from 7am to 1.30pm on March 1 and from 1pm to 5.30pm on March 2. No small unmanned aircraft, except those duly authorised, will be permitted to enter the zone. Details of the temporary RFZ will be shown on the electronic portal for small unmanned aircraft “eSUA”.
     
         For details of the special traffic and transport arrangements for the triathlon test event, members of the public may refer to the press release on the special traffic arrangements for the test event issued by the Police (www.info.gov.hk/gia/general/202502/24/P2025022400395.htm) and the Transport Department’s relevant notice (www.td.gov.hk/filemanager/en/content_13/TDN%20-Triathlon%20Test%20Event%20-%20eng%20v3.pdf), its mobile application “HKeMobility”, passenger notices issued by the relevant public transport operators.

    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Colombia wants to ban Pablo Escobar and other narco-themed merchandise – here’s why

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Ross Bennett-Cook, PhD Researcher, Carnegie School of Sport, Leeds Beckett University

    When you think of Colombia, what images come to mind? For some, it may be coffee or perhaps the country’s diverse landscapes and cultures. For many others, it will be cartels, crime and cocaine.

    Colombia’s history as a drug trafficking hub plays a major role in attracting visitors to the country – a form of travel known as “dark tourism”. But the Colombian government and much of the population are desperate to shake off this sordid association.

    A new bill going through Colombia’s congress is proposing to ban the sale of souvenirs that depict notorious drug lord Pablo Escobar and other convicted criminals. The proposed law would mean fines for those who violate the rules, and a temporary suspension of businesses.

    Colombia became a major producer of cocaine in the 1970s, fuelled by demand in North America. Led by Escobar, the Medellín cartel dominated this trade, controlling roughly 80% of the cocaine supply to the US.

    In 1988, Time magazine famously dubbed Medellín the “most dangerous city” in the world. Car bombings, assassinations, kidnap and torture became part of everyday life. In a failed attempt to assassinate presidential hopeful César Gaviria in 1989, Escobar was even behind the bombing of a commercial flight that killed all 107 passengers and crew onboard.

    By 1991, the homicide rate in Medellín was a shocking 381 for every 100,000 inhabitants, with 7,500 people murdered in the city that year alone. In comparison, there were a total of 107 homicides in London in 2024.

    Nowadays, Medellín is much more peaceful. Since Escobar’s death in 1993, its homicide rate has dropped by 97% due to increased security crackdowns and peace deals between the narco gangs.

    Colombia now has a booming tourism industry, breaking records for its highest number of visitors in 2024. Medellín has even become a trendy location for digital nomads due to its exciting nightlife, stunning landscape and excellent weather.

    A tourist poses for a picture in the Comuna 13 neighbourhood of Medellín.
    Anamaria Mejia / Shutterstock

    Yet, when I visited Colombia in 2024, it was hard not to become infatuated by Escobar. His face is everywhere: on key rings, magnets, mugs and t-shirts, while you often see lookalikes posing for photographs. Even airports – the last place I would expect to be associated with drugs – stock Escobar souvenirs.

    A quick look on TripAdvisor’s “best things to do in Medellín” shows Museum Pablo Escobar at number one. Almost every tour in the city is related to the notorious cartel leader, including visits to the neighbourhoods he controlled (and often terrorised), his hideout spots, and the location of his final shootout with the police.

    Narco tourism’s boom can be largely attributed to the huge popularity of Narcos, a critically acclaimed series on Netflix that dramatised the life of Escobar. But shows such as Narcos have been criticised by some experts for glorifying the cartel lifestyle – focusing on money, glamour and sex rather than the harsh realities of life within Colombia’s drug trade.

    According to dark tourism researcher Diego Felipe Caicedo, popular media related to narco culture often portrays cartel members as heroes managing to defeat the class structure established by the elite capitalist system.

    This has resulted in a dissonant heritage of people like Escobar. To some, he is a Robin Hood-type figure who built houses and gave to the poor. To others, he is an evil figure and vicious murderer. And while Escobar did use some of his fortune to improve deprived neighbourhoods, many saw this as a tactic to buy loyalty and mask his criminal activity.

    The romanticism of Escobar angers many in Colombia who hate the idea of a murderous drug tycoon being the most recognised image of the country. In a city where almost every family knows of someone affected by the violent consequences of the drug trade, victims in Medellín now live with reminders plastered across storefronts, vendor stalls and tourist’s t-shirts.

    Yet those who rely on this souvenir trade are furious at the possibility of restrictions. In many developing tourist destinations, selling souvenirs is an accessible way of benefiting from tourism and can act as a gateway out of poverty.

    The souvenir trade is one of supply and demand – vendors are only selling Escobar souvenirs because they are the most popular. So, perhaps the focus should be on changing the attitudes and interests of tourists, rather than penalising the vendors.

    Controlling the narrative

    Camille Beauvais, a researcher of Colombian history, suggests it is up to local authorities to take control of the narrative through commemoration and education. This could follow the example of the anti-mafia museum in Palermo, Italy, which is designed to recognise the courage of the city and its people in standing up to criminal activity.

    Attempts like this could steer tourists away from sensationalist tours to a more nuanced and historically accurate representation of this turbulent time. But the Colombian authorities have, up to now, tried to ignore this important period in the country’s history.

    It was only in 2022 that the Colombia Truth Commission released an official report on the root causes of violence in Colombia, including governmental and international failures in tackling narcotraffickers.



    Read more:
    Dark tourism: why atrocity tourism is neither new nor weird

    However, some groups in Colombia have already tried to develop an alternate narrative. In 2019, the NGO Colombia ConMemoria (Colombia Remembers) created an online “Narcostore”, a fake souvenir website full of Escobar-themed products.

    When visitors clicked to purchase the item, they were redirected to video testimonies of those affected by the drugs trade, many of whom had lost friends or relatives to Escobar’s terror. The site reached 180 million visitors worldwide.

    Narco tourism does not seem to be disappearing. Fascination with true crime, drugs and cartels is as popular as ever. But perhaps these tourists should take a moment to consider how they might feel, if someone who had murdered their loved ones became a souvenir fridge magnet for people to remember their country by.

    Ross Bennett-Cook does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Colombia wants to ban Pablo Escobar and other narco-themed merchandise – here’s why – https://theconversation.com/colombia-wants-to-ban-pablo-escobar-and-other-narco-themed-merchandise-heres-why-249916

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Man wants to search dump for lost hard drive with bitcoin fortune – here are his odds of finding it

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Craig Anderson, Senior Lecturer in Statistics, University of Glasgow

    vchal/Shutterstock

    James Howells is considering buying a council dump in south Wales after his former partner accidentally threw away a hard drive containing his bitcoin wallet. Howells has already lost a high court case to allow him to search the tip for the hard drive, which he believes contains bitcoin worth £600 million.

    But would it even be possible to find it? Let’s do the maths.

    Howells, a Welsh IT engineer, was an early adopter of the cryptocurrency bitcoin in December 2008. By February 2009, he had started mining the coins on his laptop – a process which involves using your computer to carry out complex mathematical processes in exchange for the coins.

    At the time, he was one of just five people mining the currency, and he eventually accrued a fortune of around 8,000 bitcoin. Initially, these were basically worthless – the first real-world transaction involving the currency was in 2010, when a man in Florida bought two pizzas for 10,000 bitcoins.

    However, in the 15 years since, the value of the currency has grown dramatically, with a single bitcoin passing the US$100,000 mark in December 2024 – a value which would mean those two pizzas are now worth US$1 billion (£790 million).

    Doing the calculations

    No wonder Howells wants to find his hard drive. But what are the chances of finding a tiny 10cm hard drive in a site containing 1.4 billion kg of waste? Is it literally like finding a needle in a haystack?

    At first, this seems like a simple calculation. If we randomly select a single location within the landfill, the probability that the hard drive will be there is simply the size of the object divided by the total size of the landfill.

    A Google maps estimate of the area of the Docksway landfill site suggests it is roughly 500,000 square metres (or 5 billion square centimetres), which is approximately the size of 70 football pitches.

    Docksway landfill in Newport, Wales, in 2007.
    wikipedia, CC BY-SA

    However, we also have to account for the depth of the landfill, with years of rubbish piled on top of each other. Even a conservative estimate of 20 metres would give a total volume of 10 million cubic metres (or 10 trillion cubic centimetres). This is roughly 3,600 times the volume of the swimming pool used at last summer’s Paris Olympic Games.

    Howells says the bitcoin are on a 2.5-inch hard drive, which has a volume of around 70 cubic centimetres (7cm x 10cm x 1cm). Therefore, the odds of finding the bitcoin at a single randomly selected location are 70/10,000,000,000,000 = 0.000000000007 – approximately a one in 143 billion chance.

    This is over 3,000 times less likely than winning the jackpot on the UK’s National Lottery. However, with £600 million on the line, it seems unlikely anyone would just turn up and search one single location.

    So, the real question here is about time and money. If we know that the hard drive is located somewhere within the landfill site, how long would it take to find it, and how much would it cost?

    If we focus on time to begin with, this is really just an extension of our first calculation. Suppose it takes 1 second to search each 1,000 cubic centimetre section of the landfill (an incomplete estimate since my experience of hunting landfill for hard drives is limited), then it would take us 10 billion seconds (or 316 years) of continuous searching to cover the entire site. But of course, this could be significantly reduced by having an entire team searching at the same time.

    Is it financially worth it?

    Clearly, Howells does not have 316 years available to complete his search, but what if he was given the resources for one full year of non-stop searching? The odds of finding the hard drive in this year would be 1 in 316, and while the chances remain slim, this might start to sound tempting given the potential reward.

    That is where the aspect of cost comes in. How much would you be willing to pay in order to have a 1 in 316 chance of winning £600m? The answer lies in the statistical concept of “expected value”“, which is the expected long-term outcome of a scenario if you were able to repeat it over and over again.

    For example, suppose you were rolling a die, and you were told that you would be given £2 if you rolled a six but would have to pay £1 if you rolled any other value. You can work out the expected value of this game to see if it is worth playing. The odds of rolling a 6 are 1/6, and the odds of rolling any other value are 5/6. We can therefore compute the expected value as:

    E [winnings] = 1/6 * £2 + 5/6 * (-£1) = 2/6 – 5/6 = -3/6 = -£1/2

    In other words, you would expect to lose half of £1 (or 50p), on average, every time you played this game.

    In the case of our bitcoins, we can think about the expected value as being the amount of money you would expect to make on average if you searched the landfill for a whole year. We would expect that, on average, we would find the hard drive (and the £600 million) 1 time out of 316, and would fail to find it 315 times out of 316 and get absolutely nothing. Therefore, we can compute the expected value as:

    E [£ found] = 1/316 * £600m + 315/316 * 0 = £1,898,734

    This means that on average, by searching the site for a year, you would expect to find £1.9 million. So, if the searching costs were less than this amount, you would expect to make a profit on average, and it may be considered a worthwhile investment. However, if the search cost more than £1.9 million, you would expect to lose money on average, and it would not be considered worthwhile.

    These calculations can be easily adjusted to account for different lengths of search time, number of people searching, or indeed different sizes of landfill site or search area.

    If Howell ever gets access to the dump, it might be worth having a statistician on hand to help guide the search (and of course, I would be happy to offer my services for a small fee…).

    Craig Anderson does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Man wants to search dump for lost hard drive with bitcoin fortune – here are his odds of finding it – https://theconversation.com/man-wants-to-search-dump-for-lost-hard-drive-with-bitcoin-fortune-here-are-his-odds-of-finding-it-249889

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: Test event to be broadcast live

    Source: Hong Kong Information Services

    The 15th National Games Triathlon test event will be held at the Central Harbourfront and Victoria Harbour on March 1 and 2, and members of the public are welcome to watch the races on-the-spot or via a live broadcast.

    A total of around 110 athletes from the Mainland, Hong Kong and Macau will compete in the races, including 11 athletes from Hong Kong.

    Fifteen teams, each comprising two male and two female athletes, will take part in the mixed relay race.

    The women’s individual and men’s individual races are scheduled for 8am and 10.30am respectively on March 1, while the mixed relay race will take place at 2pm on March 2.

    The starting point of the races will be located at the waterfront of the Wan Chai Temporary Promenade. Athletes will complete the swimming segment, immediately followed by the cycling and running segments, with the finish line at the Central Harbourfront Event Space.

    It is the first time that Hong Kong holds a triathlon mixed relay event and that part of the course and public seats are placed in the Central Harbourfront Event Space to facilitate race-watchers.

    People may visit the public viewing area at the Central & Western District Promenade Central Section, which is accessible from MTR Admiralty Station Exit A via Tamar Park. No seating will be arranged.

    Tickets have been distributed to the public through the Triathlon Association of Hong Kong China. A small number of tickets have been reserved for each event day. Admission tickets may be obtained at the public entrance while stocks last.

    Radio Television Hong Kong will provide a live webcast of the events on the two days at the dedicated webpage and its YouTube channel.

    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Nominations open for 2025 Leeds Sports Awards

    Source: City of Leeds

    Press release issued on behalf of Leeds Sports Awards

    Nominations are now sought for the 22nd annual Leeds Sports Awards, celebrating local athletes and unsung heroes.

    A total of 15 awards will be presented at the event, which will be held for the first time at Carriageworks Theatre on Thursday 15 May. The public are invited to nominate for 13 of the awards, including a new Sustainability Award.

    2024 was another fantastic year in sport for the city led by the performances of local Olympians and Paralympians. The city staged the Super League Magic Weekend for the first time, hosted the second running of the Rob Burrow Leeds Marathon and national teams competed in the city as part of the UK Corporate Games.

    The awards are delivered by Sport Leeds with support from Leeds City Council and nominations close on 15 March.

    Rob Wadsworth, chair of Sport Leeds, said: “The Leeds Sports Awards ceremony is one of the highlights of the Leeds sporting calendar as we celebrate the performances of athletes, of all levels and ages, coaches, administrators and volunteers from across the city during 2024.”

    Councillor Salma Arif, Leeds City Council’s executive member for adult social care, active lifestyles and culture, said: “As a city, we are fortunate to have some of the country’s top athletes based here, as well as a tremendous network of volunteers who do so much to keep our communities active. The Leeds Sports Awards provide an opportunity for the unsung heroes and world leading athletes to be acknowledged on the same stage.”

    The following awards are available for nomination:

    Athletes of the City

    • Young Disability Sportsperson (under 18)
    • Disability Sportsperson
    • Young Sportsperson (under 18)
    • Sportsperson

    Beacons of the City

    • School Achievement
    • Sports Volunteer
    • Community Coach
    • Community Club
    • Student Sport Champion(s)

    Champions of the City

    • Inspirational Community Champion
    • Sustainability Award
    • Performance Coach
    • Performance Team/Club

    Please nominate your sporting heroes at https://yorkshire.sportsuite.co.uk/forms/view/lsa25 

    Nominations close 15 March.

    ENDS

    For further information please contact: 

    Gary McCall

    gary@navigationagency.com

    07802 582314

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: The Academic Council of the Polytechnic University: results of the winter session and implementation of the NCMU program

    Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –

    Source: Peter the Great St Petersburg Polytechnic University – Peter the Great St Petersburg Polytechnic University –

    On February 26, the Polytechnic University held a meeting of the Academic Council, where they honored polytechnicians who have achieved high results in various fields, discussed the results of the winter session, tasks for the spring semester, and the implementation of the NCMU program.

    First of all, the rector of SPbPU Andrey Rudskoy introduced the vice-rector for university security Alexander Airapetyan. Then the award ceremony began.

    The official part began with the honoring of the holders of the title “Honorary Worker of SPbPU”. This is a doctor of physical and mathematical sciences, professor of the Department of Physics Vadim Ivanov and candidate of technical sciences, associate professor of the Higher School of Mechanical Engineering, chairman of the Trade Union of Employees Valentin Kobchikov.

    SPbPU Distinction Badge “For Merit” The award was given to member of the Public Chamber of St. Petersburg, advisor to the president of PJSC Rostelecom, and 1978 graduate of the mechanical engineering faculty, Alexey Sergeev.

    Candidate of Economic Sciences diplomas were awarded to the Vice President, Director of the North-West macro-regional branch of PJSC Rostelecom Alexander Loginov (scientific supervisor – Doctor of Economic Sciences, Professor Vladimir Glukhov) and Acting Vice-Rector for Promising Projects Maria Vrublevskaya (scientific supervisor – Doctor of Economic Sciences, Professor Olga Kalinina).

    Certificates of conferring the academic title of associate professor were received by Denis Akhmetov, Anton Barabanov, Evgeny Borisov, Victoria Vilken, Irina Karpovich, Vladimir Kochemirovsky, Irina Russkova. The certificate was also presented to the Deputy Director of the Humanitarian Institute, associate professor of the Higher School of Linguistics and Pedagogy Tatyana Nam, along with a letter of gratitude from the Governor of St. Petersburg Alexander Beglov for initiative and active civic position, significant contribution to the development of volunteer activities.

    Certificates of professional and public accreditation of educational programs were received by the Director of the Institute of Industrial Management, Economics and Trade Vladimir Shchepinin (23 programs), the Director of the Civil Engineering Institute Marina Petrochenko (13 programs) and the Director of the Institute of Computer Science and Cybersecurity Dmitry Zegzhda (one program).

    Advisor to the rector’s office Vitaly Drobchik, head of the department for interaction with the media Evgeny Pleshachkov, as well as specialists of the Public Relations Department Vera Fatova, Ulyana Durova and Alina Melnikova were awarded with gratitude for holding the All-Russian student Olympiad “I am a professional”.

    The leadership of the Federal Security Service Directorate for Perm Krai expressed gratitude for modern forensic scientific developments and fruitful cooperation in joint work to prevent crimes against the security of the Russian Federation to the Director of the Higher School of Jurisprudence and Forensic Science Dmitry Mokhorov and Senior Lecturer Pavel Menshikov.

    A letter of gratitude from the educational foundation “Talent and Success” for fruitful cooperation, professionalism and high quality of organization of educational events – participants of the programs of the educational center “Sirius” was presented to the senior lecturer of the Higher School of Media Communications and Public Relations Evgeniya Tuchkevich.

    Cups and certificates for 2nd place in the absolute team championship of St. Petersburg student competitions in 2024, as well as for 1st place in the team championship were awarded to the director of the Institute of Physical Culture, Sports and Tourism Valery Sushchenko, the director of the sports club “Black Bears – Polytech” Anastasia Akatova and the leading specialist of the club Daria Khadjaridi.

    Senior Lecturer of the Department of Physical Training and Sports received cups and medals for 2nd overall team place at the All-Russian student orienteering competitions Tatyana Bevza, as well as students Ulyana Bryuchko (PhysMech) and Mikhail Belyakov (IFKST).

    For first place in the billiard competition “POOL-8” of the Spartakiad “Health – 2025” among teachers and employees of St. Petersburg universities, awards were given to the Director of the Higher School of Jurisprudence and Forensic Science Dmitry Mokhorov and the Head of the News Portal Department Evgeny Gusev.

    The winners of the 20th All-Russian conference-competition for students and postgraduates “Current Issues of Subsoil Use” were students of the Higher School of Industrial Management of IPMEiT Anastasia Malashchitskaya and Daria Moiseenko, a student of the Civil Engineering Institute Olga Loginova (scientific supervisor – PhD, Associate Professor Vitaly Kudinov), as well as a postgraduate student of the Higher School of Engineering and Economics of PMEiT Olga Bichevaya (scientific supervisor – Svetlana Gutman).

    The first issue on the agenda was summing up the results of the winter session of the 2024-2025 academic year: almost 70% of full-time students successfully passed the exams, which indicates a high level of preparation and a responsible approach to study.

    More than 7,500 students will receive scholarships based on the results of the midterm assessment, which is an important incentive for further improvement and striving for academic achievements. Such positive dynamics emphasize the effectiveness of the educational process and compliance with high standards of educational quality, – said Lyudmila Vladimirovna.

    She presented the positive experience of implementing the pilot program to support talented students “Leaders of Polytechnic”, launched at IMMiT: 94% of students in this program passed the session with “excellent” and “good” grades.

    The program has proven its effectiveness, helping participants to reveal their abilities and achieve outstanding results, and the results serve as a vivid example of how investments in talented youth bring results, contributing not only to the personal growth of students, but also to strengthening the university’s reputation as a center of attraction for gifted and promising specialists. Such high academic performance of the program participants emphasizes the importance of personalized work with each student, taking into account their individual characteristics and needs, – noted Lyudmila Pankova.

    One of the issues was the discussion of the plan for the transition to a new system for assessing learning outcomes based on individual achievements. The individual achievement system (IAS) being developed is a fundamentally new approach to assessing current monitoring of academic performance and midterm assessment. IAS will allow taking into account individual student achievements, including those outside the educational program, thereby increasing their motivation and ensuring an objective assessment of knowledge. For teachers, this is a tool for reducing routine workload, thanks to the automation of assessment processes, accounting, and recording of current control points.

    Vice-Rector for Digital Transformation of SPbPU, Head of the Advanced Engineering School of SPbPU “Digital Engineering” (AES), World-class scientific center of SPbPU “Advanced digital technologies” (NCMU) Alexey Borovkov presented the key results of the implementation of the NCMU program for 2024-2024 and spoke about the scientific and technological groundwork of the strategy and program for the university’s development until 2030 and 2036.

    Alexey Borovkov emphasized that the indicator of extra-budgetary financing of the world-class Scientific Center of SPbPU “Advanced Digital Technologies” is 101.7%, which is three times more than the average indicator for all scientific centers of medicine in Russia.

    Speaking about significant world-class research carried out by the SPbPU NCMU “Advanced Digital Technologies”, Aleksey Ivanovich highlighted the creation of a large-scale scientific and technological reserve in the field of technology for the development and application of digital twins of products, machines, and structuresDigital platform for the development and application of digital twins CML-Bench®. Compared to traditional approaches, the development of products and goods based on digital twin technology reduces time, financial and other resource costs by ten times or more.

    In conclusion, the speaker highlighted the important role of the SPbPU NCMU “Advanced Digital Technologies” in the SPbPU Technological Development Ecosystem, which ensures a balance of activities of different structures and the synergy of the best scientific technological and educational practices to achieve technological leadership, sovereignty and national security of Russia.

    The scientific and technological groundwork formed by the SPbPU NCMU on the CML-Bench® digital platform is the basis for the implementation of six national projects of technological leadership, enshrined in the development strategy of the Polytechnic University until 2030. For example, the promising direction of unmanned aircraft systems directly relies on the groundwork of the SPbPU NCMU “Advanced Digital Technologies” for several projects and developments at once. At the moment, we are actively working on creating a design environment and digital certification of unmanned aircraft systems, – shared Alexey Borovkov.

    In addition, at the meeting, members of the Academic Council voted to award the academic title of associate professor to Polytechnic employees: Maxim Izmailov (IPMET), Vasily Krundyshev (IKNK), Natalia Solodilova (IMMiT), Oleg Shagniev and Ilya Keresten (PISH CI Higher School of Advanced Digital Technologies).

    Academic Secretary Dmitry Karpov presented the work plan of the University Academic Council for the 2nd semester of the 2024-2025 academic year and reported on monitoring the implementation of the Academic Council’s decisions.

    The meeting concluded with a consideration of current issues.

    Photo archive

    Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI: IP Fabric Automates Firewall Policy Management Across On-Prem and Cloud Environments

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    BOSTON, Feb. 27, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — IP Fabric, the Automated Network Assurance Platform, today announced the launch of Firewall Policy Management in collaboration with Network to Code. IP Fabric integrates with Network to Code’s open source Enterprise Network Source of Truth and Automation Platform, Nautobot, to automate firewall rule creation, validation and deployment. The solution delivers vendor-neutral visibility, which is essential for enterprises managing multiple firewalls across on-premises and multi-cloud environments.

    Many modern enterprises struggle with an inefficient and error-prone firewall rule request process. Application product owners frequently lack networking and vendor-specific expertise, creating time-consuming back-and-forth and forcing network engineers to manually verify network paths, correct request details and configure rules. This fragmented workflow leads to inefficiencies in firewall policy management and critical compliance gaps.

    IP Fabric delivers an automated, integrated solution for security and visibility across multi-vendor environments by automatically discovering and contextualizing the entire network infrastructure. The platform applies more than 160 intent-based security and compliance checks to identify risks and inefficiencies. And Path Lookup determines which firewalls network traffic traverses, ensuring policies are correctly applied and up to date.

    “With Skybox ceasing operations, there’s a gap for independent solutions that can automate cross-vendor firewall management,” said Pavel Bykov, CEO and co-founder of IP Fabric. “By combining our capabilities with Nautobot’s policy automation and remediation, we deliver a complete solution for enterprises managing multiple firewall policies across diverse environments.”

    Integrated with Nautobot’s Application Dictionary and Firewall Modules App

    By integrating with Nautobot’s Application Dictionary, IP Fabric leverages its vendor-agnostic firewall rule abstraction capability, allowing users to define high-level application connectivity requirements (e.g., “Connect App A to App B”) without needing to configure vendor-specific settings. Additionally, the integration with Nautobot’s Firewall Models App offers a structured data schema for modeling Layer 4 firewall policies and extended access control lists (ACLs), ensuring consistency and efficiency in firewall rule management.

    “Two things are happening in tandem: Enterprises are deploying more firewalls across increasingly diverse environments, while cyber threats are growing more sophisticated,” said Jason Edelman, CTO and founder of Network to Code. “Traditional firewall management approaches simply can’t keep up — firewalls now have more to defend and are facing more advanced adversaries. A comprehensive and automated approach to firewall policy management is essential to ensuring enterprises stay secure, compliant and resilient against evolving threats.”

    Key Benefits of IP Fabric and Network to Code’s Firewall Policy Management

    • Firewall Rule Automation: Define high-level application connectivity requirements using a vendor-neutral abstraction to ensure standardized, consistent policies across multi-vendor environments.
    • Seamless Policy Management: Provide a vendor-agnostic framework for modeling firewall policies, simplifying the management of firewall rules across diverse environments.
    • Intelligent Network Path Analysis: Perform path lookups and firewall traversal analysis to determine which firewalls are impacted by policy changes, ensuring accurate rule enforcement.
    • Automated Change Management and Deployment: Generate change requests, push approved firewall configurations and validate implementation through post-deployment security checks.
    • Policy Lifecycle Automation: Eliminate manual inefficiencies, reduce errors, and ensure continuous monitoring and enforcement of security policies across the network.
    • Synchronize Data Between Systems: Bi-directional synchronization automatically pulls data from IP Fabric, Tufin and more into Nautobot, and pushes data from Nautobot to them.

    For more information about IP Fabric Firewall Policy Management, visit the IP Fabric blog.

    About IP Fabric
    IP Fabric is the industry’s leading Automated Network Assurance Platform, offering a continuously validated view of cloud, network and security infrastructure to improve stability, security and spend. Within minutes, the platform creates a unified view of devices, state, configurations and interdependencies, normalizing multi-vendor data and revealing operational truth through automated compliance checks.

    By uncovering risks and providing actionable insights, IP Fabric enables enterprises to accelerate IT and business transformation while reducing costs. Trusted by industry leaders like Red Hat, Major League Baseball and Air France, IP Fabric delivers the foundation for a secure and modern network.

    Learn more at www.ipfabric.io and follow the company on LinkedIn.

    About Network to Code
    Network to Code is the foremost expert in network automation and has deployed more network automation projects than any other company in the world. Our network automation solutions help organizations transform the way their networks are deployed, managed and consumed. Through managed and professional services, NTC deploys data-driven network automation based on NetDevOps principles to improve reliability, efficiency and security while reducing costs. NTC is the creator of Nautobot, the leading open source Network Source of Truth and Automation platform.

    Learn more at www.networktocode.com.

    Media Contact
    Liesse Jayalath
    ipfabric@lookleftmarketing.com

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: TruGolf Engages Eventus Advisory Group, LLC to Provide Financial Services Advisory and CFO Support

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    Salt Lake City, Utah, Feb. 27, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — TruGolf Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: TRUG), a leading golf technology company, is pleased to announce that it has engaged Eventus Advisory Group, LLC (“Eventus”) (www.EventusAG.com) to provide financial services advisory and CFO support. Eventus has over 17 years’ experience in working with micro- and small-cap companies and will act as a key advisor to TruGolf as it continues to enhance its financial operations and deliver on the company’s strategic priorities.

    Eventus specializes in supporting fast-growing companies and brings a proven track record of helping companies efficiently manage financial operations, technical accounting and SEC compliance issues. This support will help with TruGolf’s transparent communication with shareholders and regulatory bodies.

    “We at Eventus are passionate about working with dynamic, high-growth companies like TruGolf,” said Neil Reithinger, Managing Partner of Eventus. “TruGolf has a strong history of delivering innovative golf simulation solutions and is a recognized leader in the space. We are excited to bring our expertise to support their continued success and financial stability.”

    Chris Jones, CEO of TruGolf, expressed his confidence in the engagement, stating, “We are incredibly grateful to have Eventus on board. Their history of guiding companies like ours through complex financial landscapes supports our exciting path forward.”

    TruGolf is currently working with its Board of Directors to regain compliance with Nasdaq listing requirements. Part of this includes TruGolf’s efforts on working to improve its balance sheet by reducing outstanding liabilities and evaluating other measures to meet Nasdaq’s shareholders’ equity requirements by their March 31, 2025 deadline. The company intends to consider all available alternatives to cure the deficiencies.

    Disclaimer on Forward Looking Statements

    This news release contains certain statements that constitute “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such statements that are not of historical fact constitute “forward-looking statements” and accordingly, involve estimates, assumptions, forecasts, judgements and uncertainties. Forward-looking statements include, without limitation, the Company’s ability to regain compliance with Nasdaq’s continued listing requirements. There are a number of factors that could cause actual results or outcomes to differ materially from those addressed in the forward-looking statements. Such factors are detailed in the Forward Looking Statements and Risk Factors sections of the Company’s S-1 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. We do not undertake an obligation to update our forward-looking statements to reflect future events.

    About TruGolf, Inc.:

    TruGolf is a golf technology company, committed to making golf, easy. From innovative uses for AI to build content and enhanced image and spatial analysis, to gamified golf improvement plans, TruGolf is an industry leader in the growing technological revolution in the sport of golf. Since TruGolf’s founding it has redefined what is possible with golf through technology. TruGolf’s suite of Hardware, Software, and Web Products make the game easier to Play, Improve and Enjoy.

    About Eventus: Eventus is a CFO advisory firm that specializes in supporting the office of the CFO for public and private companies, with services ranging from accounting, financial operations, technical reporting, regulatory and SEC compliance, audit and IPO preparation, corporate governance and transaction advisory services. Through these service offerings and the experience of the Eventus team, the firm helps businesses navigate complex financial landscapes so that Eventus’ clients can focus on sustainable growth.

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI USA: State and City Launch 2025 Food Drives to Support Hawaiʻi Foodbank

    Source: US State of Hawaii

    State and City Launch 2025 Food Drives to Support Hawaiʻi Foodbank

    Goal Set to Provide 515,000 Meals to Families in Need

    HONOLULU — The State of Hawaiʻi and the City and County of Honolulu, in partnership with Hawaiʻi Foodbank, have officially launched their 2025 employee food drives to help fight food insecurity across the islands. Together, the state and city have set a goal of providing 515,000 meals to Hawaiʻi residents in need.

    The 26th Annual State Employees Food Drive aims to raise 405,000 meals, while the City and County of Honolulu’s drive aims to raise 110,000 meals. Both food drives will run from February 21 to May 9, encouraging employees and residents to donate food and funds to support local families.

    In 2024, the joint effort surpassed its goal of 500,000 meals. Every donation makes an impact—1.2 pounds of food equals one meal, and every $1 provides approximately 2.15 meals. That means just $10 can provide up to 20 meals, making even small contributions meaningful.

    Lieutenant Governor Sylvia Luke, who is leading the state’s food drive for a third year said, “Food insecurity affects far too many families in Hawaiʻi, including 90,000 keiki. The generosity of our state employees and community members makes a real difference in ensuring that no one in our islands goes hungry. This food drive is a testament to what we can accomplish when we come together.”

    Hunger remains a significant challenge, with one in three households in Hawaiʻi struggling with food insecurity. In recent months, Hawaiʻi Foodbank has been serving an average of 170,000 individuals each month—this is a dramatic increase from previous years. Rising living costs, the ongoing impacts of the pandemic, and other economic hardships have left more families, children, and kūpuna struggling to meet their basic nutritional needs. The annual food drive helps bridge that gap by providing meals for those in need.

    “28% of households are hungry or food insecure on Oʻahu, according to the Hawaiʻi Foodbank. That alarming statistic demonstrates that we are all facing extraordinarily challenging times,” said Mayor Rick Blangiardi. “But here in Hawaiʻi, we take care of one another, especially those who need it most. I am inspired by the generous spirit of everyone who makes a donation, and I am exceptionally proud to team up with our partners at the State of Hawaiʻi in a dedicated and united effort to aggressively address hunger and food insecurity here at home.”

    Since its inception, the annual food drive has played a crucial role in ensuring families across Hawaiʻi have access to nutritious meals. Every contribution—big or small—helps make a difference.

    “These food drives are such an important component of our collective work—both in raising awareness and in providing critical food assistance to our families and neighbors,” said Amy Miller, president and CEO of Hawaiʻi Foodbank. “Ending hunger is a shared community responsibility, and we are incredibly grateful for the continued partnership with the State of Hawaiʻi and the City and County of Honolulu, and for every employee and resident who gives to help nourish our ‘ohana. By coming together, we can create a future where everybody in Hawai‘i has consistent, sufficient access to the safe and healthy food we all deserve to thrive.”

    Anyone can support the Hawaiʻi Foodbank by donating online, and employee contributions will be counted toward their department’s overall total. Donations can be made at:

    • State Employees Food Drive: org/state
      • Food donations are being accepted in person at the Lt. Governor’s office in the state Capitol (415 S. Beretania St., Fifth Floor).
    • City and County Employees Food Drive: org/city
      • Oʻahu residents can drop off food donations at all Satellite City Halls or at any Honolulu Fire Department station throughout the drive.

    To kick off the drives, Hawaiʻi Foodbank, in coordination with the University of Hawaiʻi Athletics, will also collect food and monetary donations at upcoming UH sports events.

    Friday, Feb. 28

    • Softball: Hawaiʻi vs. Jackson State, 4 p.m., Rainbow Wahine Softball Stadium
    • Softball: Hawaiʻi vs. Washington, 6 p.m., Rainbow Wahine Softball Stadium
    • Baseball: Hawaiʻi vs. Northeastern, 6:35 p.m., Les Murakami Stadium
    • Men’s Volleyball: Hawaiʻi vs. UC Irvine, 7 p.m., SimpliFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center

    Saturday, March 1

    • Men’s Basketball: Hawaiʻi vs. UC Davis, 7 p.m., SimpliFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center

    For those facing food insecurity, resources and assistance are available at hawaiifoodbank.org/help.

    ###

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Written question – Transgender athletes competing in women’s sports – E-000679/2025

    Source: European Parliament

    Question for written answer  E-000679/2025
    to the Commission
    Rule 144
    Marco Squarta (ECR), Nicola Procaccini (ECR), Francesco Ventola (ECR), Stefano Cavedagna (ECR), Elena Donazzan (ECR), Carlo Ciccioli (ECR), Alberico Gambino (ECR), Sergio Berlato (ECR), Michele Picaro (ECR), Chiara Gemma (ECR), Paolo Inselvini (ECR), Alessandro Ciriani (ECR), Denis Nesci (ECR), Mario Mantovani (ECR), Daniele Polato (ECR)

    In the United States, President Donald Trump recently signed an executive order entitled ‘Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports’.

    It prohibits transgender athletes from competing in women’s sports at school and university, arguing that it threatens sporting integrity.

    Following this decision, the US university sports governing body, the National Colloquiate Athletic Association (NCAA), revised its policy, stressing that the change will provide clear, consistent and uniform eligibility standards.

    In the EU, Article 165 TFEU recognises the social and educational function of sport and encourages cooperation and support for physical activity. However, European sports federations’ autonomy when it comes to managing competitions leads to the use of different selective criteria, creating inconsistencies and potential imbalances.

    In light of the above:

    • 1.Does the Commission think that the differences in the criteria adopted by European sports federations could affect the level playing field in women’s competitions?
    • 2.Drawing inspiration from the US measures, does it think it would be worth looking into the impact of transgender athletes competing in women’s sports and launching a European initiative to determine possible physiological advantages and ensure the fairness and protection of women’s sports?

    Submitted: 13.2.2025

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Comprehensive programme of activity announced for 2025 North West Angling Fair

    Source: Northern Ireland – City of Derry

    Comprehensive programme of activity announced for 2025 North West Angling Fair

    26 February 2025

    A packed programme of talks, clinics and demonstrations has been announced for the 2025 North West Angling Fair.
    The banks of the Mourne River will come alive on the last weekend of March as some of the UK and Ireland’s top fly dressers, casters and angling specialists descend on the Melvin Sports Complex for the international festival of fishing.
    With support from the Loughs Agency, the event is hosted by Derry City and Strabane District Council and is expected to draw in excess of 3,000 visitors to the town over the two days.
    The programme includes professional casting demonstrations and expert fly fishing tuition while the public will also be able to source angling merchandise from a wide range of fishing tackle producers, fly tying brands and fishing outfitters in the Melvin’s Main Hall.
    Mayor of Derry and Strabane, Councillor Lilian Seenoi-Barr, urged the public to access the programme now and plan their experience.
    “The 2025 North West Angling Fair will cater for all levels of angler,” she said.
    “Council’s Events team have assembled an internationally renowned lineup of fly dressers, casters and instructors, including a number of experts who are appearing for the first time.
    “The event is the perfect introduction to angling for novices and beginners and a chance for experienced fishing women and men to exchange ideas, learn new techniques from the demonstrations and source equipment.
    The Angling Fair takes place from 10am to 5pm on Saturday March 29th and 10am to 5pm on Sunday March 30th.
    Casting demonstrations on the Mourne will be hosted by Scott Mackenzie, Michael Andrew Toft, Tom Brown, Patrick Trotter, Lucinda Ewin, Eamonn Conway, Stuart Wylie, Ian Gamble and Pauline McClenaghan.
    Specialist classes over the weekend will include a first appearance at the festival by legendary casting expert Patrick Trotter, an introduction to Pike Fly Fishing by Stuart Wylie and Eamonn Conway will deliver an introduction to the growing craft of Euro Nymphing.
    Double Handed Casting clinics will be hosted by some of the biggest names in the business including Lucinda Ewin, Tom Brown, Scott Mackenzie and Andrew Toft
    A wide range of fly tyers will also demonstrate their art and techniques and there will be a particular emphasis on young fly tyers who will showcase their own skills and talents as well as hoping to inspire the next generation of anglers.
    The trade stands in the Melvin’s Main Hall will feature a number of new exhibitors and retailers as well as some familiar favourites where people can source new equipment and experiences from the North West’s top providers.
    You can access the full programme online at derrystrabane.com/anglingfair.

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI: The recording of Šiaulių Bankas Investor Conference Webinar of introducing the financial results for the Year 2024

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    During the Investor Conference Webinar by Vytautas Sinius, CEO, Tomas Varenbergas, Head of Investment Management Division and Tautvydas Mėdžius, Strategy Partner introduced the Bank’s financial results for Q4 and FY2024 and recent developments and answered the participant questions afterwards.

    The recording of it can be found on Šiaulių Bankas youtube channel here.

    Presentation and the recording of webinar are also posted on the Bank’s website https://sb.lt/en/investors

    Šiaulių bankas thanks all participants.

    If you would like to receive Šiaulių Bankas news for investors directly to your inbox, subscribe to our newsletter.

    Additional information:
    Tomas Varenbergas
    Head of Investment Management Division
    tomas.varenbergas@sb.lt

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Consortium to tackle inactivity in Portsmouth

    Source: City of Portsmouth

    Portsmouth City Council is working with a consortium of local partners to tackle inequalities and improve health outcomes for Landport and Buckland residents with physical activity and community engagement.

    Portsmouth City Council is part of a group of Portsmouth based organisations working together that have successfully attracted a share of funding from Sport England.

    The consortium, coordinated by Active Partnership Energise Me, has been formed to collaboratively tackle inequalities and improve health outcomes for residents in Landport and Buckland by helping them to move more.

    The investment covers the first year of a three-year programme. Landport and Buckland is among the 53 places set to benefit from a share of Sport England’s £250million investment into the heart of communities across England.

    The first stage of the investment will see the group deploy Community Coordinators through local organisations to work with communities to understand what will help them to move more.

    Landport and Buckland were highlighted by Sport England as a place for investment using inactivity insight and other social need indicators, to target funding in areas it could have the biggest impact.

    Inactivity data for Portsmouth indicates over 14,000 children and young people are not meeting the recommended activity levels for good health. Over 52,000 adults in Portsmouth are not meeting the guideline.

    Sport and physical activity contribute significantly to the health and wellbeing of residents. Just last month it was announced the potential social value combining the wellbeing benefits that individuals experience and cost savings to public services like healthcare in Portsmouth is £363 million.

    Made up of local government, health and education partners and community and charitable organisations, the groups will initially focus on engaging with the community to find out the things that get in the way of people being active. They’ll also be looking to identify what great work is already going on in the community that can be built upon.

    Cllr Steve Pitt, Leader of Portsmouth City Council with responsibility for Culture, Regeneration and Economic Development, said: “The council are pleased to collaborate on this programme, which aligns with our ongoing commitment to improve outcomes and opportunities for residents through the physical activity offer in the city.

    “We welcome this opportunity to work alongside local partners and with residents, to learn what could support more physical activity in their local areas, particularly for those who may be experiencing barriers to keeping active.”

    Cllr Matthew Winnington, Cabinet Member for Community Wellbeing, Health and Care at Portsmouth City Council said: “Staying active is important for our health and wellbeing, both for physical and mental health and it can bring opportunities to meet and connect with others in the community.

    “This funding will provide a boost to the communities in Landport and Buckland, and importantly, the programme will be co-produced with communities so we will develop local solutions together.”

    Place Development Lead at Energise Me, Lee Timothy said: “Landport and Buckland already have such a great sense of community. It’s been fantastic to see so many people step forward to be a part of creating happier and healthier communities.

    “It’s a truly collaborative effort. Everyone’s relationship with movement is different and by working with community coordinators we’ll able to test opportunities residents have told us they enjoy, leading to more sustainable participation in being active.”

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI: Azerion publishes Interim Unaudited Financial Results Q4 2024 and Preliminary Unaudited Financial Results Full Year 2024

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    Strong Platform performance driving profitability

    Highlights of FY and Q4 2024

    Our FY 2024 performance reflects the year long focus on efficiency and profitability driven by continued investment in the advertising platform: 

    • FY 2024 Revenues up 13% from € 486.7 million1 to € 551.2 million
    • FY 2024 Adjusted EBITDA up 21% YoY from € 62.2 million1 to € 75.1 million

    Specifically in Q4 2024, we focused on driving synergies and eliminating redundant costs in the advertising platform: 

    • Q4 2024 Adjusted EBITDA up 14% YoY from € 26.4 million to € 30.1 million 
    • Core segment Platform outperformed the group with Adjusted EBITDA up 15% from € 22.8 million in Q4 2023 to € 26.2 million in Q4 2024
    • Maintained Q4 2024 Revenues at € 168 million (-2%) while integrating and reorganising 2022 and 2023 acquisitions in order to phase out low margin revenues and focus on increased profitability

    At the same time we used the last quarter to strengthen our position through new partnerships, acquisitions and further financing:

    • Signed 90 new publishers and connected 3 additional SSPs and DSPs to expand our digital audiences across Europe and the Americas and further integrated our publisher monetisation tool OneFMS across regions.
    • Finalised the acquisition of Goldbach Austria GmbH, one of the foremost digital and linear advertising brokers in the DACH region providing Azerion with additional digital out of home footprint and an annual revenue run rate of over € 20 million.  
    • Entered new partnerships with Produpress in Belgium and Moneytizer in France to enrich the unique content and audiences that we make available for brands and agencies.
    • Successfully completed the placement of additional bonds for an amount of € 50 million under Azerion’s existing Senior Secured Callable Floating Rate Bond framework of € 300 million.

    In addition, we further invested in our platform’s multi-cloud infrastructure and AI capabilities:

    • Added Huawei as cloud partner alongside AWS and Google in our Azerion multi-cloud setup reducing our reliance on single cloud vendors and decreasing our total cost of ownership.
    • Migration of Eniro to the Azerion multi-cloud bringing them higher quality, lower latency service and annual cost savings of over € 1.5 million once fully implemented.
    • Deployed our latest version of AI enhanced creative performance benchmark and outcome intelligence tools helping our advertisers and our operators to better understand which ads work best for various audiences in different circumstances and allowing for machine optimisation of campaigns.

    1 (excluding the divested social card games portfolio)

    Selected KPIs

    Financial Results – Azerion Group N.V.

    in millions of €

      Q4 2024 Q4 2023 Growth FY 2024 FY 2023 Growth
                 
    Platform Segment            
    Advertising Platform 126.3 126.0 0% 412.3 348.6 18%
    AAA Game Distribution (e-commerce) 26.9 31.7 (15)% 85.0 88.8 (4)%
    Revenue 153.2 157.7 (3)% 497.3 437.4 14%
    Operating profit / (loss) 7.2 5.6 29% (1.7) (2.0) (15)%
    Adj. EBITDA 26.2 22.8 15% 62.4 53.2 17%
                 
    Premium Games Segment1)            
    Revenue  14.8 14.1 5% 53.9 77.6 (31)%
    Operating profit / (loss) (0.1) 0.5 (120)% (0.7) 74.8 (101)%
    Adj EBITDA 3.9 3.6 8% 12.7 18.7 (32)%
                 
    Group (excluding social card games)            
    Revenue 168.0 171.8 (2)% 551.2 486.7 13%
    Operating profit / (loss)  7.1 6.1 16% (2.4) (8.2) (71)%
    Adj. EBITDA  30.1 26.4 14% 75.1 62.2 21%
                 
    Group (including social card games)            
    Revenue 168.0 171.8 (2)% 551.2 515.0 7%
    Operating profit / (loss)  7.1 6.1 16% (2.4) 72.8 (103)%
    Adj. EBITDA 30.1 26.4 14% 75.1 71.9 5%

    1)2023 figures for Premium Games contain results of the social cards game portfolio that was divested in Q3 2023. For detailed split of Premium Games results please refer to respective section below.

      Q4 2024 Q4 2023   FY 2024 FY 2023  
    Adj. EBITDA Margin %            
    Platform 17% 15%   13% 12%  
    Premium Games 26% 26%   24% 24%  
    Group (excluding social card games) 18% 15%   14% 13%  
    Group 18% 15%   14% 14%  

    Message from the CEO 

    Q4 was a strong quarter for us, marked by a clear focus on profitability. By maintaining operational discipline and executing on our strategic priorities, we successfully met our full-year 2024 guidance. This achievement reflects our commitment to sustainable growth and value creation for our shareholders.Throughout the year, we have dedicated significant time and resources to building an ecosystem that truly supports European publishers. Our platform empowers them to create engaging content, monetize effectively, and manage their resources with greater predictability. By fostering a high-performance environment, we are enabling European publishers to thrive in an increasingly competitive digital landscape by giving them a truly European choice.

    Looking ahead, we continue to see AI as a major opportunity to drive further innovation and efficiency. Managing over 250,000 auctions per second gives us a unique vantage point to leverage data at scale. We have developed generative AI advertising solutions that enhance campaign performance, while our latest AI-powered creative performance benchmarks and outcome intelligence tools are delivering valuable insights to our partners. These advancements position us at the forefront of AI-driven advertising, helping our customers achieve better results with greater precision thanks to a long history of machine learning at the core of our platform.

    At the same time, we also see an increasing number of opportunities to accelerate our growth through strategic partnerships and acquisitions. We have built a strong pipeline of actionable opportunities and are well-positioned to execute on them. Stay tuned to hear more about our expansion through partnerships throughout this year, alongside the continued deployment of our AI platform.

    – Umut Akpinar

    Financial overview

    Revenue

    Q4 2024

    Revenue for the quarter amounted to € 168.0 million, down (2.2)% from € 171.8 million in Q4 2023, mainly driven by lower consumer spending in AAA game distribution. 

    FY 2024

    Revenue for FY 2024 amounted to € 551.2 million, up 13.3% from € 486.7 million in FY 2023 excluding the social card games portfolio divested in Q3 2023, mainly driven by higher advertising spend across the Platform Segment, particularly in Direct Sales and the integration of past acquisitions. 

    Revenue was up 7.0% from € 515.0 million in FY 2023 including the revenue from the social card games portfolio of € 28.3 million in FY 2023.

    Earnings 

    Q4 2024

    Adjusted EBITDA for the quarter was € 30.1 million compared to € 26.4 million in Q4 2023, an increase of 14.0% driven by improved performance in both Platform and Premium Games segments. Platform increase was largely due to the mix of Advertising Platform Revenue, increased share of Direct Sales and an increasingly efficient delivery operation. The Premium Games result was driven by the ongoing strong performance of Habbo Hotel Origins and product development across social casino and other metaverse titles, as well as further consolidation and integration efforts resulting in improved operational performance.

    The operating profit for the quarter amounted to € 7.1 million, compared to a profit of € 6.1 million in Q4 2023, mainly due to the successful integration of acquisitions and the subsequent synergies and cost reductions that were realised in the Platform segment.

    FY 2024

    Adjusted EBITDA in FY 2024 was € 75.1 million compared to € 62.2 million in FY 2023 excluding the divested social card games portfolio, an increase of 20.7% driven by higher advertising spend across the Platform Segment and improved performance of Premium Games, specifically metaverse titles due to the release and ongoing strong performance of Habbo Hotel Origins and product development across the social casino titles, plus efficiencies from the integration of previous acquisitions.. 

    Adjusted EBITDA in FY 2024 was up 4.5% from € 71.9 million in FY 2023 including the contribution from the social card games portfolio of € 9.7 million in FY 2023.

    The operating loss in FY 2024 amounted to € (2.4) million, compared to € (8.2) million in FY 2023 (excluding gain on the sale and the result of the social card games portfolio of € 81.0 million), driven by increased Platform revenue and contribution from Direct sales, improved performance of Premium Games, specifically metaverse titles due to the release and ongoing success of Habbo Hotel Origins and product development across the social casino titles plus efficiencies from optimisation and consolidation efforts, and notwithstanding the one-off increase in operating expenses related to the settlement of a commercial dispute and renegotiation of contingent consideration terms for one of the acquisitions.

    Cash flow

    Q4 2024

    Cash flow from operating activities in Q4 2024 was an inflow of € 10.0 million, mainly due to strong operating profit after cancellation of non-cash items of € 22.5 million, offset by movements in net working capital reflecting an increase in trade and other payables of € 4.9 million and an increase in trade and other receivables of € (7.6) million, net € (8.3) million paid in interest and € (1.2) million paid in income tax. 

    Cash flow from investing activities was an outflow of € (18.2) million, due to payments for tangible and intangible assets of € (6.5) million and net cash outflow on acquisition of subsidiaries of € (11.7) million. 

    Cash flow from financing activities was an inflow of € 31.5 million, mainly due to net proceeds in the amount of € 34.5 million (net of transaction costs) from additional bonds placed under the existing Senior Secured Callable Floating Rate Bond framework offset by repayments of external borrowings and the principal portion of lease liabilities amounting in total to € (3.0) million.

    FY 2024

    Cash flow from operating activities in FY 2024 was an inflow of € 7.0 million, mainly due to strong operating profit after cancellation of non-cash items of € 52.6 million, offset by movements in net working capital reflecting a decrease in trade and other payables of € (32.5) million and a decrease in trade and other receivables of € 19.9 million, utilisation of provisions of € (3.1) million, net € (25.7) million paid on interest and € (4.2) million paid in income tax. 

    Cash flow from investing activities was an outflow of € (36.8) million, mainly due to payments for tangible and intangible assets of € (20.8) million and net cash outflow on acquisition of subsidiaries of € (27.7) million, partly offset by the receipt of net deferred consideration for the sale of social card games portfolio in amount of € 11.2 million. 

    Cash flow from financing activities was an inflow of € 80.9 million, mainly due to net proceeds in the amount of € 92.1 million (net of transaction costs), consisting of € 82.7 million from additional bonds placed under the existing Senior Secured Callable Floating Rate Bond framework and a Revolving Credit Facility of € 9.4 million, offset by repayments of external borrowings and the principal portion of lease liabilities amounting in total to € (11.0) million.

    Capex

    Azerion capitalises development costs related to the internal development of assets, a core activity to support innovation in its platform. These costs primarily relate to developers’ time devoted to the development of the platform, games and other new features. In Q4 2024 Azerion capitalised € 4.8 million, equivalent to 19.2% (Q4 2023: € 3.4 million, equivalent to 12.4%) of gross personnel costs excluding restructuring provision expense. In FY 2024 Azerion capitalised € 16.2 million, equivalent to 16.0% (FY 2023: € 17.5 million, equivalent of 16.2%) of gross personnel costs excluding restructuring provision expense.

    Financial position and borrowing 

    Net interest-bearing debt*) amounted to € 203.8 million as at 31 December 2024, mainly comprising the outstanding bond loan with a nominal value of € 265 million (part of a total € 300 million framework) and lease liabilities with a balance of € 19.4 million less the cash and cash equivalents position of € 90.6 million.

    *)As defined in the Terms & Conditions of the Senior Secured Callable Floating Rate Bonds ISIN: NO0013017657. Please also refer to the Definitions section and the notes of this Interim Report for more information.

    Platform Segment

    Our Platform segment includes our digital advertising activities, AAA Game Distribution (formerly referred to as e-commerce), Casual Game Distribution (being the operation and distribution of casual games) and Azerion Sports. The Platform segment generates Revenue mainly by displaying digital advertisements in both game and general content, as well as selling and distributing AAA games. Advertisers are serviced through two models: i) Direct sales, which involve a direct engagement between Azerion’s commercial teams and advertisers or their agencies in the placement of digital advertisements, and ii) Automated auction sales in which advertising inventory is purchased through the open market. Platform is also integrated with parts of our Premium Games segment, leveraging inter-segment synergies.

    Selected business highlights in Q4 2024 include:

    • Azerion rated as the leading advertising network in France by Médiamétrie in collaboration with NetRatings.
    • 90 new publishers signed and launched including tuttocampo.it and allermedia.se providing greater reach for digital advertising.
    • Eniro has deployed our Full Monetisation Solution which we are continuing to roll out across all our regions, including Italy in Q4 2024.
    • Azerion Intelligence launched enabling new demographic segments in the Azerion DMP.
    • Azerion DMP is now integrated with Magnite and OpenX SSPs and our audiences for CTV are available via Pubmatic SSP.
    • Launched Smart AI Curation in the Azerion Marketplace further improving the ability to create custom audiences.
    • Azerion Casual Games Distribution expanded its reach in Q4 by onboarding 40 new publishers, including third-party channels such as Samsung Instant Plays. By the end of the quarter, its casual games portfolio exceeded 21,000 titles, demonstrating steady year-over-year growth

    Platform – Selected Financial KPIs

    Financial results – Platform

    In millions of €

      Q4 2024 Q4 2023 FY 2024 FY 2023
    Advertising Platform 126.3 126.0 412.3 348.6
    AAA Game Distribution (formerly e-commerce) 26.9 31.7 85.0 88.8
    Total Revenue 153.2 157.7 497.3 437.4
    Operating profit / (loss) 7.2 5.6 (1.7) (2.0)
    Adj. EBITDA 26.2 22.8 62.4 53.2
             
    Revenue growth % – Advertising Platform 0.2%   18.3%  
    Revenue growth % – AAA Game Distribution  (15.1%)   (4.3%)  
    Total Revenue growth % (2.9%)   13.7%  
    Adjusted EBITDA growth / (decrease) % 14.9%   17.3%  
    Adjusted EBITDA margin % 17.1% 14.5% 12.5% 12.2%

    Total Platform Revenue of € 153.2 million in Q4 2024, compared to € 157.7 million in Q4 2023, a decrease of (2.9)% mainly due to lower revenues in our AAA Game distribution. Total Platform Revenue of € 497.3 million in FY 2024, an increase of 13.7% compared to € 437.4 million in FY 2023, mainly due to growth in advertising revenue from Direct sales.

    Advertising Platform Revenue of € 126.3 million in Q4 2024, almost flat compared to the € 126.0 million in Q4 2023, mostly the result of an offset between growth in the direct business and the integration of revenues from acquired businesses. In Q4 2024, Azerion’s Direct sales contributed approximately 70% of Platform advertising revenue, with the balance provided by Automated auction sales. FY 2024 Advertising Platform Revenue came to € 412.3 million, up 18.3% compared to € 348.6 m in 2023.

    In Q4 2024, AAA Game Distribution generated Revenue of € 26.9 million as compared to € 31.7 million in Q4 2023, a decrease of approximately (15.1)% due to fewer high-profile AAA game releases in Q4 2024 (for example Concord™ by PlayStation didn’t get the consumer traction Sony expected and was subsequently pulled from 3rd party distribution) and optimising towards profitability rather than revenue which meant that the business sold smaller but higher margin titles.  In Q4 2024, AAA Game Distribution Revenue represented 17.6% of total Platform Revenue, as compared to 20.1% in Q4 2023. 

    Total Platform Operating Profit of € 7.2 million in Q4 2024, compared to € 5.6 million in Q4 2023, a significant increase of 28.6% largely due to the successful integration of acquisitions and the subsequent synergies and cost reductions that were realised. Total Platform Operating Loss of € (1.7) million in FY 2024, compared to € (2.0) million in FY 2023, an improvement largely due the aforementioned results of our efforts to integrate acquisitions, create synergies and reduce costs throughout the year. 

    Total Platform Adjusted EBITDA of € 26.2 million in Q4 2024, compared to € 22.8 million in Q4 2023, an increase of 14.9% largely due to the mix of Advertising Platform Revenue, increased share of Direct Sales and an increasingly efficient delivery operation. Total Platform Adjusted EBITDA of € 62.4 million in FY 2024, compared to € 53.2 million in FY 2023, an increase of 17.3% mainly as a result of growth in advertising revenue from Direct sales and the integration of previous acquisitions.

    Advertising – Selected Operational KPIs

    Advertising – Operational KPIs

      Q4 2023 Q1 2024 Q2 2024 Q3 2024 Q4 2024
    Avg. Digital Ads Sold per Month (bn) 13.9 11.9 12.1 12.6 14.1
    Avg. Gross Revenue per Million Processed Ad Requests across the Azerion Platform (EUR)1) 34.5 25.4 29.0 23.4 24.3

    1)Average gross revenue per million processed ad requests across Azerion Platform is calculated by dividing gross advertising revenue (processed by Azerion’s advertising auction and monetisation platforms) by a million advertisement requests processed by Azerion’s advertising auction and monetisation platforms.

    Note: Both Advertising Operational KPIs now include data relating to the Hawk acquisition as of Q4 2023.

    The Average Digital Ads sold per Month increased to 14.1 billion in Q4 2024 from 13.9 billion in Q4 2023, an increase of 1.4%, reflecting the Platform’s demand side growth due to the integration of past acquisitions and the consolidation of Azerion’s monetisation technology into a single scalable media buying platform. 

    The Average Gross Revenue per Million Processed Ad Requests across the Azerion Platform in Q4 2024 was € 24.3, compared to € 34.5 in Q4 2023, a decline year on year as we onboarded several high volume but relatively low revenue publishing partners in Q4 2024.   

    Premium Games Segment

    Since the end of Q3 2023, the Premium Games segment has consisted of social casino games and metaverse games. Azerion completed the sale of its social card games portfolio to Playtika Holding Corp. on 28 August 2023 and its contribution to the Premium Games segment ceased at that date. The segment generates revenue mainly by offering users the ability to make in-game purchases for extra features and virtual goods to enhance their gameplay experience. This segment aims to stimulate social interaction among players and build communities, offering an extended value proposition to advertisers and generating cross-selling opportunities with the Platform segment. 

    Selected Q4 2024 business highlights

    • Habbo Origins revenue has continued to progress several months after its release demonstrating solid long term potential and we have released new features such as Boom, a new game within Habbo Origins, which is intended to increase user engagement.
    • ⁠New releases and packages for players of our Social Casino games such as dynamic bet sizes, bet roulette and Holiday themed collections.

    Premium Games – Selected Financial KPIs

    Financial results – Premium Games

    In millions of € 

      Q4 2024 Q4 2023 FY 2024 FY 2023
    Revenue (excluding social card games) 14.8 14.1 53.9 49.3
    Social card games portfolio – – – 28.3
    Total Revenue 14.8 14.1 53.9 77.6
    Operating profit / (loss) (excluding social card games) (0.1) 0.5 (0.7) (6.2)
    Social card games portfolio – – – 81.0
    Total Operating profit / (loss) (0.1) 0.5 (0.7) 74.8
    Adjusted EBITDA (excluding social card games) 3.9 3.6 12.7 9.0
    Social card games portfolio – – – 9.7
    Total Adjusted EBITDA 3.9 3.6 12.7 18.7
             
    Revenue growth % (excluding social card games) 5.0% – 9.3% –
    Adjusted EBITDA growth % (excluding social card games) 8.3% – 41.1% –
    Adjusted EBITDA margin % (excluding social card games) 26.4% 25.5% 23.6% 18.3%

    Revenue of € 14.8 million in Q4 2024, as compared to € 14.1 million in Q4 2023, an increase of 5.0%, mainly driven by the increased number of paying users in metaverse titles due to the ongoing strong performance of Habbo Hotel Origins combined with new Social Casinos sale features, improved discount strategies and increased partner user acquisition spend. Revenue was € 53.9 million in FY 2024, as compared to € 49.3 million in FY 2023 (excluding social card games), an increase of 9.3%, driven by social casino and metaverse performance and the factors previously described for Q4 2024, partly offset by the sale of Woozworld at the start of January 2024 (totaling € 1.7 million Revenue in FY 2023).

    Adjusted EBITDA of € 3.9 million in Q4 2024, compared to € 3.6 million in Q4 2023, an increase of 8.3%, mainly driven by improved performance from metaverse titles due to the ongoing strong performance of Habbo Hotel Origins, consolidation and integration efforts resulting in improved operational performance and product development across the social casino and other metaverse titles. Adjusted EBITDA of € 12.7 million in FY 2024, as compared to € 9.0 million (excluding social card games), an increase of 41.1% compared to FY 2023 reflecting the increased performance of our metaverse titles due to the launch of Habbo Hotel origins, consolidation and integration efforts resulting in improved operational performance and product development across the social casino and other metaverse titles offset by the shift in new user generation to mobile in Azerion’s social casino environment which has higher growth potential over time, but also higher transaction costs as compared to web.

    Operating Loss of € (0.1) million in Q4 2024, compared to Operating Profit of € 0.5 million in Q4 2023, mainly driven by end of year adjustments in depreciation and amortisation.

    Operating Loss of € (0.7) million in FY 2024, compared to € (6.2) million in FY 2023 (excluding social card games), an improvement once again reflecting the developments described for Adjusted EBITDA above.

    Premium Games – Selected Operational KPIs

    Premium Games – Operational KPIs

      Q4 2023 Q1 2024 Q2 2024 Q3 2024 Q4 2024
    Avg. Time in Game per Day (min) 95.0 87.0 81.0 84.7 89.3
    Avg. DAUs (thousands) 255.4 251.2 252.9 239.4 227.4
    Avg. ARPDAU (EUR) 0.47 0.42 0.53 0.57 0.59
    • The Average Time in Game per Day (min) decreased by (6)% in Q4 2024 to 89.3 minutes per day as compared to 95.0 minutes per day in Q4 2023 due to slightly shorter average game time in the newly released Habbo Origins title compared with the rest of the metaverse games.
    • The Average Daily Active Users (DAUs) decreased by (11)% in Q4 2024 to 227.4 compared to Q4 2023 of 255.4, mainly due to lower user acquisition spend and increased focus on greater engagement with higher paying users.  
    • The Average Revenue per Daily Active User (ARPDAU) increased by 26% in Q4 2024 to € 0.59 compared to Q4 2023 of € 0.47, driven by improved in-game sales mechanics in social casino, features and events. 

    Outlook

    With our Full Year 2024 Net Revenue at € 551 million, the closing of several partnerships in the last months of the year, our subsequent bond issue in December, and the opportunities we see for the coming year, our Full Year 2025 Net Revenue is expected to be in the range of approximately € 600 million to € 650 million, with annual growth thereafter in the medium term expected to be approximately 10%. 

    Adjusted EBITDA for full year 2025 is expected to be at least approximately € 85 million, with annual Adjusted EBITDA margin thereafter in the medium term expected to be in the range of approximately 14% to 16% through further integrations, synergies and scale effects.

    Other information

    Interest-bearing debt

    Interest-bearing debt

    in millions of €

      31 December 2024 31 December 2023
    Total non-current indebtedness 268.7 172.0
    Total current indebtedness 25.9 12.6
    Total financial indebtedness 294.6 184.6
    Deduct Zero interest-bearing loans (0.2) (0.1)
    Interest-bearing debt 294.4 184.5
    Less: Cash and cash equivalents (90.6) (40.3)
    Net Interest-bearing debt (Bond terms) 203.8 144.2

    References to bond terms in the table above refer to the terms as defined in the Senior Secured Callable Floating Rate Bonds ISIN: NO0013017657

    Reconciliation of Profit / (loss) for the period to Adjusted EBITDA  

    Reconciliation of Profit / (loss) for the period to Adjusted EBITDA – Q4

    in millions of €

      Q4
      2024 2023
      Azerion Group Premium Games Platform Other Azerion Group Premium Games Platform Other
    Profit / (loss) for the period 3.3       (7.2)      
    Income Tax expense (6.7)       (2.4)      
    Profit / (loss) before tax (3.4)       (9.6)      
    Net finance costs 11.0       15.7      
    Share in profit/(loss) of associate (0.5)       –      
    Operating profit / (loss) 7.1 (0.1) 7.2 – 6.1 0.5 5.6 –
    Depreciation & Amortisation 15.5 3.6 11.9 – 13.9 3.3 10.6 –
    Share in profit/(loss) of associate 0.5 – 0.5 – – – – –
    Other 4.1 1.2 2.9 – 1.7 (0.2) 1.9 –
    Acquisition expenses1) 2.8 (0.9) 3.7 – 3.9 (0.1) 4.0 –
    Restructuring 0.1 0.1 – – 0.8 0.1 0.7 –
    Adjusted EBITDA 30.1 3.9 26.2 – 26.4 3.6 22.8 –

    1)In the past, all changes to the fair value of liabilities for contingent considerations were adjusted out of EBITDA on the basis that these impacts were acquisition related. Management has decided to cease these adjustments where the consideration is contingent upon the achievement of financial targets, because these changes in fair value are offsetting opposite movements already included in the operational performance of the acquired entity. This change has been applied prospectively. 

    Reconciliation of Profit / (loss) for the period to Adjusted EBITDA – FY

    in millions of €

      FY
      2024 2023
      Azerion Group Premium Games Platform Other Azerion Group Premium Games Platform Other
    Profit / (loss) for the period (35.4)       25.1      
    Income Tax expense (6.0)       19.0      
    Profit / (loss) before tax (41.4)       44.1      
    Net finance costs 39.5       28.7      
    Share in profit/(loss) of associate (0.5)       –      
    Operating profit / (loss) (2.4) (0.7) (1.7) – 72.8 74.8 (2.0) –
    Depreciation & Amortisation 47.8 11.5 36.3 – 46.4 12.9 33.5 –
    Share in profit/(loss) of associate 0.5 – 0.5 – – – – –
    Social card games portfolio – – – – (72.6) (72.6) – –
    Other 5.7 1.5 4.2 – 3.2 0.7 2.5 –
    Acquisition expenses1) 22.2 – 22.2 – 14.4 1.1 13.3 –
    Restructuring 1.3 0.4 0.9 – 7.7 1.8 5.9 –
    Adjusted EBITDA 75.1 12.7 62.4 – 71.9 18.7 53.2 –

    1)In the past, all changes to the fair value of liabilities for contingent considerations were adjusted out of EBITDA on the basis that these impacts were acquisition related. Management has decided to cease these adjustments where the consideration is contingent upon the achievement of financial targets, because these changes in fair value are offsetting opposite movements already included in the operational performance of the acquired entity. This change has been applied prospectively. 

    Additional notes:

    Acquisition expenses for FY 2024 include € 7.7 million relating to:

    • € 4.8 million in Q2 2024 on one-off settlement of a commercial dispute and contingent consideration fair value loss (non-operational performance target) relating to a previous acquisition 
    • € 2.9 million in Q3 2024 on renegotiation of contingent consideration terms for one of the acquisitions.

    Operating expenses

    Breakdown of Operating expenses

    in millions of €

      Q4 FY
    2024 2023 2024 2023
    Personnel costs (20.2) (24.9) (86.2) (98.5)
    Includes:        
    Restructuring related expenses (0.1) (0.8) (1.3) (7.7)
    Acquisition related one-off items – – (1.7) –
             
    Other expenses (12.5) (8.7) (40.7) (37.3)
    Includes:        
    One-off settlement expenses – – (3.0) –
             
    Operating expenses (32.7) (33.6) (126.9) (135.8)

    Condensed consolidated statement of profit or loss and other comprehensive income

    Condensed consolidated statement of profit or loss and other comprehensive income

    In millions of €

      Q4 FY
      2024 2023 2024 2023
    Revenue 168.0 171.8 551.2 515.0
    Costs of services and materials (112.4) (117.9) (377.4) (332.3)
    Personnel costs (20.2) (24.9) (86.2) (98.5)
    Depreciation (3.0) (2.2) (9.0) (8.1)
    Amortisation (12.5) (11.7) (38.8) (38.3)
    Other gains and losses1) (0.3) (0.3) (1.5) 72.3
    Other expenses (12.5) (8.7) (40.7) (37.3)
    Operating profit / (loss) 7.1 6.1 (2.4) 72.8
             
    Finance income 3.1 1.0 7.0 8.5
    Finance costs (14.1) (16.7) (46.5) (37.2)
    Net Finance costs (11.0) (15.7) (39.5) (28.7)
             
    Share in profit/(loss) of associate 0.5 – 0.5 –
             
    Profit / (loss) before tax (3.4) (9.6) (41.4) 44.1
    Income tax expense 6.7 2.4 6.0 (19.0)
    Profit / (loss) for the period 3.3 (7.2) (35.4) 25.1
             
    Attributable to:        
    Owners of the company 3.3 (7.9) (36.7) 23.7
    Non-controlling interest – 0.7 1.3 1.4
             
    Exchange difference on translation of foreign operations (0.3) (0.3) 1.0 (0.6)
    Financial assets fair value through OCI 0.0 – (0.8) –
    Total other comprehensive income (0.3) (0.3) 0.2 (0.6)
    Total comprehensive income/(loss) 3.0 (7.5) (35.2) 24.5
             
    Attributable to:        
    Owners of the company 3.0 (8.2) (36.5) 23.1
    Non-controlling interest – 0.7 1.3 1.4

    1)Earn-out results have been reclassified from Other expenses to Other gains and losses

    Condensed consolidated statement of financial position

    Condensed consolidated statement of financial position

    in millions of €

      31 December 2024 31 December 2023
    Assets    
    Non-current assets 409.2 413.6
    Property, plant and equipment 24.3 17.0
    Goodwill 192.6 187.1
    Intangible assets 167.0 176.3
    Non-current financial assets 4.9 30.8
    Deferred tax asset 7.6 2.3
    Investment in joint venture and associate 12.8 0.1
         
    Current assets 299.6 238.4
    Trade and other receivables 208.4 196.7
    Current tax assets 0.6 1.4
    Cash and cash equivalents 90.6 40.3
    Total assets 708.8 652.0
         
    Equity    
    Share capital 1.2 1.2
    Share premium 143.6 140.2
    Legal reserve 33.2 27.7
    Share based payment reserve 12.6 12.7
    Currency translation reserve (1.0) (1.9)
    Fair value through OCI (0.8) –
    Retained earnings (117.1) (75.6)
    Shareholders’ equity 71.7 104.3
    Non-controlling interest 6.2 5.3
    Total equity 77.9 109.6
         
    Liabilities    
    Non-current liabilities 310.9 220.1
    Borrowings 256.0 161.9
    Lease liabilities 12.7 10.1
    Provisions 1.6 1.6
    Deferred tax liability 25.3 30.0
    Other non-current liability 15.3 16.5
         
    Current liabilities 320.0 322.3
    Borrowings 19.2 8.4
    Provisions 2.2 3.6
    Trade payables 136.9 142.0
    Accrued liabilities 97.5 112.7
    Current tax liabilities 14.0 13.4
    Lease liabilities 6.7 4.2
    Other current liabilities 43.5 38.0
    Total liabilities 630.9 542.4
    Total equity and liabilities 708.8 652.0

    Condensed consolidated statement of cash flow

    Condensed consolidated statement of cash flow

    In millions of €

      Q4 Q4 FY FY
      2024 2023 2024 2023
    Cash flows from operating activities        
    Operating profit / (loss) 7.1 6.1 (2.4) 72.8
    Adjustments for operating profit / (loss):        
    Depreciation and amortisation & Impairments 15.5 13.9 47.8 46.4
    Movements in provisions per profit and loss (0.1) 0.9 1.1 8.8
    Gain on sale of social card game portfolio – – – (72.6)
    Loss on sale of subsidiaries – 0.1 – 0.1
    Share-based payments expense – 0.1 0.4 0.8
    Adjustment for acquisitions and disposals presented under investing activities – – 5.7 (2.9)
             
    Changes in working capital items:         
    (Increase)/Decrease in trade and other receivables (7.6) (6.4) 19.9 12.2
    Increase (decrease) in trade payables and other payables 4.9 25.0 (32.5) 14.8
             
    Utilisation of provisions (0.3) (3.1) (3.1) (9.9)
    Interest received 0.2 0.3 1.1 0.3
    Interest paid (8.5) (3.2) (26.8) (17.2)
    Income tax paid (1.2) (2.7) (4.2) (3.7)
    Net cash provided by (used for) operating activities 10.0 31.0 7.0 49.9
             
    Cash flows from investing activities        
    Payments for property, plant and equipment (0.3) (0.1) (0.8) (1.5)
    Payments for intangibles (6.2) (3.7) (20.0) (23.3)
    Net cash outflow on acquisition of subsidiaries (11.7) (10.8) (27.7) (43.9)
    Net cash inflow/(outflow) from sale of business – – 11.2 66.0
    Distributions from equity method investees – – 0.5 –
    Net cash outflow on acquisition of securities and equity investments – – – (2.6)
    Net cash provided by (used for) investing activities (18.2) (14.6) (36.8) (5.3)
             
    Cash flows from financing activities        
    Proceeds from external borrowings 34.5 162.6 92.1 163.1
    Repayment of external borrowings (0.1) (200.7) (3.3) (204.3)
    Payment of principal portion of lease liabilities (2.9) (1.8) (7.7) (6.8)
    Early cancelation of lease liability – – – (1.5)
    Dividends paid to shareholders of non-controlling interests – – (0.2) (0.4)
    Costs related to the issuance of new bond – (3.5) – (3.5)
    Fees and costs related to the redemption of the old bond – (1.5) – (1.5)
    Other inflows (outflows) from financing activities – (0.5) – (0.5)
    Net cash provided by (used for) financing activities 31.5 (45.4) 80.9 (55.4)
             
    Net increase/(decrease) in cash and cash equivalents 23.3 (29.0) 51.1 (10.8)
    Effect of changes in exchange rates on cash and cash equivalents (1.0) 0.1 (0.8) 0.2
    Cash and cash equivalents at the beginning of the period 68.3 69.2 40.3 50.9
    Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the period 90.6 40.3 90.6 40.3

    Definitions

    Adjusted EBITDA represents Operating Profit / (Loss) excluding depreciation, amortisation, impairment of non-current assets, restructuring and acquisition related expenses and other items at management discretion, principally those assessed as extraordinary items or non-recurring items which are not in line with the ordinary course of business.

    Adjusted EBITDA Margin represents Adjusted EBITDA as a percentage of Revenue.

    Average gross revenue per million processed ad requests across Azerion Platform is calculated by dividing gross advertising revenue (processed by Azerion’s advertising auction and monetisation platforms) by a million advertisement requests processed by Azerion’s advertising  auction and monetisation platforms.

    Average time in game per day measures how many minutes per day, on average, the players of Premium Games spend in the games. This demonstrates their engagement with the games, which generates more opportunities to grow the ARPDAU.

    Average DAUs represents average daily active users, which is the number of distinct users per day averaged across the relevant period.

    ARPDAU represents Average Revenue per Daily Active User, which is revenue per period divided by days in the period divided by average daily active users in that period and represents average per user in-game purchases for the period.

    Financial Indebtedness represents as defined in the terms and conditions of the Senior Secured Callable Floating Rate Bonds ISIN: NO0013017657 any indebtedness in respect of:

    • monies borrowed or raised, including Market Loans;
    • the amount of any liability in respect of any Finance Leases;
    • receivables sold or discounted (other than any receivables to the extent they are sold on a non-recourse basis);
    • any amount raised under any other transaction (including any forward sale or purchase agreement) having the commercial effect of a borrowing;
    • any derivative transaction entered into in connection with protection against or benefit from fluctuation in any rate or price (and, when calculating the value of any derivative transaction, only the mark to market value shall be taken into account, provided that if any actual amount is due as a result of a termination or a close-out, such amount shall be used instead);
    • any counter indemnity obligation in respect of a guarantee, indemnity, bond, standby or documentary letter of credit or any other instrument issued by a bank or financial institution; and
    • (without double counting) any guarantee or other assurance against financial loss in respect of a type referred to in the above paragraphs (1)-(6).

    Net Interest-bearing debt as defined in the terms and conditions of the Senior Secured Callable Floating Rate Bonds ISIN: NO0013017657 means the aggregate interest-bearing Financial Indebtedness less cash and cash equivalents (including any cash from a Subsequent Bond Issue standing to the credit on the Proceeds Account or another escrow arrangement for the benefit of the Bondholders) of the Group in accordance with the Accounting Principles (for the avoidance of doubt, excluding any Bonds owned by the Issuer, guarantees, bank guarantees, Subordinated Loans, any claims subordinated pursuant to a subordination agreement on terms and conditions satisfactory to the Agent and interest-bearing Financial Indebtedness borrowed from any Group Company) as such terms are defined in the terms and conditions of the Senior Secured Callable Floating Rate Bonds ISIN: NO0013017657.

    Operating expenses are defined as the aggregate of personnel costs and other expenses as reported in the statement of profit or loss and other comprehensive income. More details on the reporting of cost by nature can be found in the published annual financial statements of 2023.

    Operating Profit / (Loss) represents revenue less costs of services and materials, operating expenses, depreciation and amortisation and other gains and losses.

    Disclaimer and Cautionary Statements

    This communication contains information that qualifies as inside information within the meaning of Article 7(1) of the EU Market Abuse Regulation.

    This communication may include forward-looking statements. All statements other than statements of historical facts are, or may be deemed to be, forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements include, among other things, statements concerning the potential exposure of Azerion to market risks and statements expressing management’s expectations, beliefs, estimates, forecasts, projections and assumptions. Words and expressions such as aims, ambition, anticipates, believes, could, estimates, expects, goals, intends, may, milestones, objectives, outlook, plans, projects, risks, schedules, seeks, should, target, will or other similar words or expressions are typically used to identify forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are statements of future expectations that are based on management’s current expectations and assumptions and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that are difficult to predict and that could cause the actual results, performance or events to differ materially from future results expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements contained in this communication. Readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements.

    Any forward-looking statements reflect Azerion’s current views and assumptions based on information currently available to Azerion’s management. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made and Azerion does not assume any obligation to update or revise such statements as a result of new information, future events or other information, except as required by law.

    The interim financial results of Azerion Group N.V. as included in this communication are required to be disclosed pursuant to the terms and conditions of the Senior Secured Callable Floating Rate Bonds ISIN: NO0013017657.

    This report has not been reviewed or audited by Azerion’s external auditor.

    Certain financial data included in this communication consist of alternative performance measures (“non-IFRS financial measures”), including Adjusted EBITDA. The non-IFRS financial measures, along with comparable IFRS measures, are used by Azerion’s management to evaluate the business performance and are useful to investors. They may not be comparable to similarly titled measures as presented by other companies, nor should they be considered as an alternative to the historical financial results or other indicators of Azerion Group N.V.’s cash flow based on IFRS. Even though the non-IFRS financial measures are used by management to assess Azerion Group N.V.’s financial position, financial results and liquidity and these types of measures are commonly used by investors, they have important limitations as analytical tools, and the recipients should not consider them in isolation or as a substitute for analysis of Azerion Group N.V.’s financial position or results of operations as reported under IFRS.

    For all definitions and reconciliations of non-IFRS financial measures please also refer to www.azerion.com/investors.

    This report may contain forward-looking non-IFRS financial measures. The Company is unable to provide a reconciliation of these forward-looking non-IFRS financial measures to the most comparable IFRS financial measures because certain information needed to reconcile those non-IFRS financial measures to the most comparable IFRS financial measures is dependent on future events some of which are outside the control of Azerion. Moreover, estimating such IFRS financial measures with the required precision necessary to provide a meaningful reconciliation is extremely difficult and could not be accomplished without unreasonable effort. Non-IFRS financial measures in respect of future periods which cannot be reconciled to the most comparable IFRS financial measure are calculated in a manner which is consistent with the accounting policies applied in Azerion Group N.V.’s consolidated financial statements.

    This communication does not constitute an offer to sell, or a solicitation of an offer to buy, any securities or any other financial instruments.

    Contact

    Investor Relations: ir@azerion.comMedia relations: press@azerion.com 

    Attachment

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: Bitget Updates Proof of Reserves for February 2025, Reserve Ratios Increase to 186%

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    VICTORIA, Seychelles, Feb. 27, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Bitget, the world’s leading cryptocurrency exchange and Web3 company, has released their proof-of-reserves report for February 2025. The newest snapshot shows the updated data highlights an increase of reserves to 186% up from its commitment of 100%. Bitget’s latest proof of reserves reaffirms its financial stability and transparency, showcasing a strong total reserve ratio. 

    The exchange holds substantial reserves across major assets, ensuring more than full backing of user funds. The breakdown reveals a 322% reserve ratio for Bitcoin, with over 19,393 BTC held against user liabilities of 6,030 BTC. Similarly, Ethereum reserves stand at 173%, with holdings of 199,433 ETH exceeding the 115,051 ETH in user assets. Stablecoin reserves are also robust, with USDT at 138% and USDC at 121%, showing strong backing.

    The Merkle root hash verification adds an extra layer of transparency, allowing users to independently verify their assets within Bitget’s system. With 35 million records included in the Merkle tree, the exchange continues to prioritize accountability. The report highlights Bitget’s commitment to safeguarding user assets while maintaining operational integrity. By consistently holding reserves well above liabilities, Bitget reinforces trust in its financial health, positioning itself as a secure and reliable platform for crypto traders and investors.

    The updated PoR showcases Bitget’s efforts in maintaining more than industry standard 100% reserves, which effectively guarantees that users’ assets are safe. The platform is capable of covering user withdrawals, even if all user assets are withdrawn.

    In addition to maintaining a higher than industry standard PoR, Bitget insures its users further with a $300M Protection Fund, now valued over $570 million according to its latest protection fund report. This gives the platform an extra layer of resilience against cybersecurity threats.

    For real-time PoR tracking, please visit here.

    About Bitget

    Established in 2018, Bitget is the world’s leading cryptocurrency exchange and Web3 company. Serving over 100 million users in 150+ countries and regions, the Bitget exchange is committed to helping users trade smarter with its pioneering copy trading feature and other trading solutions, while offering real-time access to Bitcoin price, Ethereum price, and other cryptocurrency prices. Formerly known as BitKeep, Bitget Wallet is a world-class multi-chain crypto wallet that offers an array of comprehensive Web3 solutions and features including wallet functionality, token swap, NFT Marketplace, DApp browser, and more.

    Bitget is at the forefront of driving crypto adoption through strategic partnerships, such as its role as the Official Crypto Partner of the World’s Top Football League, LALIGA, in EASTERN, SEA and LATAM market, as well as a global partner of Turkish National athletes Buse Tosun Çavuşoğlu (Wrestling world champion), Samet Gümüş (Boxing gold medalist) and İlkin Aydın (Volleyball national team), to inspire the global community to embrace the future of cryptocurrency.

    For more information, visit: Website | Twitter | Telegram | LinkedIn | Discord | Bitget Wallet

    For media inquiries, please contact: media@bitget.com

    Risk Warning: Digital asset prices are subject to fluctuation and may experience significant volatility. Investors are advised to only allocate funds they can afford to lose. The value of any investment may be impacted, and there is a possibility that financial objectives may not be met, nor the principal investment recovered. Independent financial advice should always be sought, and personal financial experience and standing carefully considered. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future results. Bitget accepts no liability for any potential losses incurred. Nothing contained herein should be construed as financial advice. For further information, please refer to our Terms of Use.

    A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/7e6e37dd-29ad-4275-b259-d9650b21488f

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI Australia: 4BC Brisbane, Breakfast with Peter Fegan

    Source: Australian Ministers 1

    PETER FEGAN:  Now, you’ll remember last year we reported it here on 4BC and it made headlines nationally, the states were officially put on notice by the Federal Government. The states were saying, show me the money and the Federal Government was simply saying, well, prove what it’s worth. Federal Transport Minister Catherine King told state premiers if they wanted cash, they needed good business cases. It’s pretty smart politics, really. The good news is we’ve passed the test here in Brisbane. Today, we’ll be handed a cheque for $200 million, and it includes funding for one of Brisbane’s oldest icons. The Federal Transport Minister, Catherine King, joins me on the line. Minister, great to have your company this morning.

    CATHERINE KING: So lovely to be with you, Peter. It’s a beautiful day here in Brisbane.

    PETER FEGAN: Now, one of our landmarks, our most famous landmarks, will be getting some cash. Can you reveal it on the program please?

    CATHERINE KING: Yeah. So we’re working with the Brisbane City Council to start to investigate what the cost of and scope of work that are needed to restore and to future maintenance of what is obviously the most iconic bridge, one of the most iconic bridges in the country, apart from the Sydney Harbour Bridge, of course. But it’s- you know, it’s a landmark. And so we’re putting in alongside Brisbane City Council together, $5 million to really get that work done, to see what is it that we’re going to need to do. It’s going to need more cash into the future. But this is really starting the process of working with the council to look at what do we need to make sure this bridge stays there into the future and is as strong as it possibly can be, and we keep it there for many, many generations to enjoy.

    PETER FEGAN: Now, there was also $1 million that’s been put aside to investigate a bridge from West End to Toowong. Well, Minister, I’m going to do you a favour here this morning. I’m going to save you that $1 million, and I’m going to say this, just build it because we’ve wanted it for so long. 

    CATHERINE KING: [Laughs] Well, unfortunately we have to work out the cost of these things first. And part of what you do with the business case and the planning is you do the geotech work. You have a look at what services need to be moved so that you can then- the city council can come to me and say, well, look, we need this amount of money to actually build it. So that’s really just the start of the process. And I was at the opening, obviously, of Kangaroo Point Bridge. I’ve seen hundreds and hundreds of people have been using that. We want to see people being able to access all parts of the city. And so this is again, just working with the Brisbane City Council, doing that planning work, finding out how much- you know, we really need to understand how much it costs and then sort of getting on with it once we’ve got that understanding.

    PETER FEGAN: Minister, no more footbridges. We need cars to go across. We drive here in Brisbane. We don’t get transport, unfortunately.

    CATHERINE KING: Well, we do lots of things. I think people catch buses.

    PETER FEGAN: [Laughs]

    CATHERINE KING: So obviously, there’s the Brisbane Metro [indistinct], there’s people do that. People will cycle. I’ve seen people everywhere doing that. I’ve seen people walking across footbridges and then I’ve obviously seen- in terms of lots of cars as well. Everyone does all of those things. But cars are obviously pretty important here in Queensland.

    PETER FEGAN: Minister, I found this one very interesting, being somebody that grew up in the western suburbs of Brisbane, plenty of people listening to me from the west this morning, they’ll find this interesting. $78.5 million towards cost pressures on the Moggill Road Corridor upgrade project, replacing Indooroopilly roundabout with an overpass over Moggill Road. Now that’s great, but what about the Moggill Road corridor in particular? And then that’s further out towards Moggill. And I’m talking about land that had been put aside. Government land, Crown land that’s been put aside since Malcolm Fraser’s days. And yet people that live out in those western suburbs are still struggling to get to work, because we haven’t used that parcel of land. Can you give a guarantee that one day we may use it?

    CATHERINE KING: What again, we do is work in partnership with councils. So obviously Brisbane City Council is in a really unique position across the country that it has such a substantial road and obviously public transport network that it has to fund and build itself. So we work closely with Brisbane City Council and also state governments. They bring projects forward to us in budget and we make considerations of those. We’ve got to do the planning work first, make sure we understand it, but know if the council or the state government want to bring that forward. I, of course, will give it due consideration in the budget process.

    PETER FEGAN: $7.2 billion upgrade to fix the Bruce Highway. I think this is the most contentious topic here in Queensland. And I got to say, Minister, when it comes to the election, this will be one of the most divisive topics and I think you’ll either win or lose votes here. $7.2 billion upgrade to fix the Bruce, right? That’s one hell of an obligation to Queenslanders in particular. But I’ve got to say this, Minister, we are reluctant to believe either government, particularly this Labor Government at the moment, because it was this government that had turned its back on the Bruce and had switched the funding arrangement around. $7.2 billion sounds fantastic. I’ve got to say, on behalf of all Queensland, Minister, we just need to get on with it. We need this highway to be safe.

    CATHERINE KING: Absolutely. And that’s why, you know, the earliest possible opportunity we did, we’ve made the announcement at that $7.2 billion. Money will flow this year and every subsequent year.  We’ve said we’ll get it done in eight years. We’ve asked the Queensland Government to deliver that …

    PETER FEGAN: [Talks over] But it’s been 50.

    CATHERINE KING: … then obviously [indistinct].

    PETER FEGAN: 50 or 60 years, Minister. It’s 50 or 60 years and not one government can fix it.

    CATHERINE KING: Well, this Government has made the single biggest contribution to the Bruce Highway ever. And this is a Labor Government that has done that. And if you look back when we were last in office, prior to that, it was the then infrastructure minister, now Prime Minister, who then made the single biggest commitment to this.

    This is a Labor legacy, and we are absolutely committed to making the Bruce Highway safer. We’ve been in government obviously two and a half years. And I do want to make it really clear, no money has ever been cut from the Bruce Highway. What we have said is-

    PETER FEGAN: But the funding agreement- the funding- hang on, Minister, the funding agreement, that’s not true. The funding agreement was an 80/20 split…

    CATHERINE KING: [Talks over] That’s true…

    PETER FEGAN: … and you- but you changed that. So that’s funding cutting. Hang on, Minister, you changed that. It was an 80/20 split, but you say no funding has ever been cut. If you change- if you go from 80/20 to 50/50, that to me- I’m not a mathematician, but that’s a 30 per cent cut in funding.

    CATHERINE KING: So no, it isn’t. And so I want to make that really clear. I think there’s some confusion about that and been a bit of mischief about that. So first thing is not a single dollar has been cut from the Bruce Highway. In fact, the commitment that we’ve got, there’s $10 billion that has already been spent on the Bruce Highway. That has remained, and then we’ve put in an additional 7.2 billion. We’ve recognised on the Bruce Highway, in particular because of the safety concerns, 41 deaths just last year alone, that we will continue to fund that on an 80/20 basis.

    But what we did announce is that because the Commonwealth is now increasingly funding suburban roads, public transport and has stepped into the space of the state governments, largely, we’re now on other roads, particularly across the country, now requiring the state to also step up its commitment. We’re not dropping any of our funding. There’s still $125 billion worth of Commonwealth funding going to states and territories. We’re not dropping that. We’re just asking the states to step up with their contribution as well. So it’s not a cut to our funding. We’re asking the states to step in in the same way we’re stepping in on suburban roads now, but generally were 100 per cent of the state to fund.

    PETER FEGAN: It’s bang on quarter after eight. My guest this morning is the Federal Transport Minister, Catherine King. $200 million being announced today in funding for our roads here in Brisbane and in the South East. Minister, I’ve got to say this. It’s smart politics to ask the states to present you a case study because money is really, really tight, particularly on a federal level. So I like it. I think it’s good politics, and I think that that’s what the states should have to do. The reason I’m asking you about this, though, is because we need a really nice, new shiny stadium here in Queensland and particularly in Brisbane. We’ve got the Olympics coming. Now, if there was a case study put forward by David Crisafulli for a brand-new stadium, you’d be on board, wouldn’t you?

    CATHERINE KING: Well, the thing that we have put money towards, so there’s $3.5 billion capped from the Commonwealth going into the Olympics. We have said the Commonwealth’s contribution will go towards the Brisbane Arena. $2.5 billion is going towards that, we think, will leave a really significant legacy for an entertainment venue here in the heart of Brisbane – really necessary. We’ve also said we will 50/50 share the minor venues. Obviously, the Queensland Government is undertaking a review of those venues at the moment, but the Commonwealth has done- we’ve done the work, we’ve done the business case, the work is ready to go on the Brisbane Arena and that remains- you know, remains there on the table to build that arena for Brisbane. We think it’s needed and it will leave a great legacy for the community.

    PETER FEGAN: Let’s hope they’re listening, because it’s next month that we announce whether we’re going to get a new stadium or not. Before I let you go, Minister, what did you make of today’s announcements? I want to get your thoughts on this because your government has approved a deal between Virgin and Qatar Airways. Now, this is a deal that would see Qatar be able to invest in Virgin. It means there’s going to be more Qatar flights. It means we can spread our wings a little bit. Should hopefully cheapen flight prices here in Australia. But I’ve got to think back, if my memory serves me correctly, it was you that clipped Qatar’s wings in the first place.

    CATHERINE KING: So what we’ve had announced today is that the Treasurer has approved the Foreign Investment Review Board’s decision that Qatar Airways, the Qatari government, can invest in Virgin, and that obviously allows Virgin to do a number of things in terms of it going forward. Obviously, Bain Capital is wanting to withdraw and have Qatar now come in as the major investor. What it’s allowed us also to do is ensure that there are some Australians on the board of Virgin to make sure that we’ve got that in place and that they’re in fact opportunities to train Australian pilots, as again, Qatar has been granted through Virgin some wet leases to increase its flights, its international flights and create that competition. And I think that’s a good thing.

    PETER FEGAN: Before I let you go, we’ve got some breaking news. The election, 12 April. Is that right?

    CATHERINE KING: [Laughs] Very nice try there. What a sneaky way to do it, you cheeky thing.

    PETER FEGAN: [Laughs] I should have just – I shouldn’t have laughed.

    CATHERINE KING: You should have just- I know, I nearly believed you then. You just got me. I’ve got three brothers who do that to me all the time.

    PETER FEGAN: What would you have said, though?

    CATHERINE KING: I don’t know, I have absolutely no idea. [Indistinct] to the Prime Minister, but very cheeky. You nearly got me.

    PETER FEGAN: Good on you, Minister. We’ll chat again very soon.

    CATHERINE KING: Lovely to talk to you, Peter.

    PETER FEGAN: There she is. That’s the Federal Transport Minister, Catherine King.

    MIL OSI News –

  • MIL-OSI Australia: Transcript-interview-4BC Brisbane, Breakfast with Peter Fegan

    Source: Australian Ministers for Regional Development

    PETER FEGAN:  Now, you’ll remember last year we reported it here on 4BC and it made headlines nationally, the states were officially put on notice by the Federal Government. The states were saying, show me the money and the Federal Government was simply saying, well, prove what it’s worth. Federal Transport Minister Catherine King told state premiers if they wanted cash, they needed good business cases. It’s pretty smart politics, really. The good news is we’ve passed the test here in Brisbane. Today, we’ll be handed a cheque for $200 million, and it includes funding for one of Brisbane’s oldest icons. The Federal Transport Minister, Catherine King, joins me on the line. Minister, great to have your company this morning.

    CATHERINE KING: So lovely to be with you, Peter. It’s a beautiful day here in Brisbane.

    PETER FEGAN: Now, one of our landmarks, our most famous landmarks, will be getting some cash. Can you reveal it on the program please?

    CATHERINE KING: Yeah. So we’re working with the Brisbane City Council to start to investigate what the cost of and scope of work that are needed to restore and to future maintenance of what is obviously the most iconic bridge, one of the most iconic bridges in the country, apart from the Sydney Harbour Bridge, of course. But it’s- you know, it’s a landmark. And so we’re putting in alongside Brisbane City Council together, $5 million to really get that work done, to see what is it that we’re going to need to do. It’s going to need more cash into the future. But this is really starting the process of working with the council to look at what do we need to make sure this bridge stays there into the future and is as strong as it possibly can be, and we keep it there for many, many generations to enjoy.

    PETER FEGAN: Now, there was also $1 million that’s been put aside to investigate a bridge from West End to Toowong. Well, Minister, I’m going to do you a favour here this morning. I’m going to save you that $1 million, and I’m going to say this, just build it because we’ve wanted it for so long. 

    CATHERINE KING: [Laughs] Well, unfortunately we have to work out the cost of these things first. And part of what you do with the business case and the planning is you do the geotech work. You have a look at what services need to be moved so that you can then- the city council can come to me and say, well, look, we need this amount of money to actually build it. So that’s really just the start of the process. And I was at the opening, obviously, of Kangaroo Point Bridge. I’ve seen hundreds and hundreds of people have been using that. We want to see people being able to access all parts of the city. And so this is again, just working with the Brisbane City Council, doing that planning work, finding out how much- you know, we really need to understand how much it costs and then sort of getting on with it once we’ve got that understanding.

    PETER FEGAN: Minister, no more footbridges. We need cars to go across. We drive here in Brisbane. We don’t get transport, unfortunately.

    CATHERINE KING: Well, we do lots of things. I think people catch buses.

    PETER FEGAN: [Laughs]

    CATHERINE KING: So obviously, there’s the Brisbane Metro [indistinct], there’s people do that. People will cycle. I’ve seen people everywhere doing that. I’ve seen people walking across footbridges and then I’ve obviously seen- in terms of lots of cars as well. Everyone does all of those things. But cars are obviously pretty important here in Queensland.

    PETER FEGAN: Minister, I found this one very interesting, being somebody that grew up in the western suburbs of Brisbane, plenty of people listening to me from the west this morning, they’ll find this interesting. $78.5 million towards cost pressures on the Moggill Road Corridor upgrade project, replacing Indooroopilly roundabout with an overpass over Moggill Road. Now that’s great, but what about the Moggill Road corridor in particular? And then that’s further out towards Moggill. And I’m talking about land that had been put aside. Government land, Crown land that’s been put aside since Malcolm Fraser’s days. And yet people that live out in those western suburbs are still struggling to get to work, because we haven’t used that parcel of land. Can you give a guarantee that one day we may use it?

    CATHERINE KING: What again, we do is work in partnership with councils. So obviously Brisbane City Council is in a really unique position across the country that it has such a substantial road and obviously public transport network that it has to fund and build itself. So we work closely with Brisbane City Council and also state governments. They bring projects forward to us in budget and we make considerations of those. We’ve got to do the planning work first, make sure we understand it, but know if the council or the state government want to bring that forward. I, of course, will give it due consideration in the budget process.

    PETER FEGAN: $7.2 billion upgrade to fix the Bruce Highway. I think this is the most contentious topic here in Queensland. And I got to say, Minister, when it comes to the election, this will be one of the most divisive topics and I think you’ll either win or lose votes here. $7.2 billion upgrade to fix the Bruce, right? That’s one hell of an obligation to Queenslanders in particular. But I’ve got to say this, Minister, we are reluctant to believe either government, particularly this Labor Government at the moment, because it was this government that had turned its back on the Bruce and had switched the funding arrangement around. $7.2 billion sounds fantastic. I’ve got to say, on behalf of all Queensland, Minister, we just need to get on with it. We need this highway to be safe.

    CATHERINE KING: Absolutely. And that’s why, you know, the earliest possible opportunity we did, we’ve made the announcement at that $7.2 billion. Money will flow this year and every subsequent year.  We’ve said we’ll get it done in eight years. We’ve asked the Queensland Government to deliver that …

    PETER FEGAN: [Talks over] But it’s been 50.

    CATHERINE KING: … then obviously [indistinct].

    PETER FEGAN: 50 or 60 years, Minister. It’s 50 or 60 years and not one government can fix it.

    CATHERINE KING: Well, this Government has made the single biggest contribution to the Bruce Highway ever. And this is a Labor Government that has done that. And if you look back when we were last in office, prior to that, it was the then infrastructure minister, now Prime Minister, who then made the single biggest commitment to this.

    This is a Labor legacy, and we are absolutely committed to making the Bruce Highway safer. We’ve been in government obviously two and a half years. And I do want to make it really clear, no money has ever been cut from the Bruce Highway. What we have said is-

    PETER FEGAN: But the funding agreement- the funding- hang on, Minister, the funding agreement, that’s not true. The funding agreement was an 80/20 split…

    CATHERINE KING: [Talks over] That’s true…

    PETER FEGAN: … and you- but you changed that. So that’s funding cutting. Hang on, Minister, you changed that. It was an 80/20 split, but you say no funding has ever been cut. If you change- if you go from 80/20 to 50/50, that to me- I’m not a mathematician, but that’s a 30 per cent cut in funding.

    CATHERINE KING: So no, it isn’t. And so I want to make that really clear. I think there’s some confusion about that and been a bit of mischief about that. So first thing is not a single dollar has been cut from the Bruce Highway. In fact, the commitment that we’ve got, there’s $10 billion that has already been spent on the Bruce Highway. That has remained, and then we’ve put in an additional 7.2 billion. We’ve recognised on the Bruce Highway, in particular because of the safety concerns, 41 deaths just last year alone, that we will continue to fund that on an 80/20 basis.

    But what we did announce is that because the Commonwealth is now increasingly funding suburban roads, public transport and has stepped into the space of the state governments, largely, we’re now on other roads, particularly across the country, now requiring the state to also step up its commitment. We’re not dropping any of our funding. There’s still $125 billion worth of Commonwealth funding going to states and territories. We’re not dropping that. We’re just asking the states to step up with their contribution as well. So it’s not a cut to our funding. We’re asking the states to step in in the same way we’re stepping in on suburban roads now, but generally were 100 per cent of the state to fund.

    PETER FEGAN: It’s bang on quarter after eight. My guest this morning is the Federal Transport Minister, Catherine King. $200 million being announced today in funding for our roads here in Brisbane and in the South East. Minister, I’ve got to say this. It’s smart politics to ask the states to present you a case study because money is really, really tight, particularly on a federal level. So I like it. I think it’s good politics, and I think that that’s what the states should have to do. The reason I’m asking you about this, though, is because we need a really nice, new shiny stadium here in Queensland and particularly in Brisbane. We’ve got the Olympics coming. Now, if there was a case study put forward by David Crisafulli for a brand-new stadium, you’d be on board, wouldn’t you?

    CATHERINE KING: Well, the thing that we have put money towards, so there’s $3.5 billion capped from the Commonwealth going into the Olympics. We have said the Commonwealth’s contribution will go towards the Brisbane Arena. $2.5 billion is going towards that, we think, will leave a really significant legacy for an entertainment venue here in the heart of Brisbane – really necessary. We’ve also said we will 50/50 share the minor venues. Obviously, the Queensland Government is undertaking a review of those venues at the moment, but the Commonwealth has done- we’ve done the work, we’ve done the business case, the work is ready to go on the Brisbane Arena and that remains- you know, remains there on the table to build that arena for Brisbane. We think it’s needed and it will leave a great legacy for the community.

    PETER FEGAN: Let’s hope they’re listening, because it’s next month that we announce whether we’re going to get a new stadium or not. Before I let you go, Minister, what did you make of today’s announcements? I want to get your thoughts on this because your government has approved a deal between Virgin and Qatar Airways. Now, this is a deal that would see Qatar be able to invest in Virgin. It means there’s going to be more Qatar flights. It means we can spread our wings a little bit. Should hopefully cheapen flight prices here in Australia. But I’ve got to think back, if my memory serves me correctly, it was you that clipped Qatar’s wings in the first place.

    CATHERINE KING: So what we’ve had announced today is that the Treasurer has approved the Foreign Investment Review Board’s decision that Qatar Airways, the Qatari government, can invest in Virgin, and that obviously allows Virgin to do a number of things in terms of it going forward. Obviously, Bain Capital is wanting to withdraw and have Qatar now come in as the major investor. What it’s allowed us also to do is ensure that there are some Australians on the board of Virgin to make sure that we’ve got that in place and that they’re in fact opportunities to train Australian pilots, as again, Qatar has been granted through Virgin some wet leases to increase its flights, its international flights and create that competition. And I think that’s a good thing.

    PETER FEGAN: Before I let you go, we’ve got some breaking news. The election, 12 April. Is that right?

    CATHERINE KING: [Laughs] Very nice try there. What a sneaky way to do it, you cheeky thing.

    PETER FEGAN: [Laughs] I should have just – I shouldn’t have laughed.

    CATHERINE KING: You should have just- I know, I nearly believed you then. You just got me. I’ve got three brothers who do that to me all the time.

    PETER FEGAN: What would you have said, though?

    CATHERINE KING: I don’t know, I have absolutely no idea. [Indistinct] to the Prime Minister, but very cheeky. You nearly got me.

    PETER FEGAN: Good on you, Minister. We’ll chat again very soon.

    CATHERINE KING: Lovely to talk to you, Peter.

    PETER FEGAN: There she is. That’s the Federal Transport Minister, Catherine King.

    MIL OSI News –

  • MIL-OSI Australia: Small business boost measures risks

    Source: Australian Department of Revenue

    Our focus

    If your business meets the standard aggregated annual turnover rules (with an increased $50 million threshold), you may be eligible to claim an additional 20% tax deduction under the:

    Small business skills and training boost

    The small business skills and training boost applies to eligible expenditure incurred from 7:30 pm AEDT on 29 March 2022 until 30 June 2024. The expenditure must be for the provision of external training courses delivered to your employees by registered training providers.

    Small business technology investment boost

    The small business technology investment boost applies to eligible expenditure incurred between 7:30 pm AEDT on 29 March 2022 and 30 June 2023. The boost is for business expenses and depreciating assets to help digitise your small business. It is capped at $100,000 of expenditure per income year. You can receive a maximum bonus deduction of $20,000 per income year.

    How to get it right

    We are seeing some small businesses incorrectly claim the boost measures due to errors or misunderstanding of the law.

    If you claimed either boost measure and believe you don’t meet the eligibility criteria or have made an error, we encourage you to amend your tax return.

    If you incorrectly claim, we may get in contact with you or your tax professional. If no action is taken, we may conduct a review and audit of your business.

    See how to avoid errors and claim correctly for the:

    Skills and training boost

    The errors we are seeing some small businesses make when claiming the skills and training boost include:

    If you are planning on claiming, ensure you meet the skills and training boost eligibility criteria, and check:

    • it’s for an expense that was incurred between 7:30 pm AEDT on 29 March 2022 and 30 June 2024
    • it’s for expenditure with a registered external training provider that is not you or an associate of yours
    • it’s for the provision of training to employees of your business, either in-person in Australia, or online
    • where you are a sole trader, the training is for your employees not yourself
    • the training is already deductible for your business.

    Example: claiming skills and training boost

    Maya and Jackson are directors and shareholders of Sports Academy Pty Ltd. The company has no employees.

    Sports Academy Pty Ltd spend $6,240 on a bookkeeping training course with a registered training provider for Maya. Sports Academy Pty Ltd claim a 20% ($1,248) skills and training boost deduction on its 2022–23 company tax return.

    However, because Maya is not an employee of the company, Sports Academy Pty Ltd is not eligible to claim the skills & training boost deduction. The deduction they claimed is disallowed.

    Sports Academy Pty Ltd must amend their company tax return to exclude the skills and training boost deduction. This adjustment increases the company’s taxable income, leading to a higher tax liability for the 2023 income year.

    Sports Academy Pty Ltd lodge an amended company tax return. It reflects the corrected taxable income. They later receive a notice of assessment, which shows an adjusted tax liability for the 2023 income year.

    End of example

    Technology investment boost

    The errors we are seeing some small businesses make when claiming the technology investment boost include:

    • expenses not meeting definition of eligible digital expenditure
    • exceeding annual turnover threshold requirement
    • claims exceeding the cap on expenditure
    • claims by businesses with no reported depreciating assets
    • incorrectly claiming over multiple years.

    If you are planning on claiming, ensure you meet the technology investment boost eligibility criteria, and check:

    • it’s for an expense that was incurred between 7:30 pm AEDT on 29 March 2022 and 30 June 2023.
    • it’s for expenditure of business expenses or depreciating assets (or both) to help digitise your small business
    • the expense is already deductible for your business.

    Example: claiming technology investment boost

    Sami, Omar and Leila are directors of a private company. It supplies pharmaceutical products to retailers and other businesses.

    In May 2022 the directors of Pharmacy Supplies Pty Ltd decide to:

    • purchase an electronic point-of-sale system and accounting software, at a cost of $30,000. This is to improve record keeping and better understand their business. It will be used from 1 July 2022
    • invest in a cyber security system and plan from 1 July 2022 to move to a digital record keeping system. It will cost $40,000 to start and $5,000 a year for updates and maintenance
    • modernise their website and implement a mobile app, which will go live in September 2022, at a cost of $40,000.

    Pharmacy Supplies Pty Ltd has spent $110,000 on eligible costs in the 2023 income year. Pharmacy Supplies Pty Ltd claims a $22,000 tech investment boost deduction for 2022–23.

    However, due to the $100,000 cap on eligible business expenses and depreciating assets, or $20,000 per income year, Pharmacy Supplies Pty Ltd has incorrectly claimed $2,000 more than allowed.

    Pharmacy Supplies Pty Ltd must amend its 2022–23 company tax return. It must reduce the technology investment boost deduction. This adjustment increases the company’s taxable income, leading to a higher tax liability for the 2023 income year.

    Pharmacy Supplies Pty Ltd lodges an amended company tax return, reflecting the corrected taxable income. They later receive a notice of assessment, which shows an adjusted tax liability for the 2023 income year.

    End of example

    Keep up to date

    Learn more by taking our free self-paced online courses at:

    You can also:

    MIL OSI News –

  • MIL-OSI: Rate Partners with NASCAR’s Ricky Stenhouse Jr. to Fast-Track Homebuying at EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    CHICAGO, Feb. 26, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Speed wins — on the track and in the real estate market. That’s why Rate, a leader in fintech mortgage solutions, is teaming up with NASCAR driver Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Hyak Racing for the EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix on March 2, 2025, at the Circuit of The Americas in Austin, Texas.

    Stenhouse, a Daytona 500 champion known for tearing up the track, will race in the #47 car backed by Rate, bringing together two forces built for speed, precision, and relentless execution.

    “Rate is a powerhouse in mortgages, and I’m a beast on the track, so we’ve got a lot in common,” said Stenhouse. “Top teams behind us, driven to win, and damn fast — all day, every day. If you’re ready to move on a home purchase, hit up Rate.com.”

    Fast Track to Homeownership

    In today’s housing market, speed is everything. Buyers who move fast win — and Rate is leading the charge with lightning-fast pre-approvals, real-time underwriting, and automated income and asset verification.

    “When it comes to buying a home, speed wins,” said Scott Stephen, Chief Growth Officer for Rate. “Rate offers mortgage approvals in mere minutes, giving buyers a real edge in a market where every second counts.”

    And the numbers back it up. According to Rate’s 2024 Homebuying Survey:

    • 67% of homebuyers say the mortgage process is stressful — and slow approvals are a top frustration.
    • 43% of buyers make multiple offers before landing a home — speed is the advantage.
    • 37% of buyers say pre-approvals take 3-5 days — Rate cuts that down dramatically.

    The 2024 Homebuying Survey revealed that homebuyers face overwhelming stress, decision-making challenges, and a lack of confidence when it comes to the mortgage process. With Rate Intelligence, Rate’s AI-powered mortgage technology, homebuyers get ultra-fast approvals with unmatched accuracy — just like Stenhouse’s precision on the track.

    Train Like a Champion

    Beyond speed, wellness matters. That’s why Stenhouse is joining Rate’s Train Like a Champion (TLAC) platform, a wellness initiative featuring elite pro athletes like MMA champion Julianna Peña, NFL quarterback Jameis Winston, and pro pickleball star Grayson Goldin.

    “Staying sharp — physically and mentally — is how I keep my edge on race day,” said Stenhouse. “Strength training, meditation, nutrition — it all matters. And the same tools that keep me focused are right in the Rate App. From guided breathing to better sleep, it’s got everything you need to stay in the zone — on or off the track.”

    Win Big with Rate

    Fans can win exclusive prizes by following Rate’s social channels this week:

    • An autographed Ricky Stenhouse Jr. racing helmet (disclaimer here)
    • Two VIP passes to the EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix

    Review the Official Rules for the Grand Prix here.

    Austin, Tech, and Innovation

    The EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix kicks off just days before SXSW, when global tech leaders descend on Austin. Rate is bringing that same innovation to mortgages — cutting through red tape with industry-leading fintech solutions that make buying a home faster and easier than ever.

    Get ready. The green flag is waving. Visit Rate.com to get in the race.

    About Rate

    Rate Companies is a leader in mortgage lending and digital financial services. Headquartered in Chicago, Rate is the #2 retail mortgage lender in the U.S., with over 850 branches across all 50 states and Washington D.C. Since its launch in 2000, Rate has helped more than 2 million homeowners with home purchase loans and refinances. The company has cemented itself as an industry leader by introducing innovative technology, offering low rates, and delivering unparalleled customer service. Honors and awards include Best Mortgage Lender for First-Time Homebuyers by NerdWallet for 2023; HousingWire’s Tech100 award for the company’s industry-leading FlashClose℠ digital mortgage platform in 2020, MyAccount in 2022, and Language Access Program in 2023; No. 2 ranking in Scotsman Guide’s 2022 list of Top Retail Mortgage Lenders; the most Scotsman Guide Top Originators for 11 consecutive years; Chicago Agent Magazine’s Lender of the Year for seven consecutive years; and Chicago Tribune’s Top Workplaces list for seven straight years. Visit rate.com for more information.

    Media Contact

    press@rate.com

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI Australia: New appointments to Australia Council Board and Maritime Museum

    Source: Australian Ministers for Regional Development

    The Australian Government is making appointments to arts bodies and collecting institutions to ensure they remain under strong leadership.

    Ms Lauren Moss has been appointed as a member of the Australia Council Board of Creative Australia for a four-year term, replacing Ms Christine Simpson Stokes AM.

    The Hon Don Harwin has been appointed as a member of the Council of the Australian National Maritime Museum for a three-year term.

    Minister for the Arts, Tony Burke, said the appointees would lend a deep well of expertise to guide the administration of these important organisations.

    “Lauren has extensive experience having previously worked in the Northern Territory Legislative Assembly for almost a decade. Her sound understanding of governance, arts and cultural issues within the Northern Territory will provide another great regional perspective to the Board.

    “Don served in the NSW Parliament for many years and his time spent as Minister for the Arts will be a great asset for the Council’s governance.”    

    Creative Australia plays a vital role in growing Australia’s cultural infrastructure, through investing in creative talent and stimulating the market for Australian stories to be told on a national and international scale.

    The Australian National Maritime Museum is dedicated to exploring Australia’s maritime history through topics of migration, archaeology, ocean science, commerce, culture and lifestyle, and  honours the stories of First Nations peoples’ living cultural connection to ancestral waters. 

    Ms Lauren Moss was elected at 27 years old as a member of the Northern Territory Legislative Assembly, having served as the Member for Casuarina for almost ten years. She has held portfolio positions in Equality and Inclusion, Environment, Climate Change and Water Security, Mental Health and Suicide Prevention, Youth and Seniors, Education, Children, Women, Tourism, Sport and Culture, including the Arts. As Minister for Tourism, Sport and Culture, Ms Moss was responsible for initiatives including the establishment of Arts Trail funding and the Street Art Festival, increased funding for the screen sector and promotion of the economic value of the Territory’s Creative Industries. Before entering Parliament, Ms Moss was involved in various roles focusing on youth advocacy, alcohol harm minimisation and mental health, and was involved as a Youth Ambassador, Advisor and member to a number of youth mental health and youth affairs organisations. 

    The Hon Don Harwin served in the New South Wales Parliament for 23 years in a range of roles, including five years as the Minister for the Arts and 6 years as President of the Legislative Council. Mr Harwin has considerable background and experience in leadership, governance, policy, and arts advocacy. Mr Harwin currently holds a number of Board memberships including Chair of Music in the Regions Ltd and as a director of the Australia Youth Trust which supports initiatives to secure better health and education outcomes for young people in developing Commonwealth countries. Mr Harwin previously served as a Member of the Australia Council for the Arts, now operating as Creative Australia.

    MIL OSI News –

  • MIL-OSI Australia: Australian Deputy PM: New appointments to Australia Council Board and Maritime Museum

    Source: Minister of Infrastructure

    The Australian Government is making appointments to arts bodies and collecting institutions to ensure they remain under strong leadership.

    Ms Lauren Moss has been appointed as a member of the Australia Council Board of Creative Australia for a four-year term, replacing Ms Christine Simpson Stokes AM.

    The Hon Don Harwin has been appointed as a member of the Council of the Australian National Maritime Museum for a three-year term.

    Minister for the Arts, Tony Burke, said the appointees would lend a deep well of expertise to guide the administration of these important organisations.

    “Lauren has extensive experience having previously worked in the Northern Territory Legislative Assembly for almost a decade. Her sound understanding of governance, arts and cultural issues within the Northern Territory will provide another great regional perspective to the Board.

    “Don served in the NSW Parliament for many years and his time spent as Minister for the Arts will be a great asset for the Council’s governance.”    

    Creative Australia plays a vital role in growing Australia’s cultural infrastructure, through investing in creative talent and stimulating the market for Australian stories to be told on a national and international scale.

    The Australian National Maritime Museum is dedicated to exploring Australia’s maritime history through topics of migration, archaeology, ocean science, commerce, culture and lifestyle, and  honours the stories of First Nations peoples’ living cultural connection to ancestral waters. 

    Ms Lauren Moss was elected at 27 years old as a member of the Northern Territory Legislative Assembly, having served as the Member for Casuarina for almost ten years. She has held portfolio positions in Equality and Inclusion, Environment, Climate Change and Water Security, Mental Health and Suicide Prevention, Youth and Seniors, Education, Children, Women, Tourism, Sport and Culture, including the Arts. As Minister for Tourism, Sport and Culture, Ms Moss was responsible for initiatives including the establishment of Arts Trail funding and the Street Art Festival, increased funding for the screen sector and promotion of the economic value of the Territory’s Creative Industries. Before entering Parliament, Ms Moss was involved in various roles focusing on youth advocacy, alcohol harm minimisation and mental health, and was involved as a Youth Ambassador, Advisor and member to a number of youth mental health and youth affairs organisations. 

    The Hon Don Harwin served in the New South Wales Parliament for 23 years in a range of roles, including five years as the Minister for the Arts and 6 years as President of the Legislative Council. Mr Harwin has considerable background and experience in leadership, governance, policy, and arts advocacy. Mr Harwin currently holds a number of Board memberships including Chair of Music in the Regions Ltd and as a director of the Australia Youth Trust which supports initiatives to secure better health and education outcomes for young people in developing Commonwealth countries. Mr Harwin previously served as a Member of the Australia Council for the Arts, now operating as Creative Australia.

    MIL OSI News –