Pomvom nets exclusive deal with Madame Tussauds, London Eye, and Legoland operator
The Israeli AI image recognition company signed a five-year agreement with Merlin Entertainments that is set to net it an estimated $75-$100 million
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Israeli AI image recognition company Pomvom announced on Sunday that it has signed a five-year agreement with Merlin Entertainments to operate in 15 of its amusement parks and attractions in the U.S. and Europe. The deal is set to net Pomvom an estimated $75-$100 million. Those sites include Madame Tussauds, London Eye, and Legoland.
Legoland Tokyo. Photo: Shutterstock
Pomvom's AI image recognition technology enables site operators in the entertainment and attractions industry to provide guests with the chance to capture images that would have previously been impossible, and view and order content from a personalized digital album through the attraction’s app. Users upload a selfie and receive content captured of them in real-time. By purchasing content on the app, operators can bypass the need for visitors to stand in queues waiting to collect personalized content.
Legoland Tokyo. Photo: Shutterstock Pomvom, founded in 2015 by Yehuda Minkovicz (CEO) and Shmuel Assa, completed its initial public offering on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange at a valuation of NIS 135 million (approximately $41 million) in March. Its market cap has surged since, reaching NIS 375 million ($115 million) on Monday. The company completed a private funding round last year at a valuation of $30 million.
Pomvom and Merlin will split the revenue according to the deal. The 15 sites attracted a total of 25-30 million visitors in pre-pandemic times and it is estimated that between 6%-8% of visitors will use Pomvom's services during their visit.
Pomvom had a previous partnership with Merlin, but the deals were only made per site and for a maximum of three years. This is the first time that Merlin has signed a deal encompassing so many of its parks and for such an extended period.
Pomvom acquired Picsolve, a British digital content capture partner for visitor attractions, last summer for just one million pounds ($1.4 million) after Covid-19 handed the UK company a death blow. Picsolve had reached annual revenue of around $100 million thanks to its photography sites in amusement parks and numerous attractions in Europe and North America, but their closure due to the pandemic brought its income to a grinding halt.
The attraction photo industry was estimated at $1 billion a year in 2019 and is largely dependent on millennials, who are the primary users of smartphones for photography purposes, which suits Pomvom's model to view and order content from a personalized digital album.
Additional large photography markets are those of the sports industry, which is estimated at $2 billion a year, the water park market, estimated at $500 million, and the cruise market estimated at $300 million.
