Battle Royale > Casino Royale... Fortnite-maker Epic Games is reportedly close to raising $750M from private investors (Epic hasn't IPO'd yet). That would level it up to a $17B valuation, up from $15B in 2018. People have flocked to video games for thrills + human interaction in the corona-conomy. Investors think the trend will stick post-lockdown. Epic has over 250M users gaming/chatting via Fortnite. It also owns video chat app Houseparty, which gained 50M users in April alone.
Kim K and Batman walk into a pod... Spotify shares hit an all-time high after it snagged exclusive podcast deals with Warner Bros' DC Comics and Kim Kardashian. Expect original pods featuring Superman and Wonder Woman... and a Kim K pod on criminal justice. Last month, Spotify dropped $100M to make Joe Rogan Spotify-exclusive. Since its 1st pod-cquisition in 2019, Spotify's market value has gained $25B and its pod audience more than doubled.