This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily on May 17, 2017 - May 23, 2017

KUALA LUMPUR: Electronic government services provider MyEG Services Bhd is close to sealing a deal to buy a controlling stake in popular food review website Eat Drink KL, The Edge Financial Daily understands.

Started since February 2009, Eat Drink KL is currently wholly-owned by Sean Yoong, a former journalist with a 14-year stint at Associated Press.

At the same time, Yoong is also writing for EatDrink, another food review website owned by media company The Expat Group via TEG Digital Sdn Bhd, which has been publishing The Expat magazine since 1996, providing information about Malaysia to the English-speaking audience.

When contacted, an MyEG spokesman said an official announcement will be made later but did not elaborate.

“The company requests to await the official announcement on this matter,” the spokesman added.

Yoong also declines to comment on the stake purchase by MyEG in Eat Drink KL.

Sources said under the proposed deal, Eat Drink KL will become a subsidiary of MyEG, pending completion of paperwork.

Eat Drink KL will likely be parked under MyEG’s wholly-owned investment holding company MyEG Capital Sdn Bhd, which in turn holds a controlling stake in online advertisement firm MyEG Ad Networks Sdn Bhd, auto classified website Car X Services Sdn Bhd, diversified media solutions provider Picasso Media Sdn Bhd and online television provider Hurr TV Sdn Bhd. 

Currently, MyEG Capital contributes a negligible revenue to MyEG Group, which derives the bulk of its revenue from developing and implementing e-government services, both with concession and non-concession methods.

MyEG’s latest move comes after Media Prima Bhd acquiring Rev Asia Bhd’s digital media business for RM105 million.

Through the acquisition of Rev Asia, Media Prima will gain control of all its subsidiaries — Rev Digital, Rev Entertainment, Rev Social Malaysia, Rev Lifestyle and Rev Social International. Rev Asia Holdings’ brands are SAYS.com, JUICE, ViralCham, Rojaklah, OhBulan, SirapLimau, KongsiResipi, MyResipi, 8Share, Hanger and Klips.

The acquisition will provide Media Prima with the third-largest audience locally, after Google and Facebook with audiences of 15.7 million and 14.1 million respectively. 

MyEG shares closed unchanged at RM2.30 yesterday, with a market capitalisation of RM8.95 billion.