Rebus

Rebus is a sports and event technology company that provides an add-on engine enabling teams, leagues, sponsors and event organizers to sell ancillary products and experiences to their audiences. Its core product is an overlay widget and messaging engine that can be embedded into a property's website, live streams and social platforms, allowing fans to browse and purchase merchandise, ticket bundles, trivia, sweepstakes entries, memorabilia and VIP experiences without leaving the page or interrupting a broadcast. The company states setup takes a few hours.

The company originally served event organizers in Latin America, helping them increase revenue through upselling in a model the founders compared to airline ancillary sales, where attendees tailor their experience by adding products and services across the event lifecycle. After joining the Techstars Sports Accelerator in Indianapolis in 2020, Rebus focused on sports properties, positioning its artificial-intelligence-driven recommendation system as a way to engage and monetize the roughly 80% of a fan base that does not buy tickets, in addition to avid attendees. Example offerings cited include private VIP hangouts with players, mascot bedtime storytelling, sweepstakes for workout sessions with players, and bidding on game-worn jerseys and signed balls.

Founding story

Co-founder Jose H. Berrio traced the concept to a 1993 childhood experience when his father took him to a soccer match and to the locker room to meet a well-known player, which led him to focus on creating memorable fan experiences. He met Juliana Villalba at an innovation event where both were speakers — she on event experiences and he on event technology — and a shared airport ride led them to combine her events expertise with his technology and product design background. They founded the company in 2017 to build an upselling and experience-monetization solution for events, later extending it to teams and leagues.

Business model

Rebus sells its add-on/upsell engine to sports properties, leagues, sponsors and event organizers, which use the widget and messaging engine to merchandise experiences, products and sponsor offers to fans across the organizer's digital assets. Deals reported in 2020 were structured largely as pilots with teams and leagues.

Revenue is generated from sports properties and event organizers that use the platform to sell add-on products and experiences; the company reported $80,000 in revenue in September 2020 with average monthly revenue growth of 40%.

Traction

As of October 2020 the company reported roughly 100 clients across sports, entertainment and corporate events, September 2020 revenue of $80,000, average monthly revenue growth of 40%, 20% month-over-month client growth and 30% month-over-month user growth, conversion rates above 15%, and more than 20 teams and organizations reviewing pilot proposals. Earlier reporting said its upselling tools increased event organizer revenue by up to 45%.

Latest developments

In 2020 Rebus completed the Techstars Sports Accelerator in Indianapolis, opened a U.S. office, signed a partnership making the American Association of Professional Baseball its first U.S.-based league client, closed deals with WNBA and USL teams, the World Boxing Council, esports teams and soccer clubs in Latin America and Europe, and presented at VisionTech Angels' October pitch week while raising a round earmarked for U.S. expansion.