Progress Acquisition Corp. *
LIQUIDATION – 5/8/23 – LINK
- The Company anticipates that the last day of trading in the Class A ordinary shares will be May 8, 2023.
- The per-share redemption price will be approximately $10.29
EXTENSION – 11/2/22 – LINK
- On October 27, 2022, Progress Acquisition Corp. extended the date by which the Company must consummate its initial business combination from November 8, 2022, after the closing of the Company’s initial public offering to May 8, 2023, after the closing of the Company’s IPO, or such earlier date as determined by the Company’s board of directors.
- Stockholders holding 16,441,812 shares of common stock exercised their right to redeem such shares for a pro-rata portion of the funds in the Company’s trust account.
- As a result, $165,347,998.54 (approximately $10.05 per share) will be removed from the Trust Account to pay such holders.
SUBSEQUENT EVENT – 8/1/22 – LINK
- Progress Acquisition Corporation and Isos today announced a partnership and the appointments of Isos Co-Founders and Co-CEOs George Barrios and Michelle Wilson as Officers of PGRW.
- Isos joins Progress to complement the Company’s search and negotiations to effect a merger, share exchange, asset acquisition, share purchase, reorganization, or similar business combination with one or more businesses.
- In addition, Isos Managing Director Winston Meade will serve as an Officer of PGRW.
MANAGEMENT & BOARD
Executive Officers
David Arslanian, 43 [Appointed 9/8/21] [Resigned 12/7/22]
Chief Executive Officer
Mr. Arslanian has served as the Company’s President since inception. Mr. Arslanian joined Progress Partners Inc., an investment bank and corporate advisory firm, in January 2018 as managing director. He has extensive experience in tech, finance, and strategic partnerships. Prior to this, Mr. Arslanian held many C-level operating roles with various emerging tech companies in financial services and marketing. Most recently, he was vice president of corporate development and strategic partnerships at Telaria, Inc. (NYSE: TLRA), a software platform that optimizes yield for leading video publishers, which merged with The Rubicon Project, Inc. in April 2020, and the entity was renamed Magnite (NYSE: MGNI). Mr. Arslanian is a board member at Inanovate, Inc., a life sciences company that uses proprietary blood screening technology to develop reliable low-cost blood tests for improved cancer diagnosis. Mr. Arslanian was, from August 2010 to February 2011, Chief Operating Officer of Rovion, Inc. He is also a board member at innRoad, a software-as-a-service hotel management software solution. He received his MBA in Global Strategic Management from Babson College in 2006, and his B.A. in Economics from the University of Massachusetts Boston.
George Barrios, — [Appointed CEO 12/7/21]
Co-Chief Executive Officer
TBD
Michelle Wilson, — [Appointed CEO 12/7/21]
Co-Chief Executive Officer
TBD
Warren Schlichting, 59 [Resigned 9/8/21]
Chief Executive Officer and Director
Warren Schlichting, is veteran in the pay TV industry, with special expertise in OTT and streaming television. Currently, Mr. Schlichting sits on the board of directors of a number of charitable and private companies and serves as an advisor and investor in the media industry. From December 2017 to June 2020, he served as Group President of Sling TV LLC, an American streaming television service and subsidiary of DISH Network Corporation (NASDAQ: DISH), where he oversaw acquisition and renewal deals for all programming content and advertising sales for DISH and Sling TV. Between September 2011 and December 2017, Mr. Schlichting held a number of executive positions at DISH, a direct-broadcast satellite provider, including head of DISH’s Media Sales & Data Analytics division, where he launched household addressable advertising using set-top box ad insertion, a first for the industry. Beginning in 2014, he led television content acquisitions for both DISH and Sling as Senior Vice President of Programming & Media Sales and led DISH’s satellite pay TV marketing team in 2016. Mr. Schlichting served as Senior Vice President of New Business Strategies at Comcast Corporation (NASDAQ: CMCSA) from 2002 to 2011. Before joining Comcast, he was Chief Executive Officer of the internet ad technology company Hiwire and served in executive positions for Morgan Stanley and the William E. Simon private equity group. Mr. Schlichting is a current advisor to Konvoy Ventures, an esports venture capital fund, and serves on the Board of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Denver. Mr. Schlichting earned an Economics degree from Harvard University.
Richard Gallagher, 53 [Resigned 12/7/22]
Chief Financial Officer
Mr. Gallagher has served as Senior Managing Director and Chief Financial Officer of Progress Partner from December 2014. He has extensive senior management experience working with various stages of companies. Mr. Gallagher has also been a Partner at Progress Ventures, an early-stage venture investment firm and the venture capital arm of Progress Partners, since December 2014. Throughout his career, Mr. Gallagher has provided strategic, business, financial and operating leadership to start-up enterprises, Fortune 1000 companies, publicly traded companies, private companies, and high growth venture capital backed entities with an industry emphasis on media and marketing. Mr. Gallagher has completed over a billion dollars worth of acquisitions, from sourcing to integration. Mr. Gallagher has co-founded three start-ups, having raised an aggregate of $35 million for such start-ups and guided them all to liquidity events, including one IPO. Rick has a B.B.A. in Accounting from the Isenberg School of Management at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst.
Board of Directors
Carl E. Vogel, 63 [Resigned 4/21/22]
Non-Executive Chairman Nominee
Carl E. Vogel currently serves as an industry advisor to Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. LP, an American global investment company. Since May 2005, Mr. Vogel has served on the board of DISH Network Corporation (NASDAQ: DISH), a direct-broadcast satellite provider, and is currently the senior advisor to the Chairman. Mr. Vogel served as the President of DISH from September 2006 to February 2008 and served as Vice Chairman from June 2005 to March 2009. From October 2007 to March 2009, Mr. Vogel served as the Vice Chairman of the board of directors of, and as a Senior Advisor to, EchoStar, a premier global provider of satellite communication solutions. From 2001 to 2005, Mr. Vogel served as the President and Chief Executive Officer of Charter (NASDAQ: CHTR), a publicly-traded company providing cable television and broadband services to approximately six million customers. Prior to joining Charter, Mr. Vogel worked as an executive officer in various capacities for companies affiliated with Liberty Media Corporation from 1998 to 2001. Mr. Vogel was an executive officer of DISH from 1994 to 1997, including serving as its President from 1995 to 1997. Mr. Vogel is also currently serving on the boards of directors of Shaw Communications Inc. (which he joined in 2006), Universal Electronics, Inc. (which he joined in 2009), Sirius XM Holdings Inc. (which he joined in 2011), and AMC Networks Inc. (which he joined in 2013). Mr. Vogel previously served on the board of directors of Ascent Capital Group, Inc., NextWave Wireless Inc., and ICG Communications, Inc. Mr. Vogel previously served as Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the board of directors of Primestar Inc., a national provider of subscription television services. Mr. Vogel was the former Non-Executive Chairman of Fanduel Group from November 2017 to October 2018 and a member of the board of directors until October 2019. He received his B.S. from St. Norbert College.
Chris Kelly, 50 [Appointed 4/21/22]
Non-Executive Chairman
Chris Kelly is a Silicon Valley entrepreneur with an extensive track record of building innovative companies. Mr. Kelly is currently an active investor in companies seeking transformational improvements in technology, media, and finance. From September 2005 to August 2009, he served as the first Chief Privacy Officer, General Counsel, and Head of Global Public Policy for Facebook, Inc. (NASDAQ: FB). In 2010, Mr. Kelly left Facebook to pursue the 2010 Democratic nomination for Attorney General of California. In 2011, Mr. Kelly partnered with filmmaker Hooman Khalili to produce Olive, the first full-length feature film to be shot entirely on a cellular phone, and to establish the ownership entity for that film, Olive Picture LLC. From 2010 to 2017, Mr. Kelly served as a Director and Vice Chair of Loyal3, an online stock brokerage service designed to allow fee-free trading and broader ownership of securities. From 2011 to 2020, Mr. Kelly was a limited partner in Preferred Ventures, a venture capital firm focused on investments in the entertainment industry. From September 2014 to October 2018, Mr. Kelly served as Chairman of MoviePass, Inc., a subscription based movie ticketing service. From August 2011 to December 2018, he served as Chair and interim Chief Executive Officer of Fandor, a subscription film viewing service and social video sharing platform. From May 2011 to February 2019, he served as Chair and interim Chief Executive Officer of Organizer Inc., a cloud-based mobile solution to enable organizations to engage, inform and influence target communities for political activism. Mr. Kelly has been co-owner and executive board member of the Sacramento Kings of the NBA since May 2013, contributing his expertise in technology and management to basketball operations and the development of the Golden1 Center, Downtown Commons, and other real estate assets. He received his undergraduate degree from Georgetown University magna cum laude in Government and Philosophy and was named to Phi Beta Kappa, a master’s degree from Yale University, and his law degree from Harvard University.
Sanjay Puri, 51 [Resigned 12/7/22]
Director
Sanjay Puri has extensive experience as a founder, portfolio manager, financial analyst and banker. He joined Progress Partners in March 2020 as a managing director. Before joining Progress Partners, he founded 207 Consulting Inc., and most recently served as the Chief Strategy Officer at MoviePass, initially overseeing the company’s restructuring and eventual sale. Mr. Puri successfully launched and managed 2 investment funds in the TMT space as well as oversaw a portfolio of TMT stocks at Walker Smith Capital. He was previously an equity research analyst covering internet infrastructure, enterprise software, IT services and payment processor sectors at Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette and Thomas Weisel Partners. Mr. Puri also spent time working in leveraged finance and principal investing at Paribas. He holds a B.S. in Accounting from Pepperdine University and M.B.A. in Finance from Columbia University Graduate School of Business.
Rich Battista, 56
Director
Rich Battista is a 30-year veteran of the entertainment and media industry, successfully building, managing and transforming various businesses and companies as a Chief Executive Officer and senior leader in the public and private markets. Currently, Mr. Battista is a board member, advisor and investor in the media and digital technology spaces. Mr. Battista has served on the Board of Directors of The Great Courses by the Teaching Company, a developer and marketer of content for personal development and learning, since November 2018. He has also served on the board of the MLB Players, Inc. since July 2019, on the board of Production Resource Group, LLC, a provider of entertainment and event production solutions, since October of 2020 and has been an advisory board member of Ontic Technologies, a protective intelligence software platform, since April 2020. In 2015, he joined Time Inc. (NYSE: TIME) and served as its President and Chief Executive Officer from September 2016 to January 2018, ultimately overseeing its $2.8 billion sale. During the periods between 1990 to 1999 and 2001 to 2010, Mr. Battista held a variety of senior management roles at Fox/News Corp affiliated entities, including as President of Fox’s National Cable Networks from 2008 to 2010. Mr. Battista served as Chief Executive Officer of Gemstar-TV Guide International Inc. (NASDAQ: GMST) from 2004 to 2008, where he successfully directed its $2.3 billion sale. He previously served as Chief Executive Officer for Imagine Entertainment, Mandalay Sports Media and LodgeNet Interactive Corp. (NASDAQ: LNET), which filed a voluntary pre-packaged Chapter 11 bankruptcy on January 27, 2013. He earned an MBA from Harvard Business School and a Bachelor of Science from Georgetown University with cum laude honors.
Luisa Ingargiola, 53
Director
Luisa Ingargiola has served as Chief Financial Officer of Avalon GloboCare Corp. (NASDAQ: AVCO), a biotech developer and healthcare service provider, since February 2017. From May 2007 to October 2016, Ms. Ingargiola served as Chief Financial Officer of Magnegas Corporation, an alternative energy company. She serves on the board of directors and audit committee chair of Electra Meccanica (NASDAQ: SOLO), AgEagle Aerial Systems, Inc. (NYSEAMERICAN: UAVS), BioCoreRX (OCTMKTS: BICX), and Vision Marine Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ: VMAR). Prior to 2019, Ms. Ingargiola served on the board of directors of several public companies as audit committee chair. Ms. Ingargiola earned her BBA in Accounting and Finance from Boston University’s Questrom School of Business.