News Corp. has agreed to buy Unruly, a London, UK-based global ad platform, for up to £114m.
The expected purchase price for the acquisition consists of a cash payment at closing of £58m (approximately US$90m), subject to certain adjustments, and up to £56m (approximately US$86m) in future consideration primarily related to payments contingent upon the achievement of certain performance objectives. The acquisition is subject to customary closing conditions and is expected to be completed by the end of September.
Founded in 2006, Unruly is a video distribution platform and a pioneer in tracking video sharing and delivering verifiable video views via paid media across mobile, desktop and tablet devices.
Advertising products includes:
– ShareRank – proprietary technology that is able to predict the virality of videos across social and digital media.
– In-Feed advertising – a mobile-first, video ad format that dynamically adapts to the unique look and feel of news feed formats.
– In-Page advertising – video advertising that appears as video player units within the body of article pages, across desktop and mobile.
– Skippable In-Stream Advertising – offering programmatic targeting and prominent branding within the player.
Led by Co-Chief Executive Officers Scott Button and Sarah Wood, and Chief Technology Officer Matt Cooke, it will operate as a separate business unit, reporting to Rebekah Brooks, Chief Executive of News UK. Unruly will continue to work with its existing roster of global advertisers and publishers and collaborate with News Corp businesses around the world.
The company, which was backed by Amadeus Capital Partners, Endeit Capital and Business Growth Fund, employs 200 people in 15 offices, and regional hubs in London, New York and Singapore.
FinSMEs
18/09/2015