Walmart to Acquire Technology and Assets of Polymorph Labs
California - 11th April 2019 - Walmart Inc has announced it will acquire the technology and assets of Silicon Valley-based Polymorph Labs, adding to its expanding ad business, Walmart Media Group. Details of the transaction were not disclosed. In a release, Walmart Vice President & General Manager, Stefanie Jay, said the company had been “quietly” building its advertising division, based on online and in-store sales data from the 90% of Americans who shop with Walmart. Jay said, Polymorph’s technology platform is proven at scale and is much faster than traditional client-side servers. She went on to add: “Ultimately, the acquisition of Polymorph technology will enable both existing and new advertisers to control their ad spending with us and reach their desired audiences more effectively.”
https://news.walmart.com/2019/04/11/walmart-to-acquire-technology-and-assets-of-polymorph-labs-to-expand-in-house-ad-technology
LiveRamp Acquires Consent Management Platform Faktor
San Francisco – 11th April 2019 - LiveRamp®, an identity platform powering exceptional experiences, has announced the acquisition of Faktor to enable streamlined consent management across the open web. This deal reinforces LiveRamp's strategic focus on privacy and data stewardship. Due to evolving consumer privacy regulations such as GDPR and California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), companies need to navigate more complexity around compliance than ever before. With the acquisition of Faktor, LiveRamp can further help clients and partners ensure compliance as part of its larger privacy-focused suite of offerings in Europe, North America and across the globe. “The world’s largest and most innovative companies all believe that giving consumers increased visibility and control over their personal information is incredibly important, and recent regulatory requirements such as GDPR and the upcoming CCPA only make this more critical,” said LiveRamp CEO, Scott Howe. “With the acquisition of Faktor, we hope to send a powerful message to our customers, partners and the industry—that everyone should be informed and have control over how their data is used.”
https://liveramp.com/blog/liveramp-acquires-faktor/
2U, Inc. to Acquire Trilogy Education for $750 Million
Lanham, Md. and New York – 8th April 2019 - 2U, Inc, an education technology company, has announced that it has entered into an agreement to acquire Trilogy Education, a workforce accelerator that prepares adult learners for high-growth careers in the digital economy. Trilogy partners with top universities and leading companies to provide in-person and online skills-based training programs in coding, data analytics, UX/UI, and cybersecurity, that bridge regional hiring gaps in more than 50 cities around the globe. Trilogy-powered boot camps are a natural complement to 2U's existing portfolio of offerings; and 2U's unparalleled track record of scaling high-quality digital education offerings will help drive Trilogy's continued growth and online expansion. We expect the addition of Trilogy to accelerate our path to $1 billion in revenue by one year from 2022 to 2021," 2U Co-Founder and CEO Christopher "Chip" Paucek said. "Increasingly, universities are attempting to add practical, technical skills to their degrees. We simply future-proof the degree by adding this type of technical competency."
https://2u.com/about/press/2u-to-acquire-trilogy-education/
Baring Private Equity Asia to acquire 30% stake in NIIT Technologies Limited
New Delhi – 6th April 2019 - NIIT Technologies Limited, a global IT solutions organization, has announced that funds affiliated with Baring Private Equity Asia have signed definitive agreements to purchase approximately 18.85 million NIIT Technologies Limited shares (approximately 30% shareholding on a fully diluted basis in NIIT Technologies) from NIIT Limited and other promoter entities at a price of INR 1394 per share. The aggregate consideration for purchase of shares from promoter entities is estimated to be approximately INR 2627 crores (US$ 381 million at INR / USD exchange rate of 69). Rajendra Pawar, Chairman, NIIT Technologies Limited, said: “NIIT Technologies Limited which became an independently listed company after demerger from NIIT Limited in 2004, has grown into one of the most innovative and trusted IT Services Company in India. The long-standing relationships with marquee customers, many spanning over two decades, are a consequence of a sharp focus on identified verticals including, travel, banking and insurance and distinctive capabilities developed. The involvement of Baring Private Equity Asia will provide further impetus to the management team led by CEO, Sudhir Singh to take the company to the next level of growth.”
https://www.niit-tech.com/news-events/news/baring-private-equity-asia-acquire-30-stake-niit-technologies-limited-niit-limited
Centerbridge Partners to Acquire IBM’s Marketing Platform and Commerce Software Offerings to Form Standalone Marketing and Advertising Technology Company
New York and Armonk, N.Y – 4th April 2019 - Centerbridge Partners, L.P and IBM have announced a definitive agreement under which funds advised by affiliates of Centerbridge will acquire IBM’s marketing platform and commerce software offerings. The offerings include marketing automation tools, marketing analytics, an AI-powered content management system, an open ecosystem connector, and robust services. Centerbridge will form a standalone company to deliver a comprehensive portfolio of solutions to meet the CMO’s biggest challenges across marketing and advertising. The Company will announce a new name and brand identity. “IBM plans to work with Centerbridge on cloud and AI to help our customers continue to transform in this new era of technology, and we hope to find additional ways to continue collaborating for the longer term,” said Inhi Cho Suh, General Manager, IBM.
https://newsroom.ibm.com/2019-04-04-Centerbridge-Partners-to-Acquire-IBMs-Marketing-Platform-and-Commerce-Software-Offerings-to-Form-Standalone-Marketing-and-Advertising-Technology-Company
Accenture Interactive Accelerates its Mission to Reinvent Agency Model by Agreeing to Acquire Creative Agency, Droga5
New York 3rd April 2019 – Accenture has entered into an agreement to acquire Droga5, an innovative and influential creative agencies. The New York-based agency will become part of Accenture Interactive, boosting its capabilities as an Experience Agency able to design, build and run customer experiences that grow brands and businesses. Financial terms of the agreement have not been disclosed. The announcement represents an evolution in Accenture Interactive’s journey to build a new agency model — one with the power to engineer transformative brand experiences and infuse those experiences with the emotional and inspirational power of brand thinking and creativity. “The future of brand building is not just about creating great ideas; it’s about creating great experiences,” said Brian Whipple, global CEO of Accenture Interactive. “We’re excited to work with David Droga and his team of brand strategists and creative minds to further our ambition to improve the full human experience with brands. As we celebrate the 10-year anniversary of Accenture Interactive, joining forces with Droga5 will be a game-changing milestone for us and the industry as we continue to assemble the right mix of capabilities for the modern-day marketer.”
https://newsroom.accenture.com/news/accenture-interactive-accelerates-its-mission-to-reinvent-agency-model-by-agreeing-to-acquire-creative-agency-droga5.htm
Reliance Jio Acquires 87pc Stake in Haptik in a Rs 700 Crore Deal
3rd April 2019 - Reliance Industries Ltd's has made a strategic investment of Rs 700 crore (about $100 million), buying an estimated 87 percent stake in enterprise conversational AI startup, Haptik. Haptik said in a release, the remainder of the shares will be held by Haptik founders and employees through stock option grants. Of the total investment, Rs 230 crore will go for the initial business transfer. Speaking on the investment, Akash Ambani, Director, Reliance Jio, said, "This strategic investment underlines our commitment to further boost the digital ecosystem and provide Indian users conversational AI-enabled devices with multi-lingual capabilities. We believe voice interactivity will be the primary mode of interaction for Digital India. We are delighted to announce this partnership, and look forward to working with the experienced team of Haptik.” With the investment, Haptik’s existing shareholder, Times Internet, will exit the company. As a result of the investment, Haptik's business and holdings will be transferred to a new company: Reliance Jio Digital Services Limited. Products will continue to be branded as Haptik but the company may use the Reliance brand name in the future.
https://haptik.ai/news-and-media
Lear Corporation to Acquire Xevo, a Leader in Connected Car Software and Data-Driven User Experiences
Southfield, Michigan - 2nd April 2019 -- Lear Corporation, a global automotive technology company in seating and electrical and electronic systems, has announced it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Seattle-based Xevo Inc., an automotive software supplier that develops solutions for cloud, car, and mobile devices. Xevo's Journeyware suite of products combines a user-friendly interface with a cloud-based framework that allows drivers to seamlessly interact with in-car content and mobile applications utilizing real-time data. "The acquisition of Xevo broadens Lear's connectivity portfolio, bringing together Xevo's leading e-commerce vehicle platform technology with Lear's expertise in electronic systems," said John Absmeier, Lear's Chief Technology Officer. "Xevo's user interface establishes a connected marketplace for consumers in their vehicles, unlocking previously unrealized value from vehicle data and opening up new revenue streams."
https://www.lear.com/Press-Room/5690/lear-corporation-to-acquire-xevo-a-leader-in-connected-car-software-and-data-dri.aspx
