Geronimo Acquires Tapit Media

Mobile customer experience company Geronimo has announced it has acquired Tapit Media, citing the company’s near-field communication (NFC) technology as a major growth area in mobile marketing.

The move further consolidates Geronimo’s position in the mobile marketing industry and enhances the capabilities of its mobile customer experience platform.

Tapit is a pioneer within the contactless communications sector. Since 2011, the company has worked with global brands including Google, Microsoft, Unilever, P&G and Nestlé to deploy, manage and analyse their contactless infrastructure including NFC tags and QR codes.

Leveraging Tapit and the power of contactless communications provides global brands with a scalable, innovative and secure way to engage consumers via their smartphone directly from physical environments, turning foot traffic into web traffic with a simple tap.

The acquisition of Tapit brings proprietary technology, data and IP to the Geronimo technology stack, and sees Tapit founder Jamie Conyngham (pictured above, left) join the Geronimo management team as CEO of the contactless communications player.

Geronimo CEO Matt Hunt (pictured above, right) said the acquisition is about helping marketers build better connections with their customers.

“Geronimo is all about improving a customer’s experience with a brand using mobile,” he said.

“Tapit’s platform helps us connect the physical world with the digital world, and we believe the platform will allow people use their phones to transact with companies in the future.

“If you sit in any chief marketing officer’s role in Australia, I think it’s difficult to argue there is any more pressing issue than focussing on the customer and improving the way you connect with them.

“That’s why investing in NFC technology and why mobile innovation is so key for our clients and for the team at Geronimo.

“We’re excited to welcome the Tapit brand to Geronimo, and we look forward to continuing their legacy of innovation in the mobile arena.”

Conyngham said the deal enables a raft of fresh research and development work to take place.

“This acquisition coincides with Apple’s announcement last month that it will open up NFC support for developers in iOS11. This is a pivotal moment for the mobile industry,” he said.

“In Australia, we already use NFC for payments like Apple Pay, our banking apps and Samsung Pay, plus all the chip and pin credit cards for Tap and Pay.

“However, for other NFC uses like Tapit marketing, pairing speakers and other systems for your phone like transport ticketing, companies and governments have held back because it doesn’t work on all phones.

“With Apple updating their operating system in September, it will work on most new phones. NFC will therefore become one of the core technologies driving mobile innovation around the world.

“It’s been an incredible journey so far and we’re excited to be joining the Geronimo team in this new chapter for Tapit. The timing couldn’t be better. We believe in the Geronimo vision and we’re excited about building a mobile customer experience company like no other.”

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