Advertising network Interpublic Group (IPG) has announced it has entered into a definitive agreement with Acxiom to acquire its marketing solutions business for $US2.3 billion.
The deal has been approved unanimously by the boards of directors of both companies, and combines IPG’s media, creative, marketing services and analytics capabilities, global scale and consumer insights, with Acxiom Marketing Solutions’ data management expertise.
With the acquisition, the Acxiom brand name will become part of the IPG portfolio, but the transaction does not include Acxiom’s LiveRamp business.
Acxiom Marketing Solutions (AMS) provides data solutions for delivering real-time customer experiences, and includes all of Acxiom’s data and data services.
The company has 2,100 employees including 1,600 data specialists, over 2,000 clients, access to hundreds of marketing databases, recognises 2.2 billion connected consumers, and manages over 20 billion customer records.
How AMS will specifically complement the agency network’s businesses in Australia will be revealed over time, and IPG spokesperson told B&T.
IPG chairman and CEO Michael Roth said: “In a world where everything is becoming data-driven, Acxiom Marketing Solutions offers the deepest set of capabilities for helping companies navigate the complexity of creating personalised brand experiences across every consumer touchpoint.
“Combining AMS with a range of IPG assets will help us shape the future of our industry. Acxiom’s leadership on data ethics is second to none, its business is solid and growing, and it has long played a foundational role in the marketing ecosystem.
“The company also boasts 2,100 associates with data and analytics skills that are at a premium in business today.
“Combined with IPG’s world-class client roster, as well as our talented 50,000-person global workforce across media, advertising and marketing services, and you have an unrivalled offering.
“Over the last year of working closely with AMS to power our AMP data platform, we’ve seen that our cultures are a great fit, and we’ve also seen that the combination creates value for our clients, as it will for our shareholders.”
Acxiom Corporation CEO Scott Howe said: “This transaction is a great outcome for both Acxiom and our Acxiom Marketing Solutions business unit.
“Acxiom Marketing Solutions is a strong business with deep expertise in data-driven marketing, talented associates and a client roster that includes many of the world’s leading companies.
“After careful consideration of a variety of options and potential partners, it became clear that a sale of AMS to IPG, with its scale and breadth of complementary services, represented the best possible path forward for our clients and associates.”
Dennis Self and Rick Erwin will continue to serve as co-presidents of AMS, which will remain a standalone division aligned with IPG Mediabrands, reporting into Arun Kumar, chief data and marketing technology officer at IPG.