Comcast has closed its acquisition of online ad campaign company FreeWheel, agreeing to a higher price than the one that circulated over the weekend as the MSO and the vendor were finalizing the deal.
A person familiar with the deal confirmed a Re/code report that Comcast will pay up to $360 million for FreeWheel, and as much as $375 million when retention bonuses and other compensation are factored in. It was originally believed that Comcast was to pay about $320 million to land the San Mateo, Calif.-based company.
FreeWheel said the Comcast acquisition will enable it to execute on a grander scale.
"FreeWheel's mission has always been to unify television advertising wherever content is viewed," company cofounders Doug Knopper, Jon Heller, and Diane Yu said in a blog post announcing the deal. "To make this a reality, the industry needs an enterprise advertising platform that works on all screens, across the entire ecosystem, at scale. Comcast's investment in our business and our future innovations will accelerate our ability to deliver on our vision, providing us with the strength and staying power that our clients demand, while maintaining our commitment to the success of our extensive and diverse customer base."
