Innovid has acquired measurement and attribution company TVSquared in a cash and stock deal valued at $160 million, the companies said.
The deal comes at a time when cross-platform measurement is a focus of networks and advertisers, and companies in the ad-tech and data business are looking to add capabilities in order to compete.
“In acquiring TVSquared, we aim to provide the most complete view of the total TV and digital universe through a scalable, currency-grade measurement platform,” Innovid CEO and co-founder Zvika Netter said.
TVSquared is one of the measurement companies that replied to NBCUniversal‘s request for proposal to provide a cross-platform ad currency. In a recent report, NBCU said that, unlike other contenders that were either “approaching mastery” or “developing mastery,” TVSquared was “developing competency” in the area.
“Additionally, we immediately accelerate and broaden our scope globally, as brands, agencies, publishers, and broadcasters on six continents rely on TVSquared to maximize reach, identify the right audiences and drive business growth with TV,” Netter said. “As the market demands greater accountability, Innovid and TVSquared are reimagining the future of cross-platform TV measurement together.”
TVSquared CEO Calum Smeaton will be stepping down. He will take on a strategy role in support of the integration with Innovid.
TVSquared president Jo Kinsella (an upcoming Multichannel News Wonder Woman) will join the Innovid executive team, reporting to Netter.
Innovid released preliminary fourth-quarter financial results. It said adjusted EBITDA for the period is expected to be between $1 million and $2 million on revenue of between $25 million and $26 million.
The ad tech world has been busy with companies going public, making acquisitions or being sold as interest in CTV has increased.
Innovid began trading as a public company in December, under the ticker symbol CTV. The company went public through a merger with ION Acquisition in a SPAC deal valued at $1.3 billion.
Also: BMO Analyst Initiates Coverage of Innovid With ‘Outperform’ Rating
DoubleVerify, which went public last April, agreed to acquire OpenSlate, a contextual targeting platform for cash and stock worth $150 million.
Integral Ad Science, which went public in June, acquired CTV ad platform Publica for $220 million in cash in August and Context last month.
Another measurement company, Samba TV, filed for its IPO with the SEC in November. ■
