LoopMe Buys Mobile Platform Chartboost

AI-based ad optimisation and measurement firm LoopMe has acquired mobile advertising and monetisation platform Chartboost from Zynga, Inc, which is itself a wholly-owned publishing label of Take-Two Interactive Software. Financial details were not disclosed.

LoopMe's Intelligent Marketplace software helps clients improve advertising performance and outcomes. The firm was founded in 2012 and is headquartered in the UK, with offices in seven US cities plus Toronto, Singapore, Sydney, Dnipro, Krakow and Hong Kong. The move into M&A follows rapid organic growth for the firm - around 40% per annum for the past five years. In February it announced the recruitment of more than fifty new employees.

Zynga, based in California, is a global developer of interactive entertainment whose games include CSR Racing and franchises based on Star Wars, Game of Thrones and Harry Potter, and have been downloaded more than 6 billion times on mobile. Its Chartboost mobile platform helps app developers to monetise highly engaged audiences by connecting them directly with marketers through immersive ad experiences. LoopMe says the buy expands its established presence in the mobile app ecosystem, significantly growing its SDK network and strengthening its outcomes-based AI technology platform. Its demand partners and Chartboost's publisher partners should benefit from enhanced capabilities to drive more measurable ad performance and app monetisation, including across Zynga's mobile gaming portfolio.

Stephen Upstone (pictured), CEO and founder of LoopMe comments: 'We see mobile in-app and CTV as the future of brand advertising, and the acquisition of Chartboost brings us closer to making this vision a reality, bringing us closer to app publishers. Chartboost provides LoopMe with an exceptional team of mobile app experts, cutting-edge technology, and an extensive publisher network - all of which will significantly enhance our offering'.

Jeff Carlson, Head of Product at Chartboost adds: 'Mobile developers are at the heart of what we do, and by joining the LoopMe family, we can continue supporting this rapidly evolving industry. By providing brands with access to premium publishers and by bringing unique brand advertising demand to app developers, LoopMe's AI and measurement optimisation drive best in class results'.

Web sites are at www.loopme.com and www.zynga.com .

Take-Two is headquartered in NYC and its portfolio includes Rockstar Games and 2K, in addition to Zynga.