TNS Ups Stake in Automotive Data Firm Enprecis

TNS has made a further substantial investment in automotive customer experience specialist Enprecis Inc., which will now become the key technology provider underpinning its own automotive data management.

Founded in 2006 and based in Seattle, Enprecis is the developer of 'Continuous Quality Insight' (CQI), a proprietary online tool which collects and analyses automotive customer experience data, giving manufacturers rapid access to customer views to improve both vehicle design and spot opportunities to strengthen loyalty.

TNS first took a minority stake in the company in April 2012, at a price of around $1.2 million, and its automotive team currently use CQI to enhance its service for major global automotive manufacturers.

The move follows the acquisition of China-based automotive specialist Sinotrust Market Research (SMR), announced earlier this year.

Global Automotive Practice Head Rémy Pothet (pictured) says TNS has worked very successfully with the Enprecis team for a number of years and built a strong synergy. 'By extending this partnership, CQI will become a more integral part of our business and we will collaborate with the Enprecis team with on-going developments to meet the needs of the world's automotive manufacturers'. Enprecis CEO Richard Counihan comments: 'We're delighted to extend our relationship with TNS and WPP. We have identified a strong opportunity to strengthen both of our offerings to the marketplace through this collaboration with the leading global automotive researcher.'

Web sites: www.tnsglobal.com and www.enprecis.com .