AppNexus Buys Cross-Device Tech Firm MediaGlu

New York-based ad targeting tech specialist AppNexus has acquired cross-device technology firm MediaGlu, bringing new capabilities for ad serving, audience targeting and in-app retargeting. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

MediaGlu provides a single platform to track, attribute and optimize campaigns across any device, used by ad networks, 'retargeters', and location data providers for media planning, targeting, measurement and analytics. The firm's 'Cross Device Matching' technology identifies mobile devices and then matches resulting first and third party data; while its 'Cross Screen Attribution' tool enables users to measure campaigns and data efficacy across all screens.

In the summer, AppNexus acquired French firm Alenty, which specialises in online ad viewability, and received a $60m round of investment funding. A month later, it secured a further $25m in funding from WPP, and in turn agreed to acquire the Open AdStream (OAS) ad serving platform from the marcoms giant's audience profiling and targeting division Xaxis.

AppNexus says the MediaGlu buy will allow it to forge deeper connections with audiences across desktop and mobile devices, while publishers will be able to optimize the monetization of their content, regardless of the device on which people consume it. As part of the deal, MediaGlu's six person team will remain in Baltimore, where the company is currently headquartered.

Jonathan Hsu (pictured), AppNexus CFO and COO, comments: 'We are dedicated to creating a better Internet, and engaging with consumers across devices. MediaGlu's technology will be a key component of our platform moving forward, and its elite team of experts will greatly advance our progress in the mobile space.'

Web sites: www.appnexus.com and www.mediaglu.com .