Nielsen Buys Audience Targeting Firm eXelate

Nielsen has acquired New York-based audience targeting specialist eXelate, for an undisclosed sum.

eXelate, which also has offices in Chicago, Detroit, LA, San Francisco, London, Paris and Tel Aviv, provides data on purchase intent for hundreds of millions of online visitors, using modeling algorithms to provide insights on prospects, deliver relevant marketing messages, and measure digital ad effectiveness.

Nielsen says the acquisition will enable its clients to make use of its audience insights in real-time, alongside eXelate's aggregated consumer segments from more than 200 data providers. Global President Steve Hasker (pictured) comments: 'This acquisition creates a tremendous opportunity for Nielsen in the programmatic media ecosystem. Adding eXelate's solutions to the Nielsen family furthers our ability to help marketers improve the effectiveness of their advertising campaigns and to help media companies better sell their content.'

Web sites: www.nielsen.com and www.exelate.com .