Acquisition Combines Cross-Device Consumer ID Firms

San Francisco-based IDify, which helps clients integrate and activate data on individuals across devices, is to acquire data science firm QBC Holdings, Inc. ('Qualia').

Qualia's technology taps more than 100 billion data points every month to create 'accurate, anonymous associations between people and devices' and facilitate highly targeted digital advertising. IDify, which a year ago hired former Nielsen exec Scott McKinley (pictured) as CEO, believes that combining this with its own identity solutions will give clients 'the most accurate ID graph available'.

McKinley (pictured) spent seven years at Nielsen, latterly as EVP overseeing innovation and new product development across person-level data and analytics. He comments: 'Today's marketing ecosystem runs at the person-level. Data owners and users want to interact with consumers on a trusted, consented, one-to-one basis to deliver relevance and value. That requires a level of accuracy and transparency that current solutions just don't provide'. Manish Ahuja, co-founder & Chief Product Officer of Qualia, adds: 'We spent eight years developing our technology to create the most accurate, anonymous associations between devices that our industry has seen. By becoming part of IDify, we create the safest and most accurate way for advertisers and their partners to reach consumers across all forms of media'.

IDify is part of Princeton, NJ-based direct and digital data marketing services provider ALC and is online at www.idify.com . Terms of the deal were not disclosed.