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Tag: Gruner

  • Gruner + Jahr’s Networkplay buys out Seventynine

    MUMBAI: Gruner + Jahr‘s Indian entity Networkplay has bought out Smile Vun Group‘s mobile ad network Seventynine.

    Seventynine is G+J‘s second digital acquisition in India after Networkplay, which was acquired by G+J earlier this year.

    According to the company, Gruner + Jahr intends to strengthen its digital presence in the Indian market. This new acquisition will help G+J and Networkplay fortify their competence and position in the mobile space.

    Seventynine will be an independent business unit under the Networkplay umbrella, with its management reporting directly into the board.

    The co-founders of Seventynine, Chirag Shah and Deven Dharamdasani will continue to lead the business post the buy-out.

    Smile Vun Group founder Manish Vij said, “Seventynine has great potential as a business and we are certain that its association with Gruner+Jahr will provide a global platform for the business to grow further.This alliance is the beginning of our relationship with Gruner+Jahr.”

    Gruner+Jahr International president Torsten-Jörn Klein said, “The expansion of Networkplay in the mobile space through the acquisition of Seventynine is clearly following our strategic commitment to grow our mobile business in the Indian market. G+J believes that in the Indian market, one of the fastest growing digital markets, the mobile segment will gain increasing importance. G+J is looking forward to further expand in that area together with Networkplay and the Seventynine team.”

    In the new group, Seventynine‘s immediate focus would be technology, product and expansion in South East Asia and Middle East.

    Seventynine was launched in April 2012 by Smile Vun Group with focus on rich media inventory especially videos and HTML5 to enrich user experience. The mobile ad-network recorded its first milestone in July 2012 when it clocked record growth by serving 700 Mn ad requests within three months of operation.

    Seventynine also possesses Seventynine App Analytics Service and Predictive Analytics Engine.

  • Bertelsmann arm acquires majority stake in Networkplay

    Bertelsmann arm acquires majority stake in Networkplay

    MUMBAI: The publishing division of European media conglomerate Bertelsmann AG Gruner + Jahr has acquired a majority stake in Indian digital advertising network Networkplay.

    Digital advertising agency Webchutney, incubated by Networkplay in 2008, was funded by Capital18, the venture capital arm of the Network18 group.

    Gruner + Jahr India CEO Kuldip Singh will join the board at Networkplay shortly. He will also be the CFO of Networkplay.

    The agency has presence on Internet, mobile and DTH platforms and partnerships with advertisers and publishers.

    Since inception, Networkplay has been involved in creating effective and scalable advertising solutions across all digital platforms. Over the last three and a half years, the company has grown to reach an execution capability of over four billion impressions per month across 500 publishers and 350 advertisers.

    Networkplay has also brought global event franchises such as ad:tech and iMedia Summits to India, in partnership with dmg::events, a leading international events company that manages over 80 events in over 25 countries.

    Webchutney founder and CEO Sidharth Rao said, “Ram and his team have built an amazing business from an idea a few years ago. We are very proud and delighted to have believed in Networkplay‘s vision from the first day. A partnership with a leading global company, Gruner + Jahr, will propel Networkplay on a stronger, higher growth path.”

    Gruner + Jahr is a media group and its Electronic Media Sales (EMS) division is a leader in the digital advertising space in Europe. G+J recently acquired majority stake in MaXposure Media and this is their second strategic investment in India.

    BMR Advisors was the exclusive advisor to Capital18 and Webchutney on this transaction.