Telenor Acquires Tapad For $360 Million

Mobile telecom operator Telenor Group has acquired New York-based advertising technology startup Tapad for $360 million, the companies announced Monday.

Tapad launched in 2010 with cross-device solutions for publishers, marketers and technology providers to identify and monetize audiences as they move across devices and screens.

“With the acquisition of Tapad, Telenor Group is taking a position within the rapidly growing market for advertising technology, and securing important competence within digital marketing and analytics. I believe significant value can be created from applying marketing technology to improve the digital capabilities of our core telecom business. This will improve our understanding of customer behaviour, and supports building a platform for other business areas,’’ says Sigve Brekke, Chief Executive Officer of Telenor Group.

Telenor Group has mobile subscribers in 13 markets in Europe and Asia. Tapad claims more than 160 of the top US brands as customers. Telenor will be looking to Tapad’s US experience to help it tap into ad tech growth opportunities — including audience activation, ad personalization and data analytics — in emerging markets.

“We are thrilled to join the Telenor family. With more than 200 million mobile subscribers in 13 markets, Telenor is one of the largest and most successful telecom companies globally. I am excited by what this acquisition means for our employees, our partners and our continued growth. This will accelerate our vision to become the world’s leading provider of unified digital marketing solutions,” says Are Traasdahl, CEO and founder of Tapad.

Telnor says Tapad will continue to operate independently, with Traasdahl staying on as CEO and co-founder Dag Liodden continuing as CTO. The deal closed January 29.