Adconion Media Group Makes Global ‘Land Grab’ for Video Advertising Market

Acquires smartclip, Europe’s Leader in Digital In-stream Video & Connected TV Advertising

Cross-border specialist, Digital Capital Advisors, LLC, led the transaction with Siemer & Associates acting as co-advisor to the shareholders of smartclip in this transaction.

November 9, 2011 (Santa Monica, CA) ─ Adconion Media Group has affirmed its position as a market leader in online video advertising following its announcement today that it has acquired smartclip, Europe’s leader for digital video advertising.  This acquisition brings together DCA’s client smartclip, Europe’s largest video ad network, with one of the world’s largest independent audience and video networks to create a global leader in online advertising.

This strategic acquisition will significantly strengthen Adconion’s position in online video in its existing markets and accelerate the deployment of its digital distribution platform into the emerging markets of Eastern and Central Europe and into the segment of Connected TV. The smartclip business with its expertise in digital video advertising will complement Adconion’s existing product range. The proprietary in-stream video and Connected TV technology of smartclip will be integrated with the Adconion platform, which is already delivering targeted ads and content across display, email, social and both in-banner and in-stream video.

According to Tyler Moebius, Founder and CEO of Adconion Media Group, this announcement will shake up the video market considerably as studios, agencies and advertisers are demanding the opportunity to hyper-syndicate more targeted content across multiple platforms than ever before.

“The addition of smartclip’s exclusive in-stream reach and Connected TV apps to our platform is an important development in growing the online video industry globally. We will now be providing advertisers an exclusive audience which they can reach in scale across in-banner, in-stream and Connected TV,” said Moebius. “The online video and web TV market is incredibly fragmented across the globe and there is an extreme shortage of quality in-stream inventory.  We’re seeing the same market evolution in video inventory that we experienced in premium display several years ago.  Opportunistic vertical broker networks are popping up every day and are focused only on arbitrage, or brokering the same real estate and essentially adding no value to the advertisers, publishers or content partners. We are focused on providing technical solutions to our publishers, superior monetization for our content partners and exclusive audiences and deep user experiences at scale to our advertisers.”

“Adconion is both strategically and technologically a natural partner for us to accelerate and achieve smartclip’s next level of growth” said Jean-Pierre Fumagalli, co-founder and CEO of smartclip. “Both parties understand the evolution of audio visual media consumption and are committed to delivering to advertisers and agencies solutions for a digitally merged TV and online video experience on a global scale.”

With the acquisition of smartclip, Adconion will gain 118 employees in Europe and expand to 27 offices servicing clients throughout the UK, Germany, France, Spain, the Netherlands, Belgium, Italy and Portugal in Western Europe; Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Finland in Northern Europe; and Russia.

The S&A transaction team was comprised of David Siemer, Jonathan Roth, Garrett Taylor and Michael Mizrahi.

About Adconion Media Group

Adconion Media Group is one of the largest independent global audience and video content networks, reaching over 325 million unique users – or one-quarter of the total global Internet population – every month.  Dedicated to true partnerships with agencies and marketers, Adconion arms agencies with customized solutions and innovative products designed in-house while delivering significant global reach across multiple platforms through a single network.  As a digital media holding company, it manages a portfolio of brand and performance solution businesses worldwide.  Adconion Media Group wholly owns Adconion Direct, a multi-channel distribution platform spanning display, email and social media; Joost, a digital media company devoted to video and content syndication; and RedLever, a global studio specializing in developing and producing brand-integrated and associated content.

Adconion has 16 offices in 8 countries around the world, is a member of the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB), is one of the first companies to be IAB certified with its first ever Ad Networks & Exchanges Quality Assurance program in the US and is a founding member of IASH Europe.

About smartclip

smartclip, Europe’s leader for digital video advertising, is delivering video ads across a variety of platforms and devices with utmost media efficiency. The company works with publishers, media agencies and advertisers, enabling all parties to benefit from the placement of online video ads. smartclip helps media agencies and advertisers roll-out their campaigns on a number of different devices (tablet PCs, Connected TV sets, gaming consoles, desk- or laptops and smartphones) and allows publishers to benefit from proprietary and innovative technology solutions. smartclip is headquartered in Hamburg, Germany and has 11 offices throughout Europe. The company was founded early 2008 by Jean-Pierre Fumagalli and Roland Schaber in cooperation with the eValue Group of Internet entrepreneur Thomas Falk and backed up by Van den Ende & Deitmers, the venture capital of Endemol founder Joop van den Ende. Twitter: @ smartclipAG

About Siemer & Associates LLC

Siemer & Associates LLC is a global boutique merchant bank that serves digital media, software and Internet companies throughout their business life cycles.  Our investment banking professionals have successfully completed more than 50 transactions that aggregated over $3 billion in sell-side mandates and surpassed $1.5 billion in equity capital.  We offer exceptional corporate capital raising, financial advisory services and M&A, specializing in cross-border transactions.

Siemer Ventures, the early-stage investment arm of S&A, is one of the most active investment funds in Southern California, claiming more than 40 current portfolio companies and making an average of 12 new investments each year.

S&A is committed to offering honest advice and guidance based on relevant experience, deep domain knowledge and an understanding of the market.  We provide our clients with the insight and education necessary to make informed decisions, resulting in an enviable record of client satisfaction and success. Siemer & Associates is headquartered in Los Angeles with offices in Singapore and Hong Kong.

About Digital Capital Advisors

Digital Capital Advisors is the premier investment banking boutique dedicated to serving innovative media companies in the U.S. and Europe for whom digital is core to their DNA – as well as those who would like it to be.  Founded and run by long-time media investment bankers and former CEO’s, these advisors / entrepreneurs / financiers / investors have been fully immersed in and have helped shape the media landscape for the past 20 years, both offline and online. Such invaluable experience, well-honed insights and extensive relationships throughout the industry with both strategic operators and financial sponsors are of immense value to DCA’s clients as it helps them navigate the fast-changing media landscape and create superior value.

DCA provides advisory services in the form of sell-side and buy-side M&A, as well as the private placement of equity and debt, for digital media companies throughout their evolution. A key differentiator of the firm is its focus on seamlessly executing cross-border transactions, just as the digital world has knocked down those boundaries.  The firm’s global capabilities are enhanced by its strategic alliance with eValue Group AG, a prolific and highly successful European venture capital fund, as well as other global alliances that have been formed over the years.