Here’s today’s AdExchanger.com news round-up… Want it by email? Sign-up here.
The Public Ad Network
A source tells TechCrunch’s John Constine that former Blue Lithium chief and current RadiumOne CEO Gurbaksh Chahal is readying his company for an IPO. It is rumored that RadiumOne has about $100 million in annual revenue — if true, this is likely total media spend through the company’s ad platform. Constine comments, “It’s becoming clearer that TV ad dollars will shift to digital and that businesses can earn money on mobile ads, so RadiumOne seems to think it’s ready for the spotlight.” Read more.
Programmatic Demographics
Programmatic buying can help advertisers reach Hispanic markets, claims Starcom exec Marla Skiko, who was part of a panel discussion covered by Portada. Skiko mentioned that programmatic is changing the agency discussion around TV. “We want to buy Hispanic audiences in an efficient way. Programmatic trading helps us to do that.” Read more.
Foot Data
JiWire announced its new Location Conversion Index, which matches a served ad with an in-store visit. The company claims that it is “real” foot traffic because it takes into account things like seasonality and creates a lookalike audience that hasn’t been served an ad as a control group. Read the release. JiWire told MediaPost that a fashion retailer saw a 32% lift in store visits, measured against an identical audience. Read the story.
Engineer Shortage
Elias Torres, who co-founded landing-page optimizer Performable (which was acquired by HubSpot in 2011), says he spends “80 to 90 percent of his time on recruiting efforts” in his work at HubSpot. Torres tells Boston Business Journal, “Ultimately, HubSpot contacts 400 to 500 engineers a month, and hires two or three of them. In May, the company tripled its talent referral bonus – from $10,000 to $30,000 – as a way to get even more aggressive on recruiting engineers and designers.” Read it.
Marketer Buys Tech
Staples acquired Runa to improve personalized online shopping, though the terms weren’t disclosed. The company will become part of Staples Lab, which has offices in in Seattle and Cambridge already. “With Runa, we’re adding technology to better serve our customers with personalized items, offers and delivery estimates, all in real time,” said Ronald Sargent, chief executive officer and chairman for Staples. Read the release.
Tech Raises Venture
SAP’s venture capital arm is raising money like mad, $1 billion over the last year, in an effort to align itself with enterprise technology. “We’re kind of a good pipeline into the things that are to come,” said Nino Marakovic, CEO of SAP Ventures. “We want to show customers SAP is forward-thinking.” Marakovic told PCWorld that it is expecting a total of 13 exits for its portfolio companies this year. Read more.
Privacy
- Google Accused Of Wiretapping In Gmail Scans – The New York Times
You’re Hired!
- 24/7 Media Names New VP, Platform Solutions – press release
- VivaKi Revamps Brand Relations Practice; Promotes Mac Delaney, Hires Andy Cogbill And Robert Gibbs – press release
- Seasoned Advertising and Privacy Attorney Noga Rosenthal Joins NAI as General Counsel and VP, Compliance & Policy – press release
But Wait, There’s More!
- Six Questions: Rishad Tobaccowala – Doug Weaver
- Monsanto to Acquire The Climate Corporation To Provide Farmers with Broad Suite of Tools Related To Weather – press release
- Twitter Founder Reveals Secret Formula for Getting Rich Online – Wired
- Breaking Bad Creative: How Media Planners Can Use Today’s DMP – X Plus Blog
- Fiksu: Mobile App Marketing Costs Climb To Record High – FierceMobileContent
