Identity resolution specialist LiveRamp announced today it has agreed a deal to buy media measurement company Data Plus Math for $150 million in cash and stock, an acquisition which will bolster LiveRamp’s capabilities in the linear and streaming TV space.
LiveRamp says the acquisition will enable advertisers to better tie their TV and digital investments to real-world outcomes, including website visits, app downloads, store visits and offline purchases. “This also ensures the advertiser is able to accurately measure ad effectiveness,” said Allison Metcalfe, GM of LiveRamp TV. “After years of wanting something different, the industry is eager to embrace innovative ways to prove ROI.”
The combined solution will appeal both to advertisers seeking better cross-screen measurement solutions, and to brands wanting to measure the outcomes of their TV campaigns. This is becoming increasingly common thanks to the growth of over-the-top advertising, and the push into TV from outcome-driven direct-to-consumer brands.
“Our clients are seeking more precise solutions for people-based, cross-platform activation and measurement,” said Tim Castree, CEO of North America for GroupM. “The combination of LiveRamp’s identity management capabilities and Data Plus Math’s TV attribution expertise will certainly help us accelerate that.”
LiveRamp is painting the move as one which is beneficial for the industry as a whole, and OpenAP CEO David Levy agrees. “A requirement for growing the market for audience-based buying is campaign measurement that goes beyond reach. We are encouraged by the work Data Plus Math has been doing to go beyond reach and map exposure to business outcomes,” he said. “Further cementing a relationship with LiveRamp is an important step that creates more opportunities for marketers to better measure and action outcome data across the consumer journey.”
Simulmedia founder and CEO Dave Morgan meanwhile said that the combine product “will make bad TV investments even more apparent, particularly with respect to contemporaneous digital video investments”.
This marks LiveRamp’s second acquisition this year, with the company also having bought consent-management business Faktor back in April.
