Alantra advised United Digital Group on the sale of its media and performance marketing business to Omnicom Media Group
SECTORTechnology
ServiceM&A
Alantra advised UDG, a leading agency for digital marketing and one of Germany’s three largest advertising companies who made a strategic decision to sell the performance marketing unit (“M&PM”) of its agency to Omnicom Media Group Germany GmbH. Alantra’s Frankfurt team, together with the US TMT practice provided M&A advisory services to the sellers. The transaction was signed on August 14th, 2018 and is subject to approval of the relevant anti-trust authorities.
Alantra structured a targeted auction process and introduced the M&PM business to the global universe of leading international interactive agencies and consultancies as well as financial investors. The sale of the M&PM business demonstrates Alantra’s strong track record and differentiated capabilities in the interactive agency / digital consulting / digital marketing sub-sector (a US$ ~300b global industry). This transaction represents Alantra’s third successful corporate finance advisory deal in this sub-sector in Germany and fifteenth globally in the last five years.
Post divestiture, M&PM will continue to provide performance marketing services to UDG in a strategic partnership as part of its agreement with Omnicom. Marcus H. Starke, CEO of UDG United Digital Group, said, “We are delighted to have found an ideal new owner for M&PM in Omnicom Media Group Germany GmbH and, going forward, will continue to offer the full range of performance marketing services as part of our strategic partnership with Omnicom. Alantra’s integrated global team worked as our true partner and delivered on each one of the mandate goals we gave them at the start of this assignment. Their knowledge of our industry, ability to properly position M&PM, and relationships with the global buyer universe truly sets them apart. UDG and M&PM’s management team are extremely pleased.”
The M&PM business of UDG is one of the last remaining and sizeable “pure play” performance marketing providers and premium Google partners in Germany, with an integrated, full-service approach to holistic performance marketing solutions, offering SEO, SEA, Affiliate Marketing, Social Media Advertising and Digital Analytics. M&PM employs over 150 employees at three different locations in Germany.
The buyer, Omnicom Media Group, is the media services’ division of Omnicom Group Inc. (NYSE: OMC), the world’s second largest global advertising, marketing and corporate communications company, providing services to over 5,000 clients in more than 100 countries, generating total revenues of over US$ 15 billion (2017). Omnicom Media Group includes the full-service media networks Hearts & Science, OMD and PHD; the Annalect data and analytics platform; Resolution Media; and a number of specialty media communications companies. By acquiring the M&PM business, Omnicom Media Group is accelerating the extension of its existing performance marketing capabilities as well as its offering to clients of its full-service media agencies OMD, PHD and Hearts & Science.
