May 19, 2017 MOBILE APPLICATION M&A VOLUME REMAINS STRONG

Berkery Noyes’ Online and Mobile report for Q1 2017 indicated that deal volume increased seven percent in over the past three months. Total transaction value declined 49 percent, from $38.9 billion to $19.9 billion. Both aggregate volume and value throughout the past five quarters reached their peak in Q2 2016. The number of transactions in the mobile application subsector improved ten percent on a quarterly basis, with a total of 116 acquisitions in Q1 2017.

Notable mobile-based deals during the quarter included United Luck Consortium’s $1 billion acquisition of Outfit7, a media franchise with various mobile applications, which have received more than 5 billion downloads; Take-Two Interactive Software’s acquisition of Social Point, a mobile game developer, for $250 million; and ABRY Partners’ announced acquisition of MobileHelp, a provider of mobile medical alert and personal health management solutions, for $130 million.

E-Marketing & Search volume improved nine percent in Q1 2017. Notable digital marketing deals in the segment year-to-date included Amobee’s acquisition of Turn, an advertising technology company used by marketers and agencies, for $310 million; Altice’s announced acquisition of Teads, an online video advertising company, for $306 million; and Accenture Interactive’s announced acquisition of a majority stake in SinnerSchrader, a digital marketing and advertising agency based in Germany, for $62 million.

“Digital marketing solutions that are able to extract insights from the growing amounts of data and effectively engage consumers across multiple channels are highly valued in today’s market,” said Vineet Asthana, Managing Director at Berkery Noyes. “Technology companies, consulting firms, and others are eager to gain market share by seeking a larger array of service offerings to complement their existing product and solution portfolios, especially since enterprises are requiring an increasing amount of data management services.” Asthana continued, “Many large players, both financial and strategic, are actively pursuing inorganic growth through acquisition, as the marketing automation market is still rapidly expanding.”