Undertone (advertising company)
| Private | |
| Industry | online advertising, internet services |
| Founded | 2002 |
| Founder | Michael Cassidy |
| Headquarters | New York City, United States |
Number of locations | 12 |
Key people |
Michael Cassidy (President and CEO) Eric Franchi (Co-Founder) |
Number of employees | 200 (as of February 2012) |
| Parent | Perion Network |
| Website | www.undertone.com |
Undertone is a digital advertising company founded in 2002, initially as a subsidiary of Intercept Interactive, a digital media buying company. In December 2015, Undertone was acquired by Israeli software making company Perion Network for a fee of $180 million.[1]
History
In 2010 and 2011, the company introduced proprietary high impact display ad units called "PageGrabber" and "PageSkin". Undertone's clients include AccuWeather and Britannica.[2]
Undertone has been described as one of the last independent ad serving platforms in 2009 but has since bought up several competing companies.[3]
Services and products
Undertone offers online advertising display and video advertising services that allows businesses to target ads to specific locations, demographics and keywords.[4] Additionally, Undertone offers service guarantees, promising to refund money if clients demonstrate that their ads are displayed outside the agreed-upon portfolio of website.[5]
Working conditions
Among other benefits, Undertone gives employees three to four weeks of vacation, pays 100% of premiums for health, life and disability insurance and gives everyone in the firm stock options. Employees also get a $5,000 bonus for referring staff members.
Undertone was recognized by Crain's New York in 2008,[6] 2009, 2010,[7] and 2011 as one of the Best Places to Work in New York City. In 2012, Advertising Age named Undertone the 9th Best Place to Work in Marketing & Media for the company's unique culture and emphasis on its employees.[8]
Acquisitions
In 2008, Undertone raised $47 million from JMI Equity to acquire smaller competitors.[3][9] In June 2014, Undertone signed an agreement to purchase Israeli digital media company Upfront Digital Media; it made the purchase in particular to benefit from Upfront's proprietary advertising platform.[10] Upfront, which was founded in 2010 as Legolas Media, offered managed and self-serve consoles for programmatic buying of ads direct to publishers and through a number of supply and demand partners.[11]
In June 2015, Undertone announced[12] the acquisition of Sparkflow,[13] an all-in-one platform for cross-screen rich media advertising. Sparkflow was founded in 2013 in Buenos Aires, Argentina by Sebastián Alberto Miret, Gabriel Sánchez Catena, and Rodrigo Oscar Vazquez, a team of digital marketing and advertising veterans with more than a decade’s experience in the rich media advertising ecosystem.
References
- ↑ "Ad tech firm Perion buys Undertone for $180 million in cash". Reuters. 1 December 2015.
- ↑ O'Malley, Gavin (February 3, 2012). "Undertone solidifies publisher network, signs exclusive deals with top titles". MediaPost. Retrieved 2012-02-14.
- 1 2 Olsen, Stefanie (March 31, 2008). "Undertone Networks raises millions to buy online ad upstarts". CNET. Retrieved 2009-08-05.
- ↑ "Undertone targeting options". Retrieved 2012-06-06.
- ↑ O'Malley, Gavin (March 7, 2012). "Undertone Promises Brand Lift of Money Back". MediaPost. Retrieved 2012-03-29.
- ↑ "Crain's Best Places to Work 2008".
- ↑ "Crain's Best Places to Work 2010".
- ↑ "Advertising Age Best Places to Work 2012". March 26, 2012.
- ↑ Fung, Amanda (April 19, 2008). "NY venture capital shrugs off recession". Crain's New York Business. Retrieved 2009-08-05.
- ↑ http://adage.com/article/digital/undertone-acquires-upfront-media/293657/
- ↑ http://mobilemarketingmagazine.com/undertone-acquires-programmatic-firm-upfront
- ↑ "Undertone Acquires Rich Media Platform Sparkflow - Undertone". Undertone. 18 June 2015.
- ↑ "Undertone Has Creative On The Brain, Snaps Up Mobile Ad Startup Sparkflow | AdExchanger". AdExchanger. 18 June 2015.