News notes
After 20 years as its editor, Larry Gold has discontinued publication of the monthly Inside Research newsletter. The publication was founded in 1990 by Jack Honomichl, who passed away late last year, to report on industry events, company business activities, personnel changes and financial news. Gold will continue to publish the AMA Gold Top 50.
ESOMAR’s Global Market Research Report 2014 revealed that European market research revenues declined to $16 billion in 2013, a net loss of 1.4 percent. This was the third consecutive year of declining revenues. The 2013 North American research total had a net growth of 2.9 percent, with $15.7 billion of revenue. The markets showing the greatest increases were Myanmar (an increase of 50 percent), Lebanon (38.4 percent) and Bangladesh (28.4 percent), while markets in Iraq, Cyprus and Portugal showed the greatest declines. However, 82 percent of the countries providing forecasts of 2014 markets expected their local market to grow.
Reston, Va.-based comScore will terminate its partnership with the GSMA mobile operators’ trade association at the end of 2014. ComScore, GSMA and five U.K. operators have compiled the GSMA Mobile Media Metrics audience measurement service since 2009 and comScore has confirmed that all data through 2014 will continue to be available. ComScore will begin working with WKOM to launch a new service, Mobile Metrix.
The board of the Media Rating Council, New York, has voted to remove accreditation for the National Consumer Study of Deerfield Beach, Fla.-based Simmons Research.
The Cornell University School of Hotel Administration featured several employees of Philadelphia researcher LRA Worldwide, including CEO Rob Rush, in its video on career opportunities for students.
Atlanta-based CMI, also known as ConsumerMetrics Inc., is celebrating 25 years as a research firm. It was founded by Chet Zalesky in 1989.
Acquisitions/transactions
Metrostudy, a Houston research firm, has acquired New Home Trends, a Bothell, Wash., research firm. New Home Trends will operate under the Metrostudy name and its president, Todd Britsch, will continue his executive role as regional director for the Seattle and Oregon region.
Adelphi Worldwide, Manchester, U.K., has acquired London-based health care brand and research agency the Planning Shop international for an undisclosed sum.
Gap Intelligence has acquired fellow San Diego market intelligence firm Quixel Research, which will now be re-branded as Quixel Research - a Gap Intelligence company. Terms were not disclosed.
New York researcher Nielsen has acquired New Delhi analytics and forecasting services firm Indicus Analytics. Terms were not disclosed.
M-Brain has purchased fellow Helsinki, Finland, research firm, Global Intelligence Alliance. The company will have offices in 12 countries with approximately 450 employees.
New York researcher GroupM, a division of WPP, has acquired Keyade, a Paris marketing firm. The three Keyade founders will continue operational control. Also, Aqua, a digital marketing division of WPP, has purchased fellow Johannesburg, South Africa, company Applogix, a technology firm.
Netquest, a Barcelona, Spain, research firm, has agreed to join with Wakoopa, an Amsterdam technology firm, which will become a fully-owned subsidiary of Netquest. The companies will remain separate entities with their own core projects but will explore ways of jointly providing better services to respondents and clients.
London-based WPP has invested $25 million in New York-based ad technology firm AppNexus. AppNexus will acquire the Open AdStream ad serving platform from Xaxis, the audience profiling and targeting division of WPP. WPP is also in talks regarding the acquisition of some divisions of Sao Paulo, Brazil, research agency IBOPE Group.
Google, San Francisco, has acquired software company Polar, San Francisco, for an undisclosed sum. The Polar team will be merged with the Google+ social network division
Evalueserve, a Gurgaon, India, researcher, has acquired Beyond Data, a Rheinbach, Germany, business intelligence firm.
Teradata, Dayton, Ohio, has acquired fellow technology company Think Big Analytics. Terms were not disclosed. The Think Big main office will remain in Mountain View, Calif., and will be renamed Think Big, a Teradata Company.
Aimpoint Research, Columbus, Ohio, has acquired the Rome offices of CIELO Research as part of its expansion in the global market.
Fluendo, a Barcelona, Spain, software company, has acquired LongoMatch, a London software firm. Terms were not disclosed. The LongoMatch platform will be integrated into Fluendo’s suite of products.
Kantar Health has acquired Brazilian health care research company Evidencias, which consists of two units, Focus Assistencia MŽdica and Classe Assistencia MŽdica.
San Jose, Calif.-based 1World Online has purchased Monterrey, Mexico, polling firm Flipter. Current customers of Flipter will be transitioned to 1World’s platform.
The management team of QRS Market Research, Hertford, U.K., has completed a company buyout from retiring director Sam Adby. Kathy Tomlin will replace Adby as managing director with Lee Tomlin and Sarah Hobley as senior directors.
Washington, D.C., Optimity Advisors has bought fellow management consulting firm Matrix Knowledge, London, now rebranded as Optimity Matrix. It will run the public policy arm of Optimity Advisors’ global operations.
Y&R Advertising, New York, has acquired the creative and research agency of MCS Holding, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. Also, Kansas City, Mo., marketing firm VML has agreed to acquire Shanghai-based social media specialist Teein. Both Y&R Advertising and VML are owned by London-based WPP.
Alliances/strategic partnerships
Research advisory company Cambiar has merged with Transition Strategies Corporation, Pennington, N.J. It will continue to operate under the Cambiar name. Simon Chadwick and Michael Mitrano will serve as co-managing partners.
MarketResearch.com, Rockville, Md., has partnered with BIS Research, Bloomington, Minn.; MPO Research Group, Washington, D.C.; and MarketSizeInfo.com, Lahti, Finland, to market and distribute their proprietary market analyses through the MarketResearch.com site.
Unity Marketing, Stevens, Pa., and American Affluence Research Center, Atlanta, are partnering to conduct a study, the Millionaire Market Monitor, which will examine the mind-set and lifestyle of millionaires, high-net-worth and ultra-high-net-worth consumers.
Shelton, Conn., research firm SSI is partnering with Air France-KLM airlines to enable members of its loyalty program, Flying Blue, to join SSI’s business research panel, Opinion Rewards Club.
Market Publishers Ltd., London, and Reevolv Advisory Services Private Limited, Mumbai, India, are partnering to allow the Reevolv research reports to be distributed and sold on the Market Publishers Web site.
Information Services Group (ISG), a Stuart, Fla., research company, has partnered with Seattle software provider Apptio. The move will allow users of the Apptio technology business management applications to access ISG’s database of operational metrics. ISG will open a practice dedicated to joint solutions for business management applications and the two companies will collaborate on marketing.
MRSS India, a Mumbai, India, researcher and Berlin technology company SensoMotoric Instruments (SMI) will partner to integrate the SMI eye-tracking software with MRSS services. The addition is designed to help clients understand consumer purchase decisions, Web site use and customer response to advertising.
Germany-based GfK Enigma and Media Markt Analysen, Frankfurt, Germany, will merge and take the name GfK Media and Communication Research. Its managing directors will be Bettina Klumpe and Armin MŸller-Schroth and the company’s offices will remain in Wiesbaden and Frankfurt.
Association/organization news
The Council of American Survey Research Organizations, Port Jefferson, N.Y., has enacted its revised Code of Standards and Ethics following its review and approval by more than two-thirds of the 325 member companies. The revised code is designed to address several significant changes in research techniques and practices, including transparency, work with children and youth and standards for e-mail and text message solicitation.
Awards/rankings
ESOMAR has named Germany-based GfK and Viacom International Media Networks, New York, as winners of the Best Methodological Paper award. Their joint paper, called Comedy Central Power of Laughter, was judged to show the greatest technical and innovative interest.
NGDATA, a Gent, Belgium, software company, has been selected as the Ventana Research Technology Innovation award winner within the Service and Supply Chain category.
RTi Research, Stamford, Conn., was named a 2014 Connecticut Top Workplace by Hearst Connecticut Newspapers. The awards were based upon an employee survey completed in April by Workplace Dynamics.
London research software company E-Tabs was presented with the Best Exhibitor Award at the 2014 ESOMAR Congress.
Research Now, Plano, Texas, received the ESOMAR Excellence Award for Best Paper of the Year for its publication Multimode, Global Scale Usage: Understanding Respondent Scale Usage across Borders and Devices. BVA, a Boulogne, France, researcher won the ESOMAR Best Case History Award for its paper French Government: Nudge Me Tender. The awards were made at the 2014 ESOMAR Congress.
London researcher Cobalt Sky received the MRS award for Operational Excellence at the MRS Operations Awards 2014.
New accounts/projects
Research & Marketing Strategies, Inc., Baldwinsville, N.Y., received conditional approval to administer the Hospice Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems survey beginning in 2014-2015. Final approval was contingent on attendance at an early October training session.
Portland, Ore., researcher Rentrak has reached an agreement with IndiaCast of Viacom 18 Media Pvt. Ltd. to provide ratings for its two networks, Aapka Colors and MTV India.
New companies/new divisions/relocations/expansions
Chicago researcher watchLAB Field has changed its name to FUEL Global.
Netherlands researcher MetrixLab has opened an office in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Rebeca Dreicon will head the office
Little Rock, Ark., technology company Acxiom is opening a new office in Austin, Texas.
In Cincinnati, c2b solutions has opened as a researcher focused on health care insights and strategy.
Tim Mahaffey has launched Retail Passage, a brand strategy firm, in McKinney, Texas.
BDRC Group has announced the opening of an office in Jakarta, Indonesia, which will be led by Piers Lee, who also heads up the Singapore office.
Paris technology firm Capgemini has opened a digital innovation lab in Melbourne, Australia.
Chicago-based researcher InContext Solutions has opened a London office, led by Alki Manias.
New York researcher Millward Brown has launched Millward Brown Vermeer Australia, Sydney, bringing its number of worldwide offices to 10. It will be led by Caspar Wright.
Paris software firm Askia has opened a new office in Los Angeles, to be headed by Jamey Corriveau, director of U.S. operations.
Seattle Internet firm AudienceScience has opened an office in Pune, India.
London researcher Carnegie Orr has repositioned itself with a new name, Gather, and has hired Nigel Forsyth as a non-executive chairman.
Los Angeles researcher uSamp has expanded its office in Frankfurt, Germany, and has added Susanne Minneker and Catherine Gibbon to the staff. The office was previously a sales-only facility.
Tiffany St. James and Charlie Southwell have launched Transmute, a London marketing firm.
Steve Wolf has opened Wisdom, Insight and Mojo, a New York research firm.
Research company earnings/financial news
San Francisco researcher Radius has raised $54.7 million in Series C funding.
London research company Cello reported a 9.4 percent increase in revenues, resulting in revenues of £78.3 million for the first half of the year. Cello Health, which is comprised of Cello Health Insight, Cello Health Consulting, Cello Health Communications and Cello Health Consumer, saw its profits grow by 13.4 percent to £19.7 million.
Tokyo-based GMO Research has been approved for listing on Mothers (market of the high-growth and emerging stocks), part of the Tokyo Stock Exchange, effective October 21.
London researcher BrainJuicer reported revenue growth up 4 percent to £11.2 million for the first half of 2014 with operating profits rising 18 percent to reach £1.5 million.
In Spain, consumer analytics company Conzoom has closed a Û600,000 funding round.