Learning Out Loud’s Post

<Week of 10/7> Mergers, acquisitions, strategic partnerships and funding raises. What else can you ask for in one week 🚀 Connatix merges with JWP (JW Player). Video delivery platform + video ad network = powerful value proposition for publishers to effectively monetize video in an end to end platform 🎥 WPP partners with Roblox to innovate gaming advertising. With virtually endless advertising formats, collaboration between developers and advertisers is key to maximize the space 🎮 Zeta Global acquires LiveIntent, Inc. Identity is a key foundation for every company in our space 🔑 DIRECTTV is getting into FAST with MyFree DirectTV. Creating new inventory + acquiring new non-premium user = rightsizing the business for the future 📈 Horizon Media to integrate Akkio in Blu. AI integration can significantly enhance agency margins by introducing unprecedented efficiencies into campaign workflows 🤖 The Trade Desk makes Adelaide AU metric available for pre-bid targeting optimization. Helping advertisers optimize against KPIs they care about is always a good thing 📊 HUMAN raises $50M to fuel growth. Ad fraud is more than just protection from bots and addressing all of it requires significant investments in tech and resources 🛡️ Scope3 gets $25M to expand into AI. Balancing sustainability without compromising AI potential is a hard but worthwhile challenge. David Fischer 👏 <Stat of the week> According to Advertiser Perceptions, 4 in 10 advertisers plan to increase their investments in live telecast. Further validates why owning the rights to live content is so competitive 🥊

Ascendis Accelerates its Growth with Pencilz Labs Merger and appoints Pencilz founder Yann Berube, to lead technology implementation. We're thrilled to announce our merger with PENCILZ This merger combines our strengths in strategy, design, and technology with Pencilz Labs' capabilities, addressing the market need for comprehensive digital commerce solutions for mid-market businesses and enterprises. Known for its work with high-growth brands in both the US and Canada, Pencilz Labs is a digital design, development, and creative group. With teams based in Montréal and Pereira, Colombia, Pencilz Labs brings a fresh, creative approach to eCommerce, technology partnerships, integrations, and digital transformation success. Having worked alongside some of the boldest leaders and transformed over 400 businesses, we're excited to welcome Yann Berube founder of Pencilz Labs, as our new head of technology implementation. Under Yann's leadership, Pencilz Labs will continue to shine bright as Ascendis’ digital innovation lab, bringing fresh and creative approaches to digital commerce. Together we expand our service capabilities, strengthen our partnerships with Salesforce, Shopify and Chord, and serve a broader range of client types and needs. Here's to growing together and to creating digital products, services, and experiences people love. Fore more information, read the full press release [Link in comments] To find out how you can work with us contact Karim Salabi or directly or at karim@ascendis.ca #Ascendis #PencilzLabs #Merger #DigitalCommerce #Technology

This is ideal and realistic scenario. Start-ups must focus on strong PMF by refining core product based on the real time market pain points. This is when the clear and correct picture of Unit economics and cltv comes. #Rubén Domínguez Ibar

Celebrating another step ahead for OWNverse 🎉 We're pleased to announce that the Merger Agreement with bowmo, Inc. has been executed ✅ Over the last 6-month long period the OWNverse and bowmo teams have been working side by side, and are now stepping into a new phase of collaboration. Looking forward to further developments! #mergeragreement #companyacquisition #companymerger #ownverse #extendedreality #artificialintelligence #XR #AI #newtechnology #advancedtechnology #softwaredevelopment #hrtech #humanresources

Merger by Numbers: Elizabeth Avery and Xavier Keary investigate the coming collision of venture capital and the new merger proposals. You can't enter a box junction unless your exit is clear - is it the same for the startup sector, and what does that mean for economic dynamism? Plus merger reforms and AI were discussed and the Chatham House rule was observed; third parties do a Michelle Heyman around ACCC merger decisions and legal privilege in expert reports; private misuse of market power actions against Sony and more; and could school apps be a natural monopoly? All this and professional-grade sporting analogies with co-hosts Moya Dodd and Matt Rubinstein of #TheCompetitiveEdge #competitionlaw Listen to the episode here: https://lnkd.in/gkFtDEme

🚀Great visual on $GOOGL's acquisitions. The importance of distribution networks in acquisitions continues to be the most important synergy for software acquisitions. In the example of DoubleClick, they had a strong distribution network without a clear way to monetize it. The acquisition of DoubleClick improved that monetization capability. Interestingly, several of their other acquisitions (Android, Fitbit, YouTube) aimed to expand their distribution network. In my opinion, Google provides the best case study on synergistic acquisitions (especially in their early years). #follow for more startup News

“Money can’t buy happiness, but it can buy other companies!” quipped Ellen DeGeneres. While it’s true money might not buy joy directly, it can certainly open up pathways to growth through strategic acquisitions. Welcome, dealmakers! I’m Domenico Verderame, here to share a slice of acquisition wisdom with a side of no-nonsense advice. Creative Acquisitions in the Big Leagues: Did you know that some of the smartest acquisitions cost not even a penny upfront? Let’s take Facebook’s acquisition of Instagram. Though now it seems like a billion-dollar deal, Instagram was essentially bought with stock, not cash, leveraging Facebook's soaring market value at the time—a cunning move by Zuckerberg. The Power of $0 Money Deals: This approach isn’t just for the Titans. Small to medium businesses (SMBs) can also harness the magic of $0 money deals. The key? Creative financing solutions. Carveouts, seller financing, and Revenue-Based Financing (RBF) are just some of the tools you can use to structure a deal without upfront cash. LucaDimon in Action: Here at LucaDimon Growth Partners we’re in the negotiation phase to acquire a CPA firm with annual revenues of $8.9MM and EBITDA of $3.56MM. How are we doing this without upfront cash? By structuring the deal around seller financing and strategic carveouts, mezzanine financing, and equity financing. This lets us leverage the firm's existing cash flows to pay for the acquisition over time. And best part, the owner and his wife has agreed to a 5-year contract to manage the company he started. A win-win for all parties. Engage and Learn: What’s your take on using creative financing for acquisitions? Ever thought of buying a business with $0 down? Jump into the comments, hit like, or share this post to spread the word. Your next big growth opportunity might just involve a cleverly structured deal! #CreativeFinancing #StrategicAcquisitions #ZeroDownDeals #DealMaking #BusinessGrowth #SMBStrategy #LucaDimonInsights #smallbusiness #mediumbusiness #financing #revenue #revenuebasedfinancing

Why M&A matters: Google's $50 Million Android Deal That Changed the World 💡📱 Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) often get a bad rap, but here's a prime example of why they can be transformative. In 2005, Google quietly acquired a small, relatively unknown company called Android for just $50 million. 🤔 Fast forward to today, and Android powers over 70% of the world's smartphones! 🌍📱 M&A activity allows companies to innovate and grow by bringing in fresh ideas and cutting-edge technologies. Without this strategic acquisition, Google may have missed out on the mobile revolution that defined the 21st century. My takeaway: Deals like this show that M&A can be a powerful tool to unlock potential and drive innovation - shaping the future in ways no one could have predicted. 🚀 Google's acquisition of Android is proof that sometimes the smallest deals can have the biggest impact! 🌟

Mergers and acquisitions continue to dominate headlines, and we anticipate this trend to keep rolling throughout 2024. Among these many acquisitions are our former partners at Luminate, announcing their exciting acquisition of music data firm, Quansic, just last week. 👏 A few years back, the Luminate team (formerly P-MRC Data) approached Focus Lab as they were undergoing a reorganization, with a brand portfolio that was scattered across legacy and adjacent brands. They knew their identity needed to be direct, memorable, and future-facing (spoiler alert: they nailed it). About a year after their new brand launched, Luminate CEO, Rob Jonas, sat down with Bill Kenney 👋 and laid out his most surprising outcome of their rebrand as it relates to M&A. 👇 --- → P.S. Part One of our three-part blog series on M&A as it relates to brand is out now. Be sure to check it out: https://hubs.la/Q02ll0j70 #mergersandacquisitions #brand #brandarchitecture