Rival Ad-Tech Firms to Become One
Rival ad-technology companies Donovan Data Systems Inc. and MediaBank LLC are merging to create a new company called MediaOcean, in a bid to head off competition from Google Inc. and bolster their efforts to transition into the digital age.
The closely held companies value their combination at $1.5 billion and will together process $150 billion in global advertising spending each year, according to people familiar with the matter. Both companies declined to disclose their revenues.
DDS, of New York, and MediaBank, of Chicago, have competed against one another for years in the business of providing the advertising industry with software that lets ad agencies book advertising time across a range of media, ensure those ads appear, bill clients and pay the media platforms that host the ads.
