Publicis to Buy Razorfish from Microsoft
Microsoft unloaded a potential conflict of interest today when it agreed to sell Razorfish to Publicis for $530 million.
Microsoft had picked up Razorfish (then known as Avenue A | Razorfish) as part of its 2007 acquisition of aQuantive. That put Microsoft in a position where it was selling ads to itself, and buying ads from its search engine competitors.
Publicis helped Google out of a similar situation last year when it bought Performics from Google. Performics came to Google with the acquisition of DoubleClick.
Razorfish will continue to operate under its brand name and will be part of VivaKi, a Publicis entity that includes Digitas, Starcom MediaVest Group, Denuo, and ZenithOptimedia. Razorfish’s management team, including CEO Bob Lord, will remain in place, according to a joint statement issued by Microsoft and Publicis.
The deal includes a 5-year deal where Publicis will get preferred rates on Microsoft’s advertising properties, including its Bing search engine, as long as it meets certain ad-buying quotas.
More about:
The Merkle B2B 2023 Superpowers Index outlines what drives competitive advantage within the business culture and subcultures that are critical to success. It is the indispensable guide for B2B marketers to deliver world-class experiences and keep pace with the dynamic environment. Download Now
The ClicData survey found that various challenges exist that prevent organizations from achieving such gains. These challenges included inaccessible data formats and limited flexibility in displaying data in dashboards. Download Now
The need for fraud prevention in the digital world is critical now more than ever. Why? Thinking about your own behavior, consider how you complete transactions and how this has changed over the last 5 years. Download Now
The need for fraud prevention in the digital world is critical now more than ever. Why? Thinking about your own behavior, consider how you complete transactions and how this has changed over the last 5 years. Download Now