DeSilva+Phillips’ client, WDA, a leading mobile-marketing technology and services firm, has been acquired by [x+1], a digital marketing and data management platform provider. This acquisition will allow [x+1] to integrate WDA’s technology and media sources into the [x+1] Origin data management platform, adding mobile to its programmatic arsenal. This acquisition is the first since [x+1]’s recent funding and is the second acquisition in 2013. The deal was led by DeSilva & Phillips.

WDA is a leading technical innovator in the fast-paced mobile advertising industry. The 12-year old company is deeply entrenched in the mobile market with direct ties to cellular operators and major media companies. Over the past 5 years, WDA has delivered a fully integrated technology suite that includes real-time bidding, developer SDKs for app marketing and rich decision-support system for marketers.

As an [x+1] partner, WDA has provided many [x+1] clients with the ability to deliver mobile mediaand analytics. This acquisition means WDA’s mobile marketing technology will be fully integrated into [x+1] Origin. This will provide [x+1] clients with the ability to identify, reach and react to their target audiences seamlessly across multiple devices including phones, tablets and the desktop.

“Mobile is critical to our clients,” said John Nardone, [x+1] chief executive officer, “and it’s only becoming more so as time goes on. Meeting the full range of their needs was important to us; and this led us to WDA. We’re pleased to bring the full scope of their offering directly to our clients and make it a central element of the [x+1] programmatic ecosystem.”

[x+1] clients will benefit from the integration of WDA’s technology by having access to one platform to automate and execute their campaigns across channels and touchpoints whether they are online or mobile, paid or owned. The integration will allow [x+1] to offer clients a number of key mobile marketing capabilities including:

• Integrated tracking of mobile ad buys for effective tracking and attribution
• LiveLinks™ technology that makes it possible to match mobile users with customer data in theDMP
• App tracking and analysis to measure downloads, usage and performance — and the ability to feed this information into the DMP
• The ability to directly serve mobile ads, videos and apps
• The ability to correctly render Web content for specific devices to ensure a consistently high-quality user experience
• A global network of app development partners and resources

These capabilities — and more — will be fully integrated into the [x+1] DMP. This means all the data, insights and optimization made possible by Origin will seamlessly inform mobile actions as well, making mobile a new and powerful element in the complete programmatic marketing mix.

“We’ve spent many years developing our platform and features to meet the evolving requirements of the mobile market,” said Konny Zsigo, founder and president of WDA. “That work, the relationships that have come of it and the value we’ve provided to a broad range of clients led [x+1] to seek us out as they sought to create a comprehensive mobile strategy. The work we’ve done as partners was exciting and on both sides we saw greater opportunities by bringing the companies together. I’m looking forward to bringing the full power of WDA to [x+1]’s clients.”

For some marketers mobile means little more than display, for others SMS. WDA has distinguished itself by supporting the broadest range of use cases: from mobile buys, to effective mobile tracking and targeting to supporting app stores and app marketing campaigns for major brands. The company’s long-term relationships with wireless carriers have also given it deeper insights into the devices coming online and how they will perform.

“We’ve long focused on giving our clients access to a digital marketing hub that allows them to inform and manage all their activities centrally,” said David Skinner, [x+1] SVP Corporate Development. “Mobile has become one of the most critical channels available and with WDA we’re allowing marketers to create new and more meaningful connections with their customers. These are some very powerful capabilities and we’re excited to offer them through the [x+1] DMP.”

About WDA
WDA’s technology suite integrates mobile media buying, mobile analytics, the app and mobile web ecosystems, social network marketing, mobilized traditional media such as QR codes, and closed loop marketing for implementing marketing programs that are repeatable, measurable, and attributable end-to-end. It offers a best-in-class platform for sophisticated automation and execution of campaigns, providing advertisers and their agencies all of the tools they need to be successful with mobile media.

About [x+1]
[x+1] enables Fortune 500 companies to programmatically manage customer and prospect interactions across all their paid and owned digital channels. The [x+1] Origin Data Management Platform (DMP), powered by the Predictive Optimization Engine (POE™), enables marketers to harness data to target, optimize and synchronize their offers, content and messages through websites, display, email, mobile, SMS, apps, call center chat and beyond — all in real time. Top companies in financial service, insurance, gaming, automotive, retail, telecommunication, online services and travel have significantly improved the performance of their digital marketing campaigns by working with [x+1]. The company is headquartered in New York City with offices in Connecticut and Illinois.