A new player entered the field of play in August, intent to purchase Kantar’s Reputation Intelligence division. It looks to be an exciting addition to the industry. We also saw acquisition news from Talkwalker, Hootsuite and Intrado Digital Media, and an interesting long read from the World Health Organisation.
Kantar to sell Reputation Intelligence division
It seems we have a new private equity player joining the media intelligence game. Symphony Technology Group (STG) is set to purchase Europe’s largest media intelligence provider – Kantar’s Reputation Intelligence division. According to Ian Griffiths, Kantar’s deputy CEO and CFO, “under this new ownership structure Reputation Intelligence would have the flexibility and capacity to prioritise its growth and innovation priorities”. The sale is expected to close at the end of the year. Petra Masinova is the current global director for the division, and its CEO-in-waiting.
Reviewbox finds a new home at Talkwalker
Hootsuite invests in customer support tech
Talkwalker wasn’t the only social intelligence company investing in complementary tech. Vancouver’s Hootsuite has picked up fellow Canadian company Heyday for $USD48 million. Heyday is a specialist in customer service automation support, and enables businesses to handle everyday questions from customers, alongside assisting with order tracking. It aligns brilliantly with Hootsuite’s transition from social media management to automated customer support software.
Intrado adds events intelligence
You’d think that Intrado Digital Media would have enough event technology and intelligence at its fingertips but, clearly, it felt differently. The company has acquired Hubb, for an undisclosed sum. Hubb supports virtual and in-person events with a platform that helps to streamline processes while providing insights. The Hubb platform collects, manages and markets event data. It will be interesting to see how Intrado combines it’s newly acquired event data with its other marketing analytics.
WHO releases COVID-19 methodology
If you’re anything like me, you’ll love a good data story. The World Health Organisation and Media Measurement have released their methodology to filter and understand global public conversations in English and French related to COVID-19 on social media. The paper can be found in the new journal JMIR Infodemiology. It’s a fascinating look into the use of social listening taxonomoies, and how the data for the WHO-Ears is being sourced.
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