GroupM Launches Xaxis – Ad Industry’s Most Comprehensive Audience Buying Solution

New Business Houses World’s Largest Pool of Audience Data; Offers More Consumer Touchpoints Than Any Other in the Industry

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--GroupM announced today the launch of Xaxis, a global audience buying company that combines all of the demand-side data and technology resources of WPP (NASDAQ:WPPGY) and the trading leverage of the GroupM agencies into a single comprehensive resource. Housing the world’s largest pool of audience profiles in its proprietary database and reaching more touchpoints than any other solution in the industry, Xaxis empowers GroupM clients to deliver targeted advertising to global audiences more effectively than ever before. At launch, Xaxis will have a presence in 11 countries across North America, the UK, Europe and Australia, with plans to expand into additional markets later this year.

“As a proprietary platform, Xaxis is able to better protect client data, more effectively integrate real-time bidding with search and more seamlessly execute campaigns across multiple media owners and digital platforms.”

WPP’s introduction of Xaxis attests to the rapidly growing importance of audience buying and the demand for solutions that allow advertisers to target specific audiences directly, independent of website, app or media platform. Xaxis’ proprietary data management platform, which aggregates audience information across multiple online and offline channels, enables GroupM clients to target highly-specific Audience Portraits across the universe of addressable media. By reaching only the most relevant audiences via a variety of media platforms – display advertising, mobile ads, video ads and paid social media – Xaxis delivers dramatically improved performance at lower cost than other industry solutions.

In forming Xaxis, WPP brings together a broad portfolio of audience buying capabilities that have been independently developed and optimized in various parts of GroupM and WPP Digital over the past three years in businesses including B3, targ.ad, GoldNetwork, GroupM DSP and the GroupM Marketplace. In 2010 alone, the businesses that have combined to form Xaxis executed approximately 4,000 campaigns for more than 400 GroupM clients. Xaxis will be led by CEO Brian Lesser, who previously served as global general manager of the Media Innovation Group (MIG), WPP’s digital marketing technology company.

“Xaxis streamlines and improves advertisers’ ability to directly target specific audiences, at scale and at lower cost than any other audience buying solution,” said Brian Lesser. “In addition to more effective audience targeting, Xaxis navigates the complex and highly specialized digital marketing environment of DSPs, ad exchanges, ad networks, optimization tools and data suppliers. Because Xaxis operates a proprietary technology platform without bias to any media company, we can better provide objective and comprehensive insight to our partners.”

“Over the past three years we have made significant investment in our demand-side buying capabilities across North America and key European markets. We are pleased to combine that knowledge and expertise into the industry’s first, completely self-contained audience buying solution,” said Rob Norman, CEO of GroupM Interaction. “As a proprietary platform, Xaxis is able to better protect client data, more effectively integrate real-time bidding with search and more seamlessly execute campaigns across multiple media owners and digital platforms.”

Xaxis will launch with products that help advertisers generate brand awareness, engage with customers and drive actions across all digital media channels with measurable return on investment. One such product allows advertisers to precisely extend the reach of television audiences through digital media with zero waste. Xaxis also provides advertisers exclusive access to audience targeting in premium contextual environments comprised of GroupM’s top media partners. All Xaxis media products are supported by insight and analysis made possible by the proprietary Xaxis data management platform, the only technology of its kind amongst media agencies.

“Historically, the most robust technology solutions have been applied to the process of selling media on behalf of publishers,” said Mark Read, CEO of WPP Digital. “With Xaxis, we introduce a significant advance to the demand-side of the equation, allowing us to optimize and target client campaigns with an unprecedented level of precision across multiple digital platforms. No other media group offers advertisers a comparable level of sophistication and reach in their audience buying capabilities.”

About Xaxis

Xaxis is the world’s largest audience buying company. Through its proprietary platform, Xaxis offers advertisers a single, comprehensive resource from which to reach and engage with global audiences across the universe of digital media. Xaxis does this for its GroupM agency partners, Maxus, MEC, MediaCom, and Mindshare. Xaxis has a presence in 11 countries across North America, Europe, and Australia. Xaxis is part of WPP.

Xaxis | Digital Brilliance

ABOUT GROUPM

GroupM is the leading global media investment management operation. It serves as the parent company to WPP media agencies including Maxus, MEC, MediaCom, and Mindshare. Our primary purpose is to maximize the performance of WPP’s media communications agencies on behalf of our clients, our stakeholders and our people by operating as a parent and collaborator in performance-enhancing activities such as trading, content creation, sports, digital, finance, proprietary tool development and other business-critical capabilities. The agencies that comprise GroupM are all global operations in their own right with leading market positions. The focus of GroupM is the intelligent application of physical and intellectual scale to benefit trading, innovation, and new communication services, to bring competitive advantage to our clients and our companies.

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