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Gartner has announced results for the first quarter of 2024, with revenue up 4.6% (FX neutral) to $1.473bn, and adjusted EBITDA of $382m, up 1.7% on the same basis. More
In the US, ad tech platform Infillion has relaunched MediaMath, the DSP and data management firm whose assets it acquired out of bankruptcy last summer. More
Tech consulting and research firm Forrester has reported first quarter revenues down around 12% to $100.1m, and adjusted net income of $2.8m, down from $5.1m a year earlier. More
Kantar has announced a change in its measurement of the effectiveness of ads on social network Meta within its LIFT and LIFT+ products, which will now be available through its Direct Integrations platform. More
WPP has issued a first quarter trading update, with like-for-like revenue less pass-through costs down 1.6% to £2.69bn. CEO Mark Read said the results were in line with expectations, reflecting tough comparatives, and that the firm 'remains on track to return to growth in the balance of the year'. More
Digital music pioneer Spotify has relinquished its membership of the IAB, according to reports. The company with the largest global audio ad-supported revenue is therefore no longer certified for podcast audience measurement, but says it is 'taking a pause' and 'remains committed to the IAB mission'. More
Ipsos has reported continued solid growth in the first quarter of the year, with revenue up 4.5% in organic terms, to EUR 557.5m. The EMEA and Asia Pacific regions led the way with revenue up more than 9% in each case (organic) while the Americas saw a 3.2% decline. More
DIY online survey pioneer SurveyMonkey has promoted Priya Gill to Global Head of Marketing, leading its marketing strategy and execution across all markets. More
Digital media measurement and analytics firm DoubleVerify (DV) has apologised to X, formerly known as Twitter, for an error which over a recent four-month period gave the microblogging site brand safety ratings as low as 70%, when actual scores were as high as 99.99%, according to reports. More
Panel company Intra Research has appointed Helle Raun Oddershede as its new CEO, taking over from Marina Moshenska who moves into the role of Chief Operating Officer. More
Insights technology and panel provider Toluna has appointed Lucia Moir as Chief Operations Officer and promoted Priyanka Sarkar to Chief Research Officer. More
Snap Inc, parent of photo sharing app Snapchat, has announced a partnership and integration with app marketplace Snowflake, promising its advertisers encrypted, privacy-safe and effective ad solutions and signal measurement. Snap also has a new measurement partnership with AppsFlyer. More
London-based marketing group Unlimited, parent of insight agency Walnut, is to join Accenture Song, the business services behemoth's 'tech-powered creative group'. Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed. More
Santa Monica, CA-based research tech firm Fuel Cycle has enhanced its Research Engine platform with the addition of Universal Connections, a feature allowing users to run projects from within insight communities using their preferred insights tools, whether or not they are fully integrated with the platform. More
Marketing intel and programmatic media specialist MiQ has announced the launch of its TV Intelligence platform in the UK, US, Canada and Australia, promising users a complete view of audience, campaign and competitor intelligence across linear TV, CTV and YouTube in one place. More
Social media management software firm Hootsuite is to acquire listening specialist Talkwalker, for an undisclosed sum. More
Australia-based Out-of-Home tracking and measurement specialist Veridooh has appointed Nick Parker, formerly Global COO of WPP agency Kinetic, as its Global President, charged with driving the firm's expansion info new markets. More
UK-based consumer and B2B researcher 2CV has announced eleven promotions, including Chris Oatey and Jon Smetherham to Regional Directors, responsible for leading the Asia team based in Singapore; and in the UK Kar Hoo Lee to Associate Director of Data Services and Abigail Plank to Associate Director. More
Experience Management (XM) company Qualtrics has appointed Juan Rodriguez as Chief Information Officer and Assaf Keren joins Qualtrics as Chief Security Officer. More
Kantar has promoted Amanjit Singh to Regional Marketing Director - APAC, after more than thirteen years at the company. More
MCI, a tech-enabled business services conglomerate headquartered in Miami Beach, FL, has agreed to acquire Atlanta, GA-based Market Force Information, whose range of CX solutions includes customer feedback surveys, mystery shopping, operational audits and competitive benchmarking. More
Eponymous online survey firm SurveyMonkey has promoted Jing Huang to VP, Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning, Katie Miserany to SVP and Chief Communications Officer, and Craik Pyke to VP, Infrastructure and Security Engineering. The firm now boasts gender equality at both the C-Suite and VP levels. More
Australian owned agency TKW Research Group has launched a new call centre in Suva, Fiji, promising 'CATI-quality data at online survey prices'. More
Insight and analytics group BVA BDRC has launched synthetic data product Pixel.AI, which it says accurately predicts responses from restricted segments by training on existing and representative data. More
Insights and experience tech company PG Forsta has appointed Mike Thompson as Chief Analytics Officer, and says he will drive the development of new AI-driven capabilities and products, following the company's commitment to invest $500 million in the area over five years. More
Ipsos has launched an Out of Home (OOH) advertising solution promising to help users assess and optimise OOH creative in as little as 24 hours. More
In Australia, video-based insight consultancy Qualie has appointed Lena Kelly as Senior Researcher and Strategist. More
US-based mobile app market intelligence and insights provider Sensor Tower has announced the acquisition of mobile marketing firm data.ai, formerly known as App Annie. Terms were not disclosed. More
Consumer and B2B research agency 2CV has promoted Sabine Cronick to the role of CEO of UK/EU, and James Redden to CEO of US and APAC. More
Attention measurement specialist Amplified Intelligence has teamed up with photo sharing app Snapchat and media agency OMD to assess how audiences engage with Snapchat's augmented reality (AR) Lenses. More
San Francisco-based predictive intelligence firm 6sense has appointed Jerome Levadoux as its first Chief Product Officer. More
In West Palm Beach, Florida, MR industry veterans Hugh Davis and Keith Price have launched ACKWEST Group, a holding company which will focus on buying and developing emerging tech-driven enterprises in the consumer insights and marketing services sector. More
Former Dynata Chief Gary Laben has joined retail and consumer goods analytics and inventory optimisation firm Trax, as CEO. More
Australia marketing advisory, strategy and analytics company Forethought has appointed Diane Shelton and Andrew Slot as Joint Managing Directors, effective immediately. Shelton is a former CEO returning to the firm, while ten-year company veteran Slot has been serving as Interim MD for the past year. More
Australia's Commercial Radio & Audio (CRA) is to expand its regional audience surveys, conducted by Xtra Insights, to include more markets this year, while for the first time CATI surveys will be supplemented by the launch of online survey sampling in eight markets. More
Technology research and advisory firm Information Services Group (ISG) has reported revenue for the full year 2023 of $291m, up 1.7% despite a very slow fourth quarter in which revenue dropped 11% to $66.2m. More
Miami-based PR platform Muck Rack has enhanced its measurement and reporting capabilities with new features for areas including media impact analysis, brand reputation insights and competitive analysis. More
Comscore has reported full year 2023 revenue of $371.3m, down 1.4%, but with FX-neutral adjusted EBITDA up 29% to $46.9m. CEO Jon Carpenter pointed to growth in local TV measurement and in the CCR and Proximic offerings as strong indicators for the future. More
Adelaide, Australia-based attention measurement specialist Amplified Intelligence has appointed Anthony Capano as EVP Global Head of SaaS. More
Business services colossus Accenture has acquired Melbourne-based marketing tech consultancy The Lumery, adding expertise in areas including personalization, CRM and loyalty, testing and experimentation, and automation to its Accenture Song division Down Under. More
US-based data firm J.D. Power has completed the acquisition of Autovista Group, which provides automotive data, analytics and industry insights in Europe and Australia, from asset management firm Hayfin Capital Management. Autovista CEO Lindsey Roberts becomes President of J.D. Power Europe. More
Insight and customer analytics group STRAT7 has announced twenty-one appointments / promotions, including four senior promotions at Crowd DNA, and the creation of eight new roles. More
NIQ, the consumer intelligence company previously part of Nielsen and now combined with GfK, has launched a Global Media Division, which it says is 'designed to enhance the value advertisers derive from their marketing efforts' - and has appointed Lana Busignani to lead it. More
Ipsos has launched InnoExplorer, which uses generative and analytical AI to help clients accelerate innovation cycles 'from months to days' and improve success rates. More
Brand tracking specialist Tracksuit has raised $13.5m in Series A funding, which it will use for its official launch in the US and UK markets, and to expand its research and platform capabilities. More
AI-based insights firm Yabble has updated its synthetic research tool Virtual Audiences, allowing users to upload and integrate their own proprietary datasets to tailor the personas of synthetic respondents to suit their business. More
Marcoms group Stagwell has reported full year 2023 revenue of $2.53bn, down 6% year on year, and adjusted EBITDA of $360m, down 20%. However the company reports strong new business, good growth in EMEA and for its Marketing Cloud suite, and is forecasting a return to growth in 2024. More
In a deal described as 'a world-first industry collaboration between media industry measurement bodies', OzTAM audience data for BVOD - the streaming and catch-up services offered by TV broadcasters - is to be integrated into Ipsos iris, the approved currency of IAB Australia. More
Marcoms group Stagwell, the owner of the Harris Poll and Harris X brands as well as Maru Group, has launched a new global research community called Unlock Surveys, with plans to add more than 200,000 high-quality, active survey members in 2024. More
WPP has reported preliminary results for the full year 2023, with revenue (less pass-through costs) of £11.86bn, up 0.9% on a like-for-like basis, and operating profit down more than 60% to £531m. More
Ipsos has reported organic, constant currency revenue growth of 8.8% for the fourth quarter of 2023, and 3% for the full year, with operating profit stable at an all-time high of 13.1%. More
Former Kantar NZ researcher Jo Muller has joined marketing strategy and professional services consultancy the One Picture Group, as Director and Co-Head of Quantitative Insights for New Zealand. More
Longtime Ipsos exec and current Global Head of Audience Measurement Liz Landy is to leave the company at the end of this month. Daniel Wong-Chi-Man will step up to Lead the Audience Measurement Service Line globally, while Ipsos iris leader James Oates will add responsibility for the business in the UK. More
Nielsen has announced that its Pacific Broadcaster & Publisher Lead Tony Boyte will be stepping down in April, to be replaced by eighteen-year company veteran Scott Gillham. More
Packaging, NPD and shopper specialist PRS IN VIVO has appointed Richard Bordenave as global Chief Behavioral Officer. More
Kantar has announced a partnership with computer vision and attention measurement specialist Realeyes, integrating the latter's Verify identity recognition software into the former's anti-fraud software QubedAI. More
GroupM's new data / audience planning agency EssenceMediacom has formed a dedicated data, technology and analytics function to 'deliver business solutions to clients in the post-cookie era'. Poorani Adewole transfers in from Mindshare to lead the unit as Chief of Data, Technology and Analytics. More
Sydney-based CRNRSTONE, the research and data division of comms agency Bastion, has appointed Nathan Saville, formerly COO of Pollinate, as General Manager. More
European consulting and digital services firm Sopra Steria has announced a partnership with media insights firm TRP Research to help broadcasters, advertisers and others understand the way television and VOD services are consumed across different devices and platforms by UK audiences. More
Nielsen is expanding its Connected TV (CTV) measurement of YouTube ads into eleven additional global markets, including Germany, India, Japan and the UK. More
In the US, technology researcher Forrester has reported full year 2023 revenue of $480.8m, down 11% on 2022. Adjusted net income was $36.6m, down from $47.2m a year earlier. More
Australian market research technology platform Glow is developing its sustainability metric the Social Responsibility Score (SRS) as a standardized, cross-industry initiative and says it is currently being integrated into the offerings of Kantar, PwC Australia and other research and advisory businesses. More
Customer and employee experience firm Medallia has announced four AI-based innovations - Ask Athena, Intelligent Summaries, Smart Response and Themes - geared to personalising customer and employee experience; and has launched a fully self-service MR tool, Medallia Agile Research. More
Consumer behavioral data firm Circana has launched Liquid Data Engage, which allows retailers to manage market performance, category management, loyalty, supply chain, and retail media data assets in one solution, and identify opportunities for growth. More
Technology consulting firm Gartner has reported full year revenue of $5.9bn, up 8%, and adjusted EBITDA of $1.5bn, up 2% after allowing for currency changes. Revenue growth slowed again and EBITDA fell slightly in the fourth quarter. More
Consumer intelligence provider NIQ has announced two key leadership changes in the Asia Pacific region. Pacific MD Megan Treston will transition to a regional role as APAC Consumer Panel Service (CPS) Product Lead, while recent arrival Pete Sheridan steps into her old role. More
Consumer data giant Circana has announced changes to its commercial organisation including the appointment of former CPG sector President Jeremy Allen as Chief Commercial Officer. Tim Bush, currently President, General Merchandise, will retire by the end of the year after two decades at Circana and NPD. More
First-party data provider Dynata has recently appointed long-time Toluna marketing leader Janice Caston as EVP of Marketing, and Rebecca Bello as VP Product. More
Food, facilities and hospitality services provider Sodexo has announced the global launch of an Accelerator Programme with categories for entrepreneurs in data analytics and customer experience. More
In the US, innovation and experience consultancy Bounteous is to merge with digital engineering, data and AI services provider Accolite Digital, creating a new end-to-end digital transformation services consultancy with a focus on 'co-innovation'. More
Comscore has promoted Alejandro Fosk, previously SVP for Latin America, to EVP International, overseeing its EMEA, APAC and LATAM regions. More
Agile and automated market research platform Zappi has appointed Nataly Kelly as Chief Marketing Officer and promoted Babita Earle from EVP of Global Enterprise Partnerships to International MD. The firm also recently hired Melissa Clucas as CFO. More
Brand measurement company On Device Research has appointed Allan Breiland in the new role of Research Director ANZ, tasked with expanding and tailoring its brand measurement solutions across the region. More
Human8 has promoted Amy Perifanos, previously VP of Commercial Solutions North America, to global Chief Portfolio Officer, with a seat on the Global Leadership Team. More
Automated in-home product testing platform Highlight has announced changes to its leadership team, with the appointments of Priyanka Carr as COO and President, and Deirdre Norris as VP of Product. More
Australia-based insights and data business Pureprofile has announced revenue up 8% to $AUD 24m for the half year ended 31st December, and EBITDA of $AUD 2.4m, up 6% or 21% on a like-for-like basis. More
Australian independent media agency Kaimera has appointed former GroupM exec Brett Camilleri as its first Chief Data Officer. More
Toluna has appointed Lucie Claire Vincent Ortiz to its Board of Directors. As a senior operating executive in multinational consumer product companies, including Colgate-Palmolive Co. and Philip Morris International, she will advise the Board with a particular focus on the needs of this sector. More
Audience intelligence platform Pulsar has launched a product called SEARCH, promising instant, search engine-style discovery of news coverage on any topic, across media types and languages. More
Sir Martin Sorrell's digital marketing group S4 Capital has issued a trading update following a 'difficult year' in which revenue declined around 4%, and says it does not expect any improvement in macro-economic conditions this year. More
Insights consultancy Nature has appointed Gareth Joe, formerly Associate Strategy Director at branding agency Principals, as Brand Strategist. More
MR and analytics group YouGov has promoted Tom Fisher to Chief Commercial Officer (CCO), aiming to deepen its relationships with blue-chip clients. More
Media measurement and ad currency giant Nielsen has appointed former Buzzfeed exec Carole Robinson as Chief Communications Officer. More
Data sharing and activation platform LiveRamp has agreed to acquire clean room software provider Habu, for cash and stock totalling around $200m. LiveRamp says the deal will 'unlock powerful measurement and analytics use cases' as well as more generally enhancing its collaboration offer. More
Dynata has appointed three senior directors: Derek Brown as VP Australia and New Zealand, based in Sydney; Michael Fegan as VP North Asia, based in Hong Kong; and Russell Carter as Country Manager in Singapore. More
New York-based customer engagement and CXM platform Emplifi, which grew out of the merger of Astute and Socialbakers, has appointed Ohad Hecht as its new CEO. More
Insights tech and panel provider Toluna has promoted Scott Axcell, formerly Head of Marketing for North America, to Chief Marketing Officer. He also joins the executive leadership team. More
Insight and communities firm Verve has announced eighteen promotions across its locations in London, Manchester, Sydney, Iasi (Romania) and Johannesburg, including the appointment of Kim Howard as Semiotics Research Director. More
Australia-based data and insights company Pureprofile is opening new offices in Germany and Portugal, its twelfth and thirteenth worldwide; and has appointed Thorsten Hardtke as Business Development Manager for DACH and Ricardo Cordova for Portugal and Spain. More
Marcoms group Interpublic has announced that Chad Engelgau, CEO of its data and marketing services company Acxiom, will leave at the end of this month, after a total of seventeen years with the company, to pursue an opportunity in the non-profit sector. A search for his successor is underway. More
GroupM, WPP's media investment group, has announced it will integrate behavioral data into its Choreograph insights platform via Google's Audience Insights API. More
UK-based b2b services group Informa Plc is combining part of its business with US-based b2b purchase intent specialist TechTarget to create a new company in which Informa will hold a majority stake. The British firm will also pay $350m in cash. More
WPP is examining a possible sale of its remaining stake in Kantar, according to sources quoted by Bloomberg. More
GfK has completed the sale of its European Consumer Panel Services business (CPS GfK) to YouGov, a divestment required under competition law as part of the German-based global group's merger with retail data giant NIQ. The deal has been valued at around EUR 315m. More
Community-centered CX and insights firm Alida has a new CEO: Efrem Ainsley is promoted from COO to succeed Ross Wainwright, who recently stepped down from the role. More
Kantar Media may be up for sale in 2024 for 'as much as £1bn', according to reports on Sky News. More
Founder Ross McCray is stepping down as CEO of VideoAmp, with former Discovery and Fox exec Peter Liguori joining as Executive Chairman and ex-Nielsen man Peter Bradbury as Chief Commercial and Growth Officer. The company will also cut almost 20% of its staff, according to reports. More
Insights group Human8 has announced a change of leadership at its cultural and creative consultancy Space Doctors. Co-founder and MD Fiona McNae will leave the company at the end of this year, after 22 years, to be replaced by Gareth Lewis and Cato Hunt. More
IBM has agreed to acquire two data management and integration platforms from Software AG, for EUR 2.13bn in cash. StreamSets is a cloud-native DataOps and data ingestion platform, while webMethods focuses on data integration and API management. More
Social media intelligence and analytics group Meltwater will benefit from a $65m investment from Norwegian private equity firm Verdane, which takes an 11% stake in the company as a result - valuing Meltwater at around $592m. More
Sydney, Australia-based decision intelligence platform SourseAI has raised $AUD 3m in funding, earmarked for development of its AI platform for telcos, and recruitment for its UK team and Australia-based R&D team. More
Tech markets insight firm Counterpoint Research has completed the acquisition of display industry specialist Display Supply Chain Consultants (DSCC). More
Consumer data and analytics firm NIQ has announced the launch of NIQ Labs, an innovation center which it says will 'harness the collective power of top-tier talent and capabilities acquired through strategic M&As'. More
DRNO's News Editor of seventeen years Mel Crowther passed away last week after a battle with cancer. Mel has been a wonderful colleague and the driving force in making this publication what it is today, as well as a well-loved figure in the industry, and I'm sorry I know her loss will come as a shock to a lot of you. More
Stockholm, Sweden-based eye tracking and attention computing pioneer Tobii has agreed to acquire FotoNation from audio, imaging and computing technology products firm Xperi, for a minimum consideration of $US 45m. The buy includes in-vehicle monitoring systems AutoSense and adds c.250 full-time staff. More
In Chicago, fast-growing agency QualSights has appointed Tod Johnson and Karyn Schoenbart to its Board of Directors. More
In Pasadena, California, behavioral and location insights specialist Near Intelligence, Inc. has announced it has entered Chapter 11 proceedings in a US Bankruptcy Court, which will supervise the attempted sale of its assets. More
In Australia, Nielsen has rolled out a reporting platform for the country's new 'VOZ' cross-media audience measurement solution, based on the company's established eTAM software. More
London-based research operations platform Ayda has expanded its incentive payout capabilities to offer payments in USD and Euros - and its country coverage to 52 states worldwide. More
Consumer research platform GWI has appointed former OAG tech leader Nick Dearden as CTO, based in its UK headquarters in London. More
Australian TV audience measurement body OzTAM says its Virtual Australia (VOZ) measurement solution is on track for launch in 2024, with media agencies set to begin embedding the VOZ database in their systems in the coming months. More
Customer and employee experience solutions provider Medallia has appointed Nick Martin as SVP International. More
AI data platform company VAST Data has secured $118m in Series E Funding, valuing the company at $9.1bn. The money will help it expand in Asia Pacific, the Middle East and Europe, and support its mission to put data 'at the center of how systems think, react and discover'. More
'In The Moment' emotive analytics firm Blue Yonder Research has been granted a patent in the US, UK and Europe for its Clickscape technology, which links measured emotions to specific moments in real time. More
Ipsos has appointed Eleni Nicholas as Chief Client Officer, with seats on the firm's Executive Committee and Group Management Committee. More
Insights technology and panel provider Toluna has confirmed key leadership positions including regional Managing Directors, following its summer acquisition of MetrixLab. More
New Zealand-based customer insights platform Ideally has appointed Simon Gawn to lead Australian operations, reflecting its 'ambitious growth strategy'. More
We are 25! On 29th Nov 1998 the first job ad appeared on mrweb.com. We're celebrating with the relaunch of our directories, under a new brand and with an ambitious new approach; and with Thank You's to our regular advertisers and some special offers for new ones. More
Kantar Australia has promoted Mark Kennedy and Colin MacArthur to the joint role of Managing Partner, Consulting, replacing Dennis Wong who is leaving the company after fifteen years to pursue his own freelance consulting business. More
US and Australia-based customer research platform Dovetail has appointed Kate Andrews as Head of Technology. More
The Australian Influencer Marketing Council (AiMCO) has launched a specialist guide on the key topic of metrics and measurement, offering a guide to measurement and metrics best practice in influencer marketing. More
In Brisbane, data-driven media and ad services agency Audience Group has added three new members to its team. More
SurveyMonkey has rolled out its new technology - 'Build with AI' - globally. The software is powered by OpenAI and more than twenty years' of the company's data, allowing users to draft a survey by just describing the desired survey or goal. More
Kantar has launched a proprietary attention framework, which uses facial coding and new gaze monitoring components to give advertisers measures of both active and passive attention, and uncover how well ad content captures the attention of viewers on a second-by-second basis. More
Australia-based strategic insights consultancy Nature has expanded in Melbourne and Sydney with eight new hires, including Joe Curran in the newly created position of Head of Operations. More
Australia-based data and insights company Pureprofile has announced strong results for the third quarter of 2023, with revenue up 16% to $AUD 12.3m and continuing adjusted EBITDA of $AUD 1.5m, up 36%. More
Sir Martin Sorrell's S4 Capital has reported on a difficult third quarter, with net revenue down 15.4% (10% like-for-like) reflecting lower activity in its Content and Data&Digital media businesses. More
Mobile app measurement platform AppsFlyer has acquired devtodev, which helps developers analyze their games and apps, helping them to optimize user retention, maximize conversions and create personalized experiences. Terms of the deal have not been disclosed. More
Not-for-profit industry organisation Audited Media Association of Australia (AMAA) has announced that long-standing CEO Josanne Ryan is leaving the organisation in mid-November. It has also appointed one of its Directors, Patrick Whitnall, to the newly created role of Managing Director of AiMCO. More
Consumer intelligence business NIQ has launched an omnishopper panel, which exceeds 30,000 Australian households and provides data for around 70 retail banners across a number of sectors. It is underpinned by a mobile consumer rewards app which captures data from 250,000 receipts per month. More
Asia-focused online MR specialist GMO Research has launched an API connection method called 'Organic Sampling', which it says will enhance targeting accuracy, improve user satisfaction and promote a 'significant uptick' in survey completion rates. More
Comscore has reported a 1.9% drop in third quarter revenue to $91.0m; but also improved EBITDA, and net income of $2.6m, compared with a net loss of $52.4m in Q3 2022. More
Tiburon, California-based company Jon Peddie Research has launched a consulting division to be known as JPRi. The new unit will provide strategic advice on product pipeline, marketing roadmap, M&A opportunities, and internal efficiency for clients in the Game Tech market. More
Toluna has confirmed its senior team following the June acquisition of MetrixLab. The firm's Chief Sales, Research, Technology and Financial Officers will remain in role while former MetrixLab Global HR Director Hans Verhulst becomes Chief People Officer and Jolique Weelink Chief Insight Officer. More
Tech research and consulting group Gartner has announced third quarter revenue of $1.4bn, up 5.8% or 4.9% at constant currency. Profits were flat with adjusted EBITDA of $333m. More
Tech research and advisory firm Information Services Group (ISG) has announced third quarter revenue up 4.2% to $71.8m (about half of this organic) and adjusted EBITDA flat at $10.6m. It has also announced the acquisition of Ventana Research, expanding its coverage into the software industry. More
Less than a year after setting up its ad intelligence unit Vivvix, Kantar has sold it to US-based MediaRadar, which now aims to become 'the definitive source of advertising data and insights'. More
In London, agile consumer insights platform aytm (Ask Your Target Market) has appointed research tech veteran Johnny Caldwell as Client Director, EMEA & APAC, supporting its continuing expansion into global markets. More
Marcoms group Stagwell, which owns the Harris Poll and Harris X brands as well as Maru Group, has announced a revenue decline of 7% to $618m, for the third quarter of 2023. It has also announced the acquisition of social media marketing solutions provider Movers and Shakers LLC, for c.$15m in cash. More
UK-based Ascential, the information and analytics company once known as EMAP, has announced it will sell its digital commerce and consumer research units for around £1.4bn, so as to focus on its events business. More
Ipsos has acquired New Zealand's CBG Health Research Ltd from its previous owner, research and telehealth services firm Reach Aotearoa. More
In Australia, official television audience measurement body OzTAM has responded to Foxtel's launch last week of its own ad currency service, saying it 'poses the risk of confusion in the market' and that 'the industry has clearly stated that it wants one service to measure Total TV'. More
PR group Hill+Knowlton Strategies has announced the formation of a global Intelligence + Technology capability; a partnership with Pendulum Intelligence; and the launch of a proactive analytics tool, H+K Sonar, which helps firms detect, predict and mitigate harmful narratives online. More
Tech consultancy Forrester Research has announced third quarter revenue of $113.4m, down 11.2% from $127.7m a year earlier. The Consulting division reported the biggest fall, down 24.5% to $28.2m. More
Ipsos has reported third quarter revenue of EUR 588m, representing organic growth of 4.3% and restoring year-to-date organic growth after shrinkage in the first half. All the group's global regions shared in the Q3 growth, with EMEA leading the way. More
Global data and insights company Pureprofile has announced two appointments to strengthen its UK operations. Samantha Cooke joins as Senior Partnerships Manager UK, and Tyrone S'ng as Client Development Manager. More
WPP has reported third quarter revenue less pass-through costs of $2.837bn, down 0.6% on a like-for-like basis and 5.0% on a reported basis. Declines in North America and China offset growth in the UK, Western Continental Europe and the firm's 'Rest of World' region. More
DIY online survey synonym SurveyMonkey has launched Build with AI, a survey creation feature powered by OpenAI's GPT-3 software. More
Inight platform and sample exchange Cint has enhanced its attitudinal measurement product, Lucid Impact Measurement, with the integration of social media platform measurement. More
Kantar has announced a 'broad expansion' of AI capabilities within its brand strategy and creative development portfolio. They include Link subscriptions, to help stretch ad testing budgets; celebrity recognition in Link AI testing; predictive eye tracking; big data for threat detection; and help with 'sonic branding'. More
Divested government policy and comms advisory business Kantar Public will be rebranding globally as 'Verian' from November. More
Cross-media audience measurement solution Beatgrid has announced a partnership with marcoms firm PHD Australia, a part of Omnicom. More
In the US, AI-powered sponsorship analytics platform Relo Metrics has announced a strategic partnership with SponsorPulse to offer asset-level validation of sponsorship performance for the National Hockey League (NHL). More
Today sees the launch of Ipsos RISE, which combines the group's corporate reputation and public affairs expertise with AI to provide 'a ground-breaking platform for modern brand, risk and reputation management'. More
Streaming service Netflix has made ad measurement a 'top priority', and will build on a recent partnership with Nielsen in the US to offer similar capabilities to partners in other countries, according to co-CEO Greg Peters. More
Customer and employee experience specialist Medallia has appointed Simonetta Turek as Chief Product Officer and a member of the executive leadership team. More
AI-based insights solution Yabble is to enter the European market, and has appointed Ben Leet as Head of Sales, Europe. The firm is headquartered in New Zealand. More
Nielsen has launched its ONE Content cross-media measurement solution in a first country, Denmark, with plans to roll out around the world over the coming months. Sister product Neilsen ONE Ads is already available in twenty markets. More
Technology markets research and consulting group Forrester has launched an AI tool called Izola, allowing users to query its knowledge base and receive 'a clear, synthesized answer' via a chat interface. More
Australia-based data and insights company Pureprofile has appointed former Brandwatch Chairman Mark Heeley as a Non-Executive Director. More
Neighborhood networking service Nextdoor has launched new solutions to help users measure and optimize ad performance, both on- and off-line. More
Research tech firm SightX has moved its VP Global Commercialization Daryl Maloney McCall to focus on regional growth in Europe and APAC, as its offering and client base in these regions expands. More
In Sydney, Nielsen has partnered with audience tech firm Eyeota and synthetic population modeler RDA Research to offer Australian advertisers and marketers enhanced access to its CMV dataset (Consumer and Media View). More
Cloud-based marketing platform Zeta Global has announced new AI-enabled features for marketers looking to improve results and upgrade the consumer experience. The new additions include forecasting, modeling and attribution capabilities, and a customer intelligence app. More
Nielsen has announced that CFO Warren Jenson, who joined the ratings giant just five months ago, will add the role of company President to his existing responsibilities. He will oversee the modernisation of operations and manage Nielsen's IT, Corporate Development and Global Strategy functions. More
In the UK, STRAT7-owned cultural insight and strategy consultancy Crowd DNA has appointed Elliot Pigram as its new Global MD. Pigram will take the reins on 1st January next year from founder and CEO Andy Crysell, who will move to the position of non-executive Chair. More
Australian TV measurement body OzTam has appointed Karen Halligan, most recently a Partner at KPMG, as its new Chief Executive. More
DIY online research pioneer and enterprise feedback platform SurveyMonkey has added MaxDiff Analysis features, using industry standard Best-Worst scaling methodology to assess respondent's preferences. Existing customers on Advantage or higher plans get the tools for free. More
Adelaide, Australia-based omnichannel attention measurement company Amplified Intelligence has partnered with AI firm Chalice Custom Algorithms to combine its attention data with smart bidding technology. More
In New Zealand, insights platform Yabble has launched a product which offers real-time interaction with virtual audiences that emulate real customers. More
In France, former Cint COO JD Deitch has launched Passaggio, a company helping insight and analytics firms among others to achieve operational excellence. More
Global insights consultancy Human8 has announced that co-founder Kristof De Wulf is to step down from the CEO role, with Camille Nicita taking over from next Monday. Katherine Ephlin, currently North America Head of Operations, will replace Nicita as MD North America. More
In Australia, full service media agency This is Flow has appointed long-time Kantar exec Straford Rodrigues as Chief Data Officer. More
Online survey specialist SurveyMonkey has launched a solution called Forms, to help users create web forms with purpose-built templates, customizable fields and third-party integrations, as well as advanced features including data and workflow automation tools. More
Connectivity giant Cisco is to splash out $28bn in cash to acquire Splunk, which focuses on cybersecurity, data analytics and observability. More
Kantar Australia has promoted Allan Breiland and Sharon Hilton to serve as Joint Heads of Media Effectiveness. They replace Straford Rodrigues, who is leaving the business at the end of September after more than fourteen years in Australia, the US, the UK and Singapore. More
Agriculture and animal health specialist Kynetec has launched a tool which integrates crop protection market data, sourced from growers, with data sources such as macroeconomic indicators, climate data and demographic trends, to provide a multi-faceted view of the agricultural market. More
DIY online survey pioneer SurveyMonkey has appointed former Cloudflare and AWS exec Amit Prakash as Chief Marketing Officer. More
Long-time Nielsen exec Karthik Rao has been named as the company's new Chief Executive Officer, replacing David Kenny who moves to the role of Executive Chairman. More
First-party insights data company Dynata has appointed Brad Brockhaug for the newly created role of Chief Commercial Officer (CCO). He is based in New York. More
Nielsen's entertainment data provider Gracenote has launched a program to help content publishers and broadcasters get their 'Free Ad-Supported Streaming TV' (FAST) channels and programming distributed by major streaming platforms. More
In the US, decision intelligence company Morning Consult has appointed Joseph DeVeny as Head of Research Solutions; Ryan Bien as Head of Analytics & Data Operations; and Alex Menendez as Head of Customer Success. All are based in the firm's Commercial division. More
Ipsos has appointed former Bureau Veritas Director Caroline Ponsi Khider as Chief Communications and Brand Officer; and Dr Bonnie Bain as Global Head of Healthcare. Bain replaces Michael Spedding, who retires at the end of the year. More
Nielsen is planning to lay off 9% of its global workforce, in order to cut costs and 'realign revenue'. Employees received the news in a statement issued on Wednesday, and the cuts are expected to affect around 1,000 members of staff. More
Automated insight-gathering and sample management platform Cint has appointed former Kantar, Dynata and TikTok researcher Bella Tao as Head of Sales in Australia and New Zealand (ANZ), based in Sydney. More
Melbourne-based Mobile Digital Insights CEO and founder James Fergusson is stepping down from his role, to take up the position of Chief Commercial Officer, while continuing as Chair of the company's Board. David Somers, former Head of Africa and COO, replaces Fergusson as CEO. More
TRA Labs, the ventures arm of Australian insights firm TRA, has partnered with innovation studio Previously Unavailable to launch Ideally, a platform promising 'fast, affordable and accessible customer insights to help bring great ideas to life'. More
Marcoms giant Omnicom has announced an expansion of its partnership with corporate comms group Criteo to encompass digital shelf and other retail data; and a new deal between its OMG media services division and customer data science pioneer dunnhumby. More
US-based online news aggregation, content rating and discussion web site Reddit has launched two new tools to help advertisers measure campaign performance: Reddit Brand Lift and Reddit Conversion Lift. More
In Australia, outdoor digital media company QMS Media has launched Performance+, billed as the first audience based post-campaign analysis tool for the country's out of home advertising sector. More
Corrected: contrary to initial statements by their agents, marcoms network Stagwell has not merged its experience and insights platform Maru into the Harris Poll. The two sister firms are merely collaborating on new tools which will go to market under The Harris Poll brand. More
Social media intelligence and analytics specialist Meltwater has appointed Huixian Yang as Customer Experience Director (APAC), based in Singapore, while Sydney-based Jeff Piniros has been named Sales Development Director (APAC). More
CX and insights firm Alida and insights platform Discuss have deepened their partnership to extend the former's qualitative research solutions, adding Discuss's moderator capabilities to Alida's managed service offering in its Video Discussions product. More
YouGov has fully integrated Australian insights consultancy Faster Horses, and brought it under the YouGov corporate brand, two years after it acquired the business. More
WPP has partnered with DXP provider Optimizely, to help clients offer the best digital experience to each customer. More
Tech analyst Gartner has reported second quarter revenue growth of 10.0%, once adjusted for currency effects. Total revenue hit $1.503 billion, with profits stable (adjusted EBITDA of $384m, down 0.3%). More
Ipsos Australia has launched its Employee Experience Research and Advisory practice, following the recent acquisition of Big Village Australia. More
Management consultancy Bain & Company has acquired Max Kelsen's consulting and managed services divisions - 'Max Kelsen Consulting' - which provide AI and machine learning (ML) solutions to clients across the globe. Terms of the deal have not been disclosed. More
In Australia, B2B full-service MR consultancy ACA Research has changed its name to Fifth Quadrant, signifying its commitment to delivering 'genuine insights, contextual understanding, and expert analysis across a broad range of industries and product categories'. More
Tech research and consulting firm Forrester has announced financial results for the second quarter ended June 30th, showing total revenue down 8.5% to $135.6m, and for the first half down 8.8% to $249.3m. More
Australia-based global data and insights organisation Pureprofile has reported a 23% rise in full year revenue to $43.7m - with revenue for the ANZ market up 16% to $26.9m and for rest of the world up 35% to $16.8m. More
WPP's consumer data specialist Wavemaker has announced that its Consultancy, Fast Growth and B2B Practices will be led by the three of its Global Client Presidents - Anna Hickey, Alastair Bannerman and Alex Altman, respectively. More
Australia-based research agency Mobile Digital Insights (MDI) has hired former Behaviorally exec Inna Merenkova as Managing Director for Europe, charged with building a standalone MDI Europe business. She is based in London. More
Ipsos has announced results for the second quarter of 2023, returning to very modest organic revenue growth thanks to a strong performance in emerging markets. The group says its business is 'returning to a more usual pattern' after Covid and is on course for a good year. More
First-party data company Dynata has appointed former SSI MD Mark Lepine to lead its APAC business. He is based in Hong Kong. More
Australian professional body The Research Society has appointed Titian Bartlau as Member Administration Manager, replacing Louise Jones; and Lisa Salas as Professional Standards Officer, to replace Jane Gregory who will leave later in the year after a transition period. More
Ipsos has announced the acquisition of the Insights business of Big Village Australia, including expertise in public sector research, employee research and customer experience. More
Asia Pacific-based reputation and policy management specialist Sandpiper Group has launched a Research & Insights company, focused on supporting communications and public affairs practitioners and led by Craig Young as interim Managing Director. More
In London, video feedback platform Discuss has hired David Bailey for the newly created role of Sales Director, tasked with building business relationships in the EMEA and APAC regions. More
Ipsos has launched a pack screening tool called FastPack, grounded in behavioural science and promising results in as little as four hours. The tool is currently available on the global group's self-service online MR platform Ipsos.Digital, in the US, the UK, Australia, India and South Africa. More
NielsenIQ (NIQ) and GfK have officially completed their merger, and the combined business will now be led by NIQ CEO, Jim Peck. More
Global membership association ESOMAR has launched a task force to address the use of artificial intelligence in the research, insights and analytics sector. More
Ad tech firm Infomo has partnered with AI-based network traffic analyst Canopus Networks to provide telcos with an in-house platform for ad targeting. More
Automated insight-gathering and sample management platform Cint has launched a solution to enable businesses to license its verified audiences, built from more than 290 million consumers who have accessed the platform to qualify for participation in surveys. More
In Australia, the founders of media agency AdUnion have launched a streaming TV measurement and optimisation business called AdMatch. More
New Zealand-based business transformation tech firm Solnet has partnered with enterprise data intelligence provider Alation, to help local organisations across the government and private sectors unlock their data and shift to digital channels. More
Australian consumer data company Pureprofile has announced an Audience Builder partnership with UK-based fintech company Prograd, further extending its research panel in Europe and offering Gen Z respondents rewards for answering surveys, redeemable in the form of gift cards. More
Australia-based mobile insights consultancy MDI has acquired a majority stake in Moroccan based research agency Insightek, for an undisclosed sum. More
dentsu has completed the $516m acquisition of digital marketing business Tag Group from previous owner Advent International. The buy was first announced in March and among things should boost the global marcoms group's CX and personalisation offerings. More
Experience management platform Qualtrics has received a $500m investment from venture capital firm Accel. More
CRM software giant Salesforce has partnered with consulting division Deloitte Digital to offer business clients help in deploying AI in CRM functions. More
Australian broadcaster Nine has appointed former News Corp and Foxtel exec Suzie Cardwell as Chief Data Officer. More
Insights tech and panel provider Toluna has added four standalone MaxDiff solutions to its end-to-end platform, Toluna Start, allowing clients to integrate a MaxDiff question into their surveys and quickly identify which names, taglines, claims and varieties matter most to their target audiences. More
In Australia, MR and customer experience consultancy Bastion Insights has launched a research panel called Golden Voice Community, to understand the divide between culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) groups and the wider community. More
New Zealand-based public polling platform Stickybeak has launched a comparative testing product through which brands and agencies can quickly test creative, messaging, packaging and choice of influencer with consumer interest groups anywhere in the world, at a low cost. More
In Australia, professional membership body The Research Society has announced that Julie Regan is retiring from her position as QPR Manager and Managing Editor of the industry body's publication, Research News Live. After nearly twenty years with the organisation, her final day will be July 5th. More
In Singapore, Kantar has hired long-time Nielsen exec Kartikeya (Kartik) Varma for the dual role of Head of Creative and Media, Singapore, and Head of Media, APAC. More
Austin, Texas-based MR software and services firm QuestionPro has acquired PathosAI, which analyses consumer emotions and motivations. More
Redwood City, California-based CX platform provider Cyara has announced the acquisition of CentraCX, an SaaS-based Voice of the Customer solution designed specifically for contact centers. Terms were not disclosed. More
Research panels and services company Bilendi & respondi has relaunched its Discuss tool with new qual research features based on ChatGPT. More
Ghent, Belgium-based insight consultancy Human8 has announced the appointment of eleven new partners - it now has 36 worldwide. Meanwhile the founders / co-founders of three companies it previously acquired - Join The Dots, Columinate and Direction First - are stepping down. More
Strategic insights consultancy Nature has announced six appointments in its Melbourne office: Antony Lakey as an Associate Director, Charlotte Summers and Simon (Si) Hunt as Senior Consultants, Shawn Christensen as a Consultant, and Ruhi Patil and Ernest Fu as Analysts. More
Customer Engagement specialist Verint has launched a new Experience Management tool promising 'experience insights at scale across a brand's customer touchpoints'. Features include direct and 'inferred' feedback collection, advanced CX analysis, rich reporting and automated actions. More
MrWeb has partnered with insight sector organisation GreenBook, publisher of the GRIT Report and the GreenBook Directory, and organiser of IIEX events, to further expand the reach and appeal of its job board, currently in its 25th year. WIRe (Women in Research) and ESOMAR are already partners. More
Professional services giant Accenture has announced a $3 billion investment in its Data & AI practice over the next three years, to help clients across all industries use AI to achieve greater business growth. More
Australian media group Are Media has expanded its partnership with MR firm Roy Morgan to gather exclusive worldwide audience insights from its network of social media channels. More
Australian television audience measurement body OzTAM has announced that CEO Doug Peiffer has decided to step down from his role. He will leave on 1 July and the Board says it has begun a search for a new CEO. More
WPP's consumer data specialist Wavemaker has appointed Sindhuja Rai as Chief Executive Officer in Asia Pacific, based in Singapore. She takes up the role in September, when she will also join the Wavemaker Global Executive team and the GroupM APAC Leadership team. More
Israel-based ad optimization company Tremor International is changing its name to Nexxen, with its Amobee, Tremor Video, Unruly and Spearad brands all to be replaced. More
Agricultural and animal health analytics and insights firm Kynetec has acquired software development and analytics business Systematics International, which reports on machinery volume statistics for worldwide closed and open data exchanges. More
Australian-based omnichannel attention measurement company Amplified Intelligence has upgraded its attentionPLAN tool to add what it calls Attention-Adjusted Reach Curve (AARC) functionality - filtering out non-attentive impressions. More
Kantar has announced its intention to sell its remaining specialist healthcare businesses, Kantar Profiles' Health unit and Kantar Media Healthcare Research (KMHR), to fieldwork company M3 Global Research. More
In India, analytics and insights company Course5 Intelligence has raised a further $53m in funding, which will be added to a mergers and acquisitions (M&A) 'war chest' of around $80m. More
Consumer behaviour specialist Circana, formed from the merger of IRI and The NPD Group, has appointed Anne Bramman as Chief Financial and Growth Officer and a member of its executive leadership team. She starts on June 20th. More
Kantar has launched an ad creative testing solution called LINK+, built on its LINK normative advertising database and integrating the firm's ad testing capabilities into one solution, with results available in as little as six hours. More
Ipsos has promoted Jyoti Malladi to the role of Managing Director, Research, in India, where she is responsible for business management, driving audience measurement business strategy. She will also oversee the setting up of a media analytics hub supporting the entire APAC region. More
First-party data platform Dynata has rolled out its proprietary inBrain survey-based monetization platform to the Asia Pacific region - specifically in Australia, India, Japan and New Zealand, with other Asian markets scheduled this year and next. More
In Australia, industry body Commercial Radio & Audio (CRA) is to launch its audience measurement system 'Radio 360' tomorrow, 6th June, with the release of the third GfK metropolitan radio survey of the year. More
New York-based customer engagement platform Braze has acquired North Star, its reseller in Australia and New Zealand (ANZ), which will now trade as Braze Australia. Terms of the deal have not been disclosed. More
Research software and solutions firm Forsta has announced a partnership with automated insight-gathering and sample management platform Cint, to fight survey fraud and improve data quality and security for the MR industry. More
In New Zealand, insights platform Yabble has launched a plugin on the ChatGPT plugin store, using social media and global trend data alongside AI to generate research samples in minutes. More
Australia-based digital workplace analytics provider SWOOP Analytics has appointed Gemma Saint as Director of Customer Success and Growth in North America. More
London-based advertising effectiveness specialist System1 has launched a new service called Test Your Ad Digital, which it says will predict and improve the commercial impact of digital advertising. More
Following the announcement on Friday of the imminent departure of CEO Parves Khan, ESOMAR says it will extend Joaquim Bretcha's interim tenure as Director General to September 2024, helping to provide continuity. More
Global trade association ESOMAR is to lose the services of CEO Parves Khan, who has announced she will leave at the end of June, and will focus on charitable and non-exec work before taking up a new as-yet unannounced role. She will also join a new ESOMAR AI Taskforce. More
B2B tech purchase intent data firm TechTarget has announced that its Enterprise Strategy Group has expanded to EMEA and APAC, welcoming Brian McKenna and Aaron Tan as Regional Directors of Analyst Services for the two territories, respectively. More
In Australia, supermarket retailer Coles is appointing Amanda McVay as its first Chief Customer Officer. She will join the company on 13 June. More
Customer and employee experience specialist Medallia has appointed Dan Madden as Chief Financial Officer and Robert Baca as Chief Technology Officer. More
End-to-end insight platform provider Toluna has agreed to acquire research solutions provider MetrixLab from its Japan-based owner Macromill, Inc., for an undisclosed sum. Macromill will take a minority equity stake in Toluna and the two will work closely. More
Andrew Edwards has announced his resignation as Chair of data and insights provider Pureprofile, effective immediately, and will be replaced by five-time company-founder and pioneering NASDAQ woman CEO Linda Jenkinson. More
Sir Martin Sorrell's S4Capital has reported first quarter revenue up 26.5% to £262m, representing like-for-like growth of 6.1%. Growth came mainly from the new Technology Services division and entirely from the Americas. More
Dentsu's global creative network Dentsu Creative has launched an Experience Design and Product Lab in Australia, and appointed Gabriel Tamborini to lead it, in the newly created role of Chief Experience and Product Officer. More
Research software and solutions firm Forsta has added a self-serve visualization and data storytelling solution called Forsta Studio Canvas to its Human Experience (HX) Platform, combining data with imagery to illustrate the journey of customers and employees. More
SurveyMonkey parent Momentive has reported a GAAP loss of $23.8m in its first quarter, improving on a loss of $35.0m in the same period last year. Revenue was up 2% to $118.8m, from $116.9m in 2022 Q1. More
US-based tech research and consulting firm Gartner has reported an 11.6% increase in first quarter revenues to $1.4 billion, up 14.3% excluding the impact of foreign exchange. In the key Research division, revenue rose 7.1% on a reported basis to $1.2 billion (or 9.5% FX neutral). More
Australia agency Inlight has launched a service called the Digital Experience Benchmark, to help companies evaluate user experience of a digital product or service against best practice guidelines and heuristics. More
Former Unilever insights execs Stan Sthanunathan and Paul Van Gendt have officially launched a company called i-Genie.AI, to help multinational corporations identify the 'next big thing'. The pair have also hired their ex-colleagues Linda Hoeberigs and Jason Hardman. More
Brand measurement company On Device Research has expanded to Australia with the appointment of Mark Griffiths for its newly created role of Commercial Director ANZ. He is based in Sydney, Australia, and his remit is to further expand the firm's brand measurement solutions across the APAC territory. More
Sky Group's Chief Business Officer Patrick Béhar is joining Kantar Media in September as Global Chief Executive. He will take over from Chris Allen, who has led the exec team since 2022 and will now focus exclusively on his role as Global CFO. More
Australia-based consumer data company Pureprofile has expanded its research panel through a partnership with AsiaPacific shopping rewards and payments platform ShopBack. Shoppers can earn cashback by completing surveys. More
US-based international data collection and research tech company Sago has promoted Steve Mast to the newly created role of Chief Product Officer and Carlo Marcelino to Chief Technology Officer, replacing Troy Anderson who has left the company. The firm was previously known as the Schlesinger Group. More
Acast has expanded its self-serve podcast ad platform, to enable advertisers to target listeners based on Nielsen audience segments across Acast's more than 92,000 podcasts. The new Audience Segments service is available in the US, Canada and Australia. More
Google has merged its artificial intelligence research units, DeepMind and Brain, to form a new unit called Google DeepMind. More
Ipsos has reported a 2.9% drop in Q1 revenues to EUR 532m, with organic decline of 2.8%. The firm had said when presenting its 2022 annual results that it anticipated a 'tougher first quarter'. The total is still 26% up on the figure for Q1 2019, pre-Covid, and Ipsos says it expects annual growth of c.5%. More
Dentsu Sports International has launched a 'sports analytics' division, which brings together the research, data and analytics capabilities of MKTG Sports + Entertainment, Sponsorship Research International (SRi) and Dentsu-owned Merkle. The initiative is led by Glenn Lovett as Global MD. More
New Zealand-headquartered AI-based insights platform Yabble has hired long-time industry exec Doug Guion for its newly created role of Chief Growth Officer. He is based in the US. More
Research software and solutions firm Forsta has launched a qual research tool called Forsta Discussions, allowing clients to plan, conduct and monitor video focus groups within its 'Human Experience' (HX) platform. More
Sir Martin Sorrell, founder and Executive Chairman of digital advertising, marketing and technology services company S4 Capital, is undergoing 'further preventative treatment' following keyhole surgery in February to remove a tumour. More
Social media intelligence and analytics specialist Meltwater has launched its Enterprise Intelligence suite of tools in the APAC region. The firm has also hired two senior execs as part of its 'enterprise push'. More
Ad network McCann Worldgroup is hiring Nathan Brown in the new role of Global Chief Audience Architect, responsible for building an Audience Planning Global Practice, providing an understanding of people and their behavior across devices, content and platforms. More
In Adelaide, Australia, attention measurement firm Amplified Intelligence has launched a tag-based system for measuring the attention paid to ad campaigns, allowing for their real-time, in-flight optimisation. More
YouGov has appointed Meta Platforms exec Steve Hatch as Chief Executive Officer from 1st August. He will take over from co-founder Stephan Shakespeare, who will become Non-Executive Chair, replacing Roger Parry. More
Healthcare fieldwork specialist M3 Global Research has acquired Med Planet, which provides qual MR services to the healthcare industry. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
Ipsos-owned B2B researcher Xperiti has launched a solution called Vepp, which it says will flag fraudulent profiles and ensure that only genuine respondents can participate in online surveys and panels. More
In Australia, insight-driven marketing group Illuminera has sold its financial services (FS) behaviour profiles dataset DBM Atlas to FS sector insights specialist RFI Global, for an undisclosed sum. Following the sale, Illuminera is bringing together its DBM Social and 3arc divisions. More
GfK and price intelligence company Minderest have partnered to provide retailers and manufacturers with a 'comprehensive overview' of current prices in their markets, as well as recommendations for price adjustments, using the latter firm's smart updating online shelf price information. More
Mindshare UK has appointed Alexis Faulkner as Chief Transformation Officer, leading the group's Insights, Technology and Analytics and Digital Planning teams; and Richard Kelly as Chief Solutions Officer. Both are new roles. More
Sir Martin Sorrell's S4 Capital has reported full-year revenues of £1.07bn, representing like-for-like organic growth of 25.8%. Operational EBITDA was £124m, up sharply in H2 to over £90m versus £30m in H1. More
Data-driven customer experience management (CXM) company Merkle has promoted Steve Yurisich to the role of Chief Executive Officer for Australia and New Zealand, as John Riccio moves to the position of APAC CEO. More
In Australia, survey platform Conjointly is offering an AUD 20k research grant, open to researchers from any field who are interested in applying market research techniques to the problem of AI safety. The grant is open to both individuals and teams. More
Ipsos has launched a set of specialized, end to-end innovation solutions for Quick Service Restaurants (QSR), which it says will fuel development and optimization at any stage of the product life cycle. More
Data firm Near Intelligence, Inc. has completed its merger with special purpose acquisition company KludeIn, and commenced trading on the Nasdaq. The firm's SaaS platform provides intelligence on people, places and products. More
Global insights and media agency Hotspex has acquired a majority stake in Shanghai-based brand insight, strategy and innovation consultancy The Silk Initiative (TSI). Terms of the deal have not been disclosed. More
In Australia, Ipsos has partnered with conference organizer Ashton Media to conduct a 'State of the CX Nation' industry report, due for launched at the latter firm's Customer 360 Symposium later this month. The partners plan to repeat the report annually. More
Comscore has launched a dedicated programmatic targeting division called 'Proximic by Comscore', which will provide end users with access to more than 2,600 predictive, ID-less audiences and content-level solutions across CTV, linear, digital, DOOH and audio. More
Five years after its acquisition, social media intelligence and AI-enabled consumer listening platform Synthesio has changed its brand name to Ipsos Synthesio. More
Global insight and data membership organisation ESOMAR has elected Ray Poynter as its 2023-2024 Council President, replacing Kristin Luck of ScaleHouse, who has completed her two-year term. More
In Australia, research and consultancy firm Fifth Dimension has made four new hires, including Mallory Pels as a Senior Consultant based full time in Melbourne. More
SurveyMonkey parent Momentive has agreed to be acquired by a consortium led by insights sector investment firm Symphony Technology Group (STG), for approximately $1.5bn. More
Experience management firm Qualtrics is to be acquired by tech investor Silver Lake, in partnership with Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPP Investments), for around $12.5bn in cash; and will become an independent, privately held company. More
Consumer insight provider InSites Consulting has changed its name to Human8, defining itself as a 'human-driven consultancy, connecting brands with people and culture to drive positive change'. More
Kantar has launched an advanced analytics solution called Digital Mirror, using NLP and advanced graph and correspondence analysis to spot trends and map them to off-line consumer and product segmentations. More
In Australia, strategic consultancy The Influence Group has appointed Shannon Kenna as Managing Director of the Canberra offices of both its research and brand strategy business Pollinate and the group as a whole. More
Industry bodies the Insights Association (IA), MRS and ESOMAR have announced they will collaborate, along with survey sampling conference SampleCon, to 'fight fraud' and address ongoing risks to data quality. More
In the US, recently merged consumer data and insights firms Information Resources Inc. (IRI) and The NPD Group have named the combined company 'Circana', which CEO Kirk Perry says conveys the business's 360-degree, full-circle understanding of the consumer and market. More
In the UK, subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) insight and data specialist Digital i has promoted Matt Ross to the role of Managing Director. He takes over from interim MD Emma Shelton, who is stepping back from daily operations to concentrate on chairing the firm's Board of Directors. More
Qual data collection software firm itracks has partnered with Lumivero, the developers of qual data analysis software NVivo, aimed at streamlining the qual research process and bringing the two parts more seamlessly together. More
US-based International data collection and research tech company Schlesinger Group has been re-branded as 'Sago', which Executive Chairman Steve Schlesinger says is not merely a name change, but also a commitment to an 'inspiring new chapter' in optimizing the firm's offerings. More
NielsenIQ, the consumer intelligence business which split away from its Media wing two years ago this month and is now combining with GfK, has rebranded as NIQ. Accompanying this, the firm says it is undergoing 'a significant transformation' and is committed to providing the 'Full View' of global consumers. More
MrWeb's RAIDAR real-time ranking of top companies operating in analytics, insight and data is now fully operational, and you'll see financial results, CEO changes and other items from tonight's Daily Research News reflected in tomorrow's top 40. More
Customer and employee experience specialist Medallia has appointed Joe Tyrrell as CEO, replacing Leslie Stretch who is retiring and transitioning into an advisory role at the company. More
Comscore has reported financial results for the fourth quarter and calendar year 2022, with annual revenue up 2.7% to $376.4m, and adjusted EBITDA up 16% to $37.0m. More
US survey software and solutions firm QuestionPro has acquired Pundit Consultantz, a healthcare innovation and go-to-market commercialization consultancy based in Chicago. Pundit's founder and CEO Arti Bedi Pullins becomes QuestionPro's President and Chief Healthcare Officer. More
Omnicom-owned data and analytics firm Annalect has lost its ANZ CEO Clement Tsang and COO Matthew Nolan: both roles were reportedly cut as part of wider restructuring of the business. More
Sydney-based marketing investment analytics firm Mutinex has extended its seed round of funding by $5m, valuing the firm at $AUD 37m. More
Verve, which focuses on culture, communities and 'smart digital research', has launched a 'hub' in Melbourne, Australia and appointed Christina Tonkes to lead it as Senior Director. Meanwhile Mirjam Grari joins the team in Sydney. More
In Australia, independent property data and analytics provider CoreLogic International has agreed to acquire property software development firm Plezzel, for an undisclosed sum. More
Marcoms giant Dentsu has acquired Madrid-based customer relationship management specialist Omega CRM Consulting, which it will add to its own CXM division Merkle. Terms of the deal have not been disclosed. More
Ipsos and IAB Australia have announced that the new Ipsos iris digital audience measurement currency will be launched in early March, following its official endorsement by the association's Board and Measurement Council. More
Shopper insights specialist Behaviorally is opening a new hub in Sydney, and has appointed former TNS and Colgate-Palmolive exec Lauren Kurensky to lead it. More
Communities specialist InSites Consulting has announced an expansion of its Executive Committee and the appointment of a first Chief Growth Officer - Managing Partner Tom De Ruyck. More
SurveyMonkey parent Momentive has reported revenue up 8% to $480.9m for full year 2022. The rise is the net effect of rapid growth in the 'sales-assisted' segment - up 27% to $181.3m - while self-serve business remained flat at $299.6m. However the firm says it will also cut 14% of its workforce. More
Ipsos has reported 2022 annual revenue up 12% to EUR 2.4 bn, representing organic growth of 5.6%. In the final quarter of the year, the business grew by 8.8%, including nearly 4% organic growth. More
In the US, research and advisory firm Forrester Research has reported a loss of $1.6m for the fourth quarter of 2022, compared to a profit of $8.0m for the same period a year earlier. Q4 revenue rose 2.4% to $136.9m, and over the whole of 2022 revenue was up 9% to $537.8m. More
Media conglomerate News Corp Australia has launched a research and intelligence service called The Growth D_Stillery, offering consumer insights to help marketers meet brand challenges, anticipate consumer trends and understand where best to invest. More
US-based tech research and consulting firm Gartner has reported Q4 2022 revenue of $1.5 bn - up 15% reported, or 20% on a constant currency basis. The largest division, Research, saw revenues up 9% on a reported basis to $1.18 bn, up 13% at constant currency. More
Enterprise tech company Syncfusion has added its business data analysis tool Bold BI to the SurveyMonkey App Directory, enabling users to import data from SurveyMonkey to create, customize and share business dashboards. More
Australian market research technology platform Glow has opened an office in the US, where Chrissy Brogan has been hired for the newly created role of Director of Market Development. The firm has also made appointments and promotions at its headquarters. More
In Australia, mystery shopping agency Lonergan has acquired Prime Auto Mystery Shopping and qual recruitment agency Ava Research, boosting its mystery shopper numbers to 40,000 nationally and its qual database to more than 70,000 respondents. Terms of the deals have not been disclosed. More
In Australia, omnichannel attention measurement company Amplified Intelligence has opened an office in Sydney, where it has named Daniel Lyas Vice President, Customer Success. More
Australian media intelligence company Truescope has acquired US-based competitor Universal Information Services (UIS), for an undisclosed sum. More
WPP's media investment wing GroupM has announced the long-awaited launch of its new agency EssenceMediacom, comprised of 10,000 people across 120 offices globally. More
Kantar has added a price sensitivity module to its Concept eValuate suite, to help brands identify the ideal price range for new products. More
Behavioural science research and consulting agency PRS IN VIVO, in collaboration with sister agency BVA BDRC, is expanding its services in the APAC region, through the opening of a new office in Australia. More
Australia-based strategic insights consultancy Nature has appointed John Crowley as a Director in its Sydney office. More
German-based software giant SAP has announced plans to cut up to 3,000 jobs, and says it will explore the possible sale of its 71% stake in experience management firm Qualtrics. More
Australia-based consumer data firm Pureprofile has announced revenue up 21% to $AUD 12.8m for the quarter ended 31st December, the second of its fiscal year 2023. More
In Sydney, online sample marketplace PureSpectrum has appointed online research veteran Chris Mawn as ANZ Director of Clients. More
Ipsos India has promoted six members of its team, including Pallavi Mathur Lal to the role of Senior Director, Content and Communications; and Madhurima Bhatia to Media Engagement and Partnerships Lead for India and the Asia Pacific region (excluding Greater China). More
WPP's investment arm GroupM has appointed former MediaMonks exec Tom Braybrook as Managing Director, Australia & New Zealand, leading the local launch of its data and tech consulting business 'Acceleration'. More
Sydney-based media consultancy and tech business Audience Precision has promoted James Allerton to the role of Head of Research and Insights. More
In Australia, Kantar has expanded its Commercial and Sustainability leadership teams with four senior appointments. Ryan France is increasing his brand strategy role to lead the company's Sustainability practice, while Kim Ruyten will implement the company's ESG capability. More
London firm Snowplow Analytics, which helps businesses collect and manage their customer behaviour data, has acquired Sydney, Australia-based consulting firm Poplin Data for an undisclosed sum. The buy provides Snowplow with an APAC Hub in Sydney. More
UK-based 'data creation' platform Walr has expanded in the Asia Pacific region with the appointment of Lamia Lee as General Manager, tasked with heading up its operations in the region. She is based in Sydney, Australia. More
In Melbourne, purpose-driven communications agency Think HQ has appointed former Bank of Australia strategy leader Fiona Nixon as Head of Strategy and Research. More
As of today, you can filter MrWeb's recently-launched real-time ranking of top companies providing MR, insights, data and analytics activities, to include just one type (eg Full Service) or one headquarters country. Another ten firms have been assessed and added, making it a top 40. More
Following last month's news that Nielsen is restructuring its business into three global units, and the departure of five of the firm's senior managers, the company has confirmed it is reducing total headcount to 'roughly in line with where it was a year ago'. More
In the US, J.D. Power has acquired electric vehicle (EV) data company ZappyRide for an undisclosed sum. More
Kyckr, a London-based supplier of legally-authoritative B2B customer and supplier data, has been acquired by Australian billionaire tech-entrepreneur Richard White, through his personal investment vehicle RealWise. Terms were not disclosed. More
Kantar has appointed Cheong Tai Leung as Chief Executive Officer of its Insights Asia Pacific business. She is based in Singapore and takes over from Wayne Levings, who will now focus exclusively on his role as Kantar's Chief Client Officer. More
Car manufacturing conglomerate and mobility provider Stellantis, whose brands include Citroën, Fiat, Chrysler and Maserati, has announced the launch of a unit dedicated to B2B products, applications and services based on its massive data sets. More
Former MRS President and ad industry leading light Jeremy Bullmore has died aged 93, shortly after retiring from WPP after 67 years at the group and its predecessor companies. More
Groupe Publicis has announced the acquisition of London-based Yieldify, which will form part of the global marcoms giant's advertising and marketing technology division Epsilon. More
Alchemer, the experience management and enterprise feedback tech company once known as SurveyGizmo, has announced the acquisition of mobile CX specialist Apptentive. More
CRM software giant Salesforce is to cut around 10% of its workforce. The firm says increasing its headcount by some 30% in 2021 (to around 73,500) was a mistake - 'too many... leading into this economic downturn'. More
Ipsos has announced two appointments to its global Executive Committee: Valerie Vezinhet as Chief People Officer and Michel Guidi as Chief Operating Officer. More
In the US, Meta, the parent of Facebook, has agreed to settle a lawsuit relating to the Cambridge Analytica data breach, and will pay $725m, reportedly the largest sum in a privacy-based class action. More
A judge in Amsterdam has ruled that ESOMAR's election misconduct allegations against its former CEO found 'no support in the facts whatsoever', and the organisation has written to members to say as much. More
That's it for another year from DRNO - our next issue will be for January 3rd 2023. Our very best wishes for a Merry Christmas to all those of you celebrating it, a Happy New Year to all readers, and a big Thank You as ever for your support and feedback in 2022. More
Australia and New Zealand Banking Group (ANZ Group) has agreed to acquire analytics and data viz specialist DOT Loves Data, for an undisclosed sum. More
Today we're launching RAIDAR. Like an industry top 30 companies list, but instead of publishing it once a year, we'll update it every day based on yesterday's DRNO stories and other company data; show our workings; include companies never before considered; and allow sorting by a long list of criteria. More
Nielsen is restructuring its business into three global business units, according to online publication AdAge: Nielsen Audience Measurement, Nielsen Analytics and Gracenote. Current COO Karthik Rao will become CEO of the first of these. More
Continuing our focus on Data Visualization, E-Tabs CEO Benjamin Rietti dispels the myth and discusses how automation can be a winning option for syndicated projects, omnibus reporting, copy and concept testing, multi-segment, and even customised and ad hoc work. More
Rumours of the demise of PowerPoint have been circulating for decades, but in numbers terms it's still king of the MR presentation, and you might be surprised what you can do with it. In another item from our special issue, OfficeReports' Torben Laustsen provides hints and tips for perfect.ppt. More
Kantar has launched a team called Global Connected Data Solutions, within its audience network Profiles division, to help advertisers maximise the value of their first-party data. More
In Australia, marcoms group dentsu has acquired data and analytics provider Aware Services. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
Automated consumer insights platform Zappi has raised $170m in growth capital, which it will use to expand data sets across new markets, verticals and categories; power its platform innovation with emerging technologies; and continue expanding its team globally. More
CEO Jami talks to MrWeb's Nick Thomas about how she came to be co-founding and growing a data collection business for the 21st century; embracing the tech, but keeping customer service front and center. Taken from the 'Data Visualization' special issue, out now. Available either to read or watch. More
Australia-based attention measurement company Amplified Intelligence has acquired ad verification company AttentvAds, for an undisclosed sum. More
Melbourne, Australia-based in-the-moment researcher Mobile Digital Insights (MDI) has opened a new office in Kenya, and has appointed Agnes Odongo as Research Consultant East Africa. More
Disney's Advertising division has announced an advanced integration with ad measurement, planning and optimization platform VideoAmp, using 'Clean Room' technology to offer clients ad metrics and privacy-compliant first-party data usage in the post-cookie world. More
Following last week's news that ESOMAR is to rerun its Council elections after uncovering 'serious misconduct', the industry body is to hold an Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) to schedule the rerun, agree an extension to the sitting Council's term, and brief members on its investigation. More
In New Zealand, insights platform Yabble has launched an AI-powered tool called Summarize, to generate summaries of insights from long-form data at 'unprecedented speed'. More
In San Francisco, video analytics company Twelve Labs has closed a $12m seed extension funding round, for use in adding product features, continuing R&D, and for further development of its foundation model for video understanding. More
Industry body ESOMAR is to rerun its elections for Council after uncovering what it calls 'serious misconduct'. The association has fired two members of staff, but stresses that no complaints have been made about the conduct of candidates. More
Australian customer insights and advisory consultancy Fiftyfive5 has been acquired by professional services giant Accenture for an undisclosed sum. More
Long-time Kantar CFO Olivier Lefranc has joined automated insight-gathering and sample management platform Cint, as Chief Financial Officer, based in Paris. More
In Australia, data collection agency TKW Research Group has acquired mystery shopping specialist Retail Reality, for an undisclosed sum. More
Continuing our month-long focus on Data Visualization Sandro Kaulartz, Chief Innovation and Product Development Officer at Ipsos Social Intelligence, talks to MrWeb's Nick Thomas about Topic Modelling, data hybridization and the democratization of data science. Available to read or watch. More
Australia-based strategic insights consultancy Nature has hired long-time ad agency exec Trudi Sampola for the newly created role of Director - People and Culture. More
Our 2022 Data Visualization special issue is published today. In this featured article, Forsta's VP Global Sales Manny Rodriguez outlines a strategy for designing and implementing visualizations that 'reach audiences, tap into their mindset and encourage them to make a move'. More
Professional services network EY has acquired Australia-based data and analytics firm Bridge Business Consulting for an undisclosed sum. More
Global online communities specialist InSites Consulting has appointed Els De Paepe as Chief People Officer (CPO). She succeeds former Join the Dots CEO Quentin Ashby, who has moved to the role of Global Head of ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance). More
Continuing our month-long focus on Data Viz and with the special issue out tomorrow, Infotools CEO and co-founder Ant Franklin argues that industry leading data visualization involves a perfect blend of art and science, and explains how to achieve that balance. More
Research and CX tech provider Forsta has appointed long-time FinTech exec Henry Pooley as Managing Director for the Asia Pacific region. He is based in Sydney, Australia. More
In Australia, former Kantar and Hall & Partners exec Steven Howlett has joined independent marketing and communications agency Bastion as MD of its Bastion Insights division, based in Melbourne. More
Consumer sensory insights specialist MMR Research has opened a new 'ASEAN sensory hub' facility in the Pasir Panjang area of Singapore. More
Beginning a month-long focus on data visualization, the Forsta CEO talks to MrWeb's Nick Thomas about empathy, athletes, M&A, investing in tech, and 'seeing the future through mountains of data'. Available to read or watch. More
Sir Martin Sorrell's S4 Capital has reported 26.5% like-for-like revenue growth, in a third quarter trading update. Reported revenue was up 68.2% to £300.1m, and the firm says operational EBITDA for 2022 is in line with a revised target of c.£120m. More
Consumer insights provider Toluna has acquired the qualitative research technology platform developed by online MR specialist Further, for an undisclosed sum. This technology will be integrated into the end-to-end solution Toluna Start, to launch a new service called 'Toluna Start Qual'. More
In Australia, communications agency alt/shift/ has launched a Behaviour Change division, to provide research-based tools for in-house campaign development. More
Customer experience management specialist Sprinklr has extended its partnership with Salesforce, promising clients a more complete view of their customers. More
Comscore has reported a third quarter revenue rise of just 0.3% - to $92.8m from $92.5m in last year's Q3. Adjusted EBITDA was little changed at $11.7m (up 3.5%) while one-off costs turned net income of $2m a year ago into a net loss of $52.4m. More
International data collection and research tech company Schlesinger Group has hired former Kantar Americas CEO Reed Cundiff as Chief Executive Officer, following Steve Schlesinger's move into the role of Executive Chairman. Meanwhile Isaac Rogers becomes company President. More
In Australia, research and brand strategy consultancy Pollinate has launched a Sustainability division, to help organisations understand society's expectations in the area, and adjust business goals to meet shifting demand. More
Culture, community panels and smart digital research specialist Verve has made five senior research appointments across its hubs in Chicago, Sydney and London. More
Australia-based consumer data company Pureprofile has promoted Anna Meiler to the newly created role of Managing Director, APAC Data & Insights, while former Dynata exec Martin Tomlinson joins as Country Manager for New Zealand. More
Marcoms giant WPP has announced that John Rogers has decided to step down as Chief Financial Officer, and will be succeeded by former dunnhumby CFO Joanne Wilson. More
In the US, research and advisory firm Forrester has reported third quarter revenue of $127.7m, up 8.1%, led by the Research division which saw growth of 10.3% to $87.0m. More
Australian omnichannel attention measurement company Amplified Intelligence has expanded to the US, opening an office in New York and hiring former Unruly exec Alex Khan for the newly created role of EVP Global Partnerships. More
SurveyMonkey owner Momentive has reported a net loss of $20.3m during the third quarter, down from $22.9m a year earlier, while revenue rose 6% to $121.4m. More
Insurance and energy sectors analyst Verisk has sold its Edinburgh-based research and consulting company Wood Mackenzie to investor Veritas Capital for $3.1 billion in cash, with an additional 'contingent consideration' of up to $200m. More
In Australia, research and brand strategy consultancy Pollinate has opened new offices in two state capitals, Brisbane and Adelaide. More
ESOMAR has announced the election of Nikki Lavoie as its 2023-2024 Council President, replacing Kristin Luck who has completed her two-year term and will now serve an additional two years in an ex-officio capacity. MindSpark founder Lavoie is currently Council Vice President. More
MR and customer and employee experience tech firm Forsta has partnered with CX data specialist GemSeek to launch predictive net promoter scores (pNPS), through which clients can access predictions about 'silent customers' who don't respond to surveys or submit feedback. More
Culture, community panels and smart digital research specialist Verve has launched a service called 'People & Planet', to help brands develop consumer-centric ESG strategies and initiatives (environmental, social and governance). More
Dr David Theodore Bottomley AM, who has died aged 97, started one of the first market research consultancies in Australia, and convened the first meeting of what later became the country's national research association (now The Research Society). More
Sydney-based marketing investment analytics start-up Mutiny has rebranded as Mutinex; given its co-founders new titles; and appointed Adam Beaupeurt, Don Li, Alex Kosheliev and Claire Bertolus in senior roles. More
Dynata has appointed a new Chief Executive: former Dodge Data and Analytics head Mike Petrullo replaces longstanding leader Gary S. Laben. More
Video-based insight specialist UserTesting, Inc. is to be acquired by private equity firms Thoma Bravo - the owner of Medallia and J.D. Power - and Sunstone Partners, for around $1.3 billion in cash. The investors both have shares in UserZoom, and say they will combine the two companies. More
Australian broadcast industry body Commercial Radio & Audio will introduce a new hybrid audience measurement system for its GfK metropolitan radio surveys, from March next year, and describes it as 'the most significant investment and change to [radio measurement] in Australia since ratings began'. More
Ipsos has reported a 14.3% increase in reported third quarter revenue, to EUR 601.5m from EUR 526.3m a year earlier. Organic revenue growth was 5.3%, while 8.0% resulted from currency effects. More
A third (33%) of the global public personally trust market research companies, compared to 19% who don't, according to the latest GRBN Global Trust Survey. More
Ipsos has moved Hamish Munro into the position of APAC Chief Executive Officer, replacing Christophe Cambournac who will move into a global role with the business. Additionally, South East Asia CEO Suresh Ramalingam has been named Chief Client Officer for the APAC region. More
Australia-based consumer data company Pureprofile has announced record revenue of $12m (up 17%) and EBITDA of $1.0m for the quarter ending September 30th - despite a decision to shutter its Pure.amplify Media business in the UK. More
Full service B2B research-focused Australian agency ACA Research has announced five new hires: Senior Account Managers Phil Newbold and Natasha Burnley; Account Manager Melissa Borg, Account Executive Paj Johnstone and Graduate Researcher Angus McLachlan. More
Experience management specialist Qualtrics has announced the launch of CrossXM, a new product line providing automated insights into how clients' employee, customer and brand experiences impact one another - and identifying actions to improve them. More
SurveyMonkey owner Momentive Global Inc has been approached regarding a possible sale and is discussing its options with advisors, according to Bloomberg. More
Auckland, New Zealand-based insight consultancy TRA Group (The Research Agency) has appointed futurist and trend forecaster Laura Mulcahy in the newly created role of Director, Cultural Strategy. She is based in its Melbourne office, where two other senior hires have also been announced. More
SurveyMonkey parent company Momentive has made 11% of its workforce redundant, as part of what it calls a restructuring plan to improve operating margins and improve efficiency. More
Netflix has joined Disney+ in signing up with BARB, the UK's audience measurement body - a major move forward in measurement of streaming services and the first time Netflix has joined an industry-owned audience currency. More
Kantar has launched its Sustainable Transformation Practice in New Zealand, led by Executive Director Jason Cate. More
Marcoms group Dentsu has launched new gaming data and insights capabilities across 21 markets globally, bringing together research panel data from its Consumer Connection System (CCS) with specialist gaming data from Global Web Index (GWI). More
Nielsen has announced the completion of its previously announced sale to a private equity consortium in an all-cash transaction valued at approximately $16 billion, including the assumption of debt. More
Australia-based strategic insights consultancy Nature has hired Aliya Hasan for the newly created role of Strategy Director, based in Melbourne. More
Kantar has added three new brand metrics to its Link AI for Digital predictive tool - Aided Awareness, Consideration and Purchase Intent - which it says 'make it possible to forecast digital ad effectiveness and brand consideration in as little as 15 minutes'. More
Australia-based real-time media monitoring company Streem has enhanced Engage social intelligence tool with the launch of a number of new performance metrics. More
Google has announced that its Surveys and Surveys 360 solutions will no longer be available after November 1st, as it believes in their current form they are no longer the best way to help businesses of all sizes run custom market research. More
Global online communities specialist InSites Consulting has appointed former Crowd DNA exec Erryn Balzan as Business Director, based in Sydney, Australia. More
In the US, Comscore has set out a cost-cutting restructuring plan, which will see an undisclosed number of employees lose their jobs. More
Long-time Kantar group CEO Eric Salama has been appointed as Global Chair of recently divested unit Kantar Public. More
Ipsos has appointed 24-year company veteran Jean-Michel Mabon in the role of Head of Mergers and Acquisitions, responsible for overseeing buys in connection with a growth plan the group announced in June. More
Research and customer / employee experience technology provider Forsta has announced upgrades to its online focus group solution InterVu, integrating high quality video and audio for virtual experiences, enhancing sharing features, and adding quick polls and other features. More
YouGov has launched free 'Lite' versions of its BrandIndex and Profiles tools, allowing users to analyse their target audiences and track brand performance for no charge. More
In the US, marcoms network Stagwell has launched a Risk and Reputation business unit, to help business leaders audit the issues most important to their stakeholders, develop proactive and reactive strategies, and monitor and measure the impact of positions on business reputation. More
Kantar has expanded its YouTube measurement services, allowing marketers to assess ad effectiveness in both single channel and multi-channel campaigns. More
In Australia, PR platform Medianet has renamed its Mediaverse research business 'Medianet Insights', and says it will provide analysis to subscribers of the parent company's PR plans without the need for a separate media monitoring service. More
Experience management (XM) platform Qualtrics has launched a system of XM Benchmarks, to help organizations compare their customer satisfaction, patient perceptions and employee engagement levels against industry peers and competitors. More
Culture, community panels and smart digital research specialist Verve has appointed Kylie Fitzpatrick as a Director in its Manchester Hub. Additionally, the company has made hires in Sydney and London, along with six London promotions. More
In Australia, mobile out-of-home (OOH) company Ads on Wheels has launched an impression measurement tool called AMPED. More
Marketing intelligence and programmatic media specialist MiQ has sold a majority stake to private equity firm Bridgepoint, in a deal said to value the company at up to $1 billion. More
Automotive giant General Motors will be the first advertiser to integrate its own first-party data with media group NBCUniversal's identity platform, NBCUnified. More
In Melbourne, Australia, strategic insights consultancy Nature has added five new staff: Katy Oakley as Head of Marketing; Rachel Leticia as Design Specialist; and Mikayla Samuels, Khushboo Pandey and Sophie Wallis as Associate Directors. More
US- and UK-based ReedPop, known for its pop-culture events and journalism, has launched an audience targeting platform called ENGAGE, promising in-depth user insights across its community of digital and in-person customers and accurate targeting of pop-culture fans worldwide. More
AdTech and data company Big Village has added new features to its Audience Intelligence platform, allowing clients to bring in-depth first-party data into audience targeting, plan media and reach audiences in real time. The firm was formerly known as ENGINE, outside the UK. More
Melbourne, Australia-based specialist market research employment agency Flow Recruitment has expanded to Sydney, where it has appointed Amanda Cotesworth as Associate Director. More
In Australia, WPP's media investment company GroupM has launched a data-driven digital out of home (DOOH) planning and activation platform called 'Journeys', through which advertisers can deliver audience-based campaigns. More
Australia-based consumer data company Pureprofile has moved its London office to a larger space in Shoreditch, after making 21 new hires and promoting ten members of its UK team. More
Melbourne-based ad and product research specialist Cubery has expanded to the US, with the opening of an office in Los Angeles. Leading the new operation is Angela Diamant, who has relocated from the firm's Australia HQ to take up the position of Head of Growth. More
Kantar has announced unaudited results for the first half of 2022, with 'gross revenue' up 5% (at constant currency rates) to $1.832bn and adjusted EBITDA up 6% to $310m. Unadjusted, revenue was down 1.8% to $1.566bn, while one-off events contributed to an operating loss of $88m. More
AI-driven platform SugarCRM has partnered with tour reservation system provider ResPax, to offer what the firms say is the first fully integrated CRM and tour booking platform for the travel and tourism industry. More
London-based mobile research and sample specialist On Device Research has hired former Nielsen exec Simon Clarke for the newly created role of Commercial Lead for Singapore and the APAC region. More
In Australia, branding agency Host/Havas has hired Charles Rallings for a newly created role, Managing Director for its customer experience arm Host/Havas CX. More
Dynata has announced the formation of a Global Research and Data Sciences Center of Excellence (COE), led by Steven Millman and bringing together the expertise and methods of its Research Delivery, Panel Sciences and Data Sciences teams. More
Apple has launched two rankings of the top podcasts on its network: Top Subscriber Shows, which allows listeners to browse the top 100 shows individual included within a subscription; and Top Subscriber Channels, featuring the top 100 channels with a subscription and two or more shows. More
Zurich-based mobility analysis platform Teralytics has acquired the Streetlytics mobility data business from location infrastructure software firm Bentley Systems. Bentley is investing in Teralytics, but financial details have not been disclosed. More
Agriculture and animal health specialist Kynetec has promoted Colin Siren to the role of Chief Operating Officer for Animal Health. He replaces Jeff Gaidos, who is taking a step back from the business, but will continue on a part-time consultancy basis. More
Nielsen is enhancing its Digital Content Ratings solution (DCR) in Australia through its Identity System, which connects digital ad impressions from the open web to Australian demographic data from both its own and third-party sources. More
Game and content creation platform Unity Software has rejected an unsolicited '$20 billion' bid from AppLovin, the parent of measurement company Adjust; and says it will continue with its own bid to buy ad tech and analytics firm ironSource. More
YouGov has promoted Laura Robbie, previously MD Australia, to the role of CEO of the Asia Pacific region, replacing Julien Chevignon who becomes CEO for Western Europe. More
Google has agreed to pay around $AUD 60m ($US 40m) to settle claims that it misled consumers about use of their location data, back in 2017-18. More
Australia-based consumer data company Pureprofile has continued its summer of senior appointments with the hiring of Juliana Tan as a Senior Account Director. More
Research software firm Forsta has acquired crowdsourcing and innovation platform HelloIgnite, which helps companies collect, share and manage innovation ideas from employees in order to improve experiences for customers. Terms of the deal have not been disclosed. More
WPP has reported interim results for the first half of 2022, with reported revenue up 10.2% to £6.755bn, equivalent to 8.7% growth like-for-like (LFL); and profit before tax up just over 6% to £419m. More
Sydney, Australia-based marketing investment analytics start-up Mutiny has appointed former Mediabrands / Starcom exec John Sintras as President, US and Multinational, to lead expansion into the US. More
In Australia, Interpublic's marketing intell company Kinesso has promoted Clay Gill to the role of Chief Executive Officer, responsible for the firm's data and technology solutions. In addition to his new post, Gill will retain his existing position as CEO of activation intelligence company Matterkind. More
Australian ad tech firm Veridooh has launched in the UK, as part of a wider plan to expand its digital out-of-home (DOOH) verification solution to new markets. More
Australian insight consultancy Fiftyfive5 has appointed former Kadence MD Phil Steggals as Head of Consulting for the APAC region. He is based in Singapore. More
Raymond Lo, the co-founder of boutique MR consultancy Picnic Customer Intelligence, is relocating from Singapore to set up an office in Sydney, Australia later this month. More
Ed Harrison, the CEO of Australia-based media intelligence and measurement firm Isentia, left the business this week, according to online publication Mumbrella. His next career move has not yet been announced. More
Australian market research technology platform Glow has rolled out its ESG (environmental, social and governance) / sustainability brand tracker, the Social Responsibility Score (SRS), in the US and UK. More
In Australia, Kantar has promoted Carla Bonifacio to the role of Head of Innovation and Product Development. More
Research software firm Forsta and local marketing platform Rio SEO, which are both owned by Press Ganey, are combining. Both will continue to serve current clients under their existing brands, while Forsta has welcomed all Rio SEO employees to its sales, ops, product and engineering teams. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
Global MR membership organisation ESOMAR has appointed Parves Khan as its new Director General and Chief Executive Officer, following the departure of Finn Raben earlier in the year. More
Business software giant SAP has acquired search-driven analytics firm Askdata for an undisclosed sum. More
Kantar has launched a fast-turnaround solution called Brand Equity Evaluation, to help users quickly answer questions about brand equity strength in a competitive environment, and how to improve it. More
Paris-based user experience analytics firm Contentsquare has closed a $600m growth investment round, doubling its valuation to around $5.6 billion. Money will be used for geographical and product expansion, M&A, and to support long-term growth in key markets. More
Nielsen has announced the launch of the methodology it will use to give media buyers reach metrics for YouTube comparable to those provided for linear TV. The measurement spans computer, mobile and connected TV devices. More
Consumer data company Pureprofile has issued a business update for the period ended 30th June 2022, with full year revenue up 39% to $AUD 41.7m, and EBITDA up 28% to $AUD 4.0m. More
Ipsos has reported second quarter revenue of EUR 574.0m, representing organic growth of 2.1% (reported growth 8.9%). After exceptional results in Q1, the group cited global events and the end of Covid measurement contracts - as well as strong comparatives from Q2 2021 - for the lower figures. More
Global association ESOMAR has released its annual ranking of the Global Top 50 Insights Companies, with an ever broader definition of the term giving an unfamiliar look to parts of the list. More
John Musgrove, currently Head of Insights and Research at broadcaster Southern Cross Austereo (SCA) has been appointed in the new role of Head of Research for industry body Commercial Radio Australia. More
Digital experience consultancy Bounteous has brought in former Merkle executive Michael McLaren to serve as President, North America. More
Media and marcoms group Dentsu International has hired former Nielsen exec Robert 'Rob' Gilby as Chief Executive Officer, APAC based in Singapore. He will take up the post on September 5th. More
Marketing intelligence and programmatic media specialist MiQ has promoted Fiona Roberts to the position of ANZ Managing Director, following Jason Scott's promotion to CEO APAC. More
Agriculture and animal health specialist Kynetec has acquired Brazilian agribusiness market intelligence firm Spark, for an undisclosed sum. More
In Australia, Woolworths Group's retail media business Cartology has agreed to acquire digital out-of-home (DOOH) ad targeting firm Shopper for c.$AUD 150m in cash. More
New York-based consumer insights tech firm Suzy has launched a solution called Global Audiences, giving users access to them alongside US audiences, on one platform. More
US and Australia-based FMCG customer review platform Okendo has raised $26m in a Series A round of funding which it will use to scale go-to-market activities, accelerate product development, and increase headcount from 80 to more than 130 by the end of the year. More
Pureprofile has promoted Joris Schellekens to Head of Data & Insights for mainland Europe, as well as promoting three APAC execs: Keith Ang to Head of Sales, D&I Asia; and Katiemay Gardner and Peta Kernan to Senior Account Director. More
In Australia, omnichannel attention measurement company Amplified Intelligence has appointed Anneliese Urquhart as Chief Product Officer (CPO). More
Digital ad tech company PubMatic has partnered with AlikeAudience in Australia, Japan and Indonesia, to give advertisers access to supply side audience data. More
Recent and ongoing disruption of markets and economies is driving growth in demand for market understanding research - faster even than that in new product development, brand and comms - according to a new survey of MR and marketing professionals by consumer insights provider Toluna. More
In Australia, mobile ad targeting firm Amobee has partnered with social media marketing agency iD Social to enable advertisers to use new audience targeting insights within their paid social media campaigns. More
AdTech and data company ENGINE has been re-named Big Village in the US, continental Europe and Australia. The rebrand does not include ENGINE Group UK, which was acquired by Next 15 earlier this year. More
In Australia, professional services firm KPMG has launched a business called 'KPMG Customer', which brings together the company's customer technology and analytics, marketing, research, reputation, digital experience and creative offerings. More
In Australia, customer experience management (CXM) company Merkle has hired long-time PwC exec Simon Doukas for a newly created position, Chief Experience Officer. He will take up the role at the end of August. More
In Australia, market and social research agency McNair yellowSquares has acquired focus group recruitment agency Qualitative Recruitment Australia (QRA), for an undisclosed sum. More
Forsta, the company formed last year through the merger of research software firms Confirmit and FocusVision, has launched Digital Diaries, a mobile ethnography app designed to obtain qualitative insights at scale. More
Sydney-based media consultancy and tech business Audience Precision has announced an end-to-end platform called Precise360, tapping consumer behavioural data to create a 'full media strategy guidance system' which it says enhances the entire marketing process. More
Australian marcoms group Enero has acquired APAC-based B2B marketing agency GetIT, which offers a range of consulting and insights services including the DataLab data science initiative; and digital marketing services firm ROI DNA. Terms of the deals were not disclosed. More
New York-based consumer insights platform Suzy has launched a service called Suzy Live Focus Groups, allowing researchers and marketers to run qual and quant research in one connected platform. More
Marcoms giant WPP is to acquire Australian marketing tech services agency Bower House Digital, whose services include personalisation, segmentation, and solutions for a single customer view. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
NielsenIQ and GfK have announced an agreement through which the two firms will be 'combined', with NielsenIQ's owner Advent International being the majority shareholder. Terms of the deal have not been disclosed. More
Ipsos has launched a user experience (UX) facility called the Ipsos Experience Lab in the Franklin Center in downtown Chicago, providing space for focus groups, interviews, device tests and simulations. More
In London, data science and consumer behaviour prediction specialist Black Swan Data has raised $18.5m in a growth funding round, part of which it will use to expand further into the US market. More
British-based automated speech recognition platform Speechmatics has raised $62m in a Series B round of funding which it will use to support expansion across the US and Asia-Pacific, and to improve infrastructure - particularly the capacity of it data centre. More
In Australia, communications agency Think HQ has appointed qual researcher Som Sengmany as Multicultural Insights Director in its CultureVerse division, which provides diverse research, strategy and creative production. More
Melbourne-based Mobile Digital Insights (MDI) has announced 'exponential' growth over the last twelve months, hiring Christine Laurenssen as Business Director Africa, David Somers as COO, Hellen Sillis as Global Head of Qual, Sam Stelitano as CFO and Sarah Gill-Kildea as Insights Director. More
Kantar Australia has appointed Bethan Hockey in the newly created role of Head of Sustainability in its Insights Division. More
Customer experience products and solutions company Sitel Group has agreed the acquisition for an undisclosed sum of Luxembourg-based competitor Majorel Group. The merger would form a combined entity with over 240,000 employees across 55 countries. More
Consumer data company Pureprofile has hired former Maru Group exec Shelley Barber as Business Development Director in the UK. More
Insight exchange and sample management platform Cint has added Tina Daniels, MD at Google, and long-time IBM exec Liselotte Engstam to its Board of Directors. The pair bring experience in tech, media measurement, engineering and international management. More
Kantar has launched a cross-category search prediction tool called Emerging Trends; added a suite of products and enhancements to its creative testing portfolio on Kantar Marketplace; and opened the iLab innovation centre. More
Melbourne, Australia-based tech-driven research agency Cubery has rolled out its platform in Canada, Singapore and Ireland. More
Tokyo-based MR sample provider GMO Research is expanding to North America with the opening of a subsidiary in New York City, headed up by Christa Arite. More
Auckland, New Zealand-based insight consultancy TRA Group (The Research Agency) has appointed Nikki Davey as Head of Innovation, and Ngaia Calder and Tara Collins as Directors in its growing Sydney team. More
The Directors of M&C Saatchi have issued recommendations to shareholders ahead of votes on two bids for the company, advising rejection of the Next 15 offer purely on account of a drop in its share price, but preferring it to that of rival ADV, if the company is considered unable to continue as an independent. More
Israel-based digital market intelligence company Similarweb has launched an App Intelligence module, which combines mobile app data from the firm's partnership with data.ai (previously known as App Annie) with its own desktop and mobile web measurement and engagement metrics. More
Matt Britton started digital research platform Suzy in 2018, named it after a favourite song, worked with other non-researchers to build it, and got to $25 million annual recurring revenue 'faster than Salesforce and Qualtrics'. An interview with MrWeb's Nick Thomas - available as video or in print. More
Cross-screen television insight and analytics provider Samba TV has expanded its Australian operation with the appointment of Tom Parsons as Head of Client & Data Partnerships, Damien Tang as Data Solutions Director, and Simeon Swain as Commercial Lead - Programmatic & Audience. More
Comscore has launched a platform called 'Total Digital', which combines the firm's digital and social media measurement tool and user experience (UX) data into a single dashboard. Users get a cross-platform view of how consumers are engaging with content and advertising. More
Ipsos has unveiled a four-year plan to accelerate growth and shareholder value. This will include the group spending between EUR 100m and EUR 200m per year on 'smart acquisitions', while doubling its investments in data analytics, technology and 'knowledge panels'. More
Consumer data company Pureprofile has appointed long-time Kantar exec Ashish Pandey as Head of Sales - Data & Insights, US and India. More
In the US, first-party data platform Dynata has acquired online panel and audience technology company Branded Research for an undisclosed sum. More
In Paris, Ipsos has appointed Dan Lévy as Group Chief Financial Officer, from June 10th, replacing Laurence Stoclet who has been with the business for nearly 24 years. More
Insights and research agency TRA and industry body ThinkTV are partnering to provide insights for New Zealand-based marketers, about the country's favourite TV ads. More
Auckland, NZ-based customer intelligence agency Perceptive has appointed Amy Thornton as CX Analyst, while promoting Hollie Cleaver to Data Scientist and Lauren Gell to Research Consultant. More
In Australia, outdoor ad platform Wrappr has partnered with Nielsen to launch LIFT, a campaign measurement and attribution platform offering full-funnel attribution for ads on its sites, powered by an opt-in mobile location database. More
Customer analytics platform MoEngage has raised $77 Million in Series E funding, for use in expanding to Latin America and Australia, increasing its footprint elsewhere in the world, and to explore strategic acquisitions. More
Research, CX and employee experience (EX) technology provider Forsta has launched what it calls a Human Experience (HX) Partner Program for Market Research Agencies, allowing them to fully white label integrated VoC programs hosted on its technology platform. More
In Australia, MR solutions firm Stable Research has changed its name to CRNRSTONE, which it says better reflects its position as the 'foundation of client decision making'. More
In Australia, strategic insights consultancy Nature has promoted Emma Tommasini to the role of Partner. More
In Australia, M&C Saatchi-owned MR agency The Source has launched a kids and youth research and insight division, named after the children's game 'Duck, Duck, Goose'. More
Digital advertising and marketing services company S4 Capital has released results for the first quarter of 2022 in a trading update, with reported revenue up 70.1% to £206.8m, a rise of 40.6% on a like-for-like, pro forma basis. More
Kantar has announced unaudited results for the first quarter of calendar 2022, including pro forma, currency-adjusted gross revenue up 6% to $911m, and adjusted EBITDA of $144m, up 16% from a year earlier and almost twice the pre-Covid Q1 2019 figure. More
Global marcoms group Omnicom has appointed former Conduent exec Brian Clayton as its first Chief Data Privacy Officer, responsible for driving its 'privacy-first' approach and ensuring compliance with global privacy regulation. More
In Australia, communications consultancy SenateSHJ has acquired Di Marzio Research, whose Director Paul Di Marzio joins the acquiring firm as Head of Research, based in Melbourne and leading a new practice, SenateSHJ Insights. More
Interpublic's marketing intell company Kinesso has appointed four new Regional CEOs, Matt Ware, Andy Butters, Jorge Chavez and Sean Muzzy, all of whom are currently leaders in the group's Matterkind activation division and who will retain these roles alongside their new ones. More
Automated insight-gathering and sample management platform Cint has announced further leadership changes following its December acquisition of Lucid. CFO Joakim Andersson and COO Andy Ellis are stepping down, replaced respectively by Britta Mittler (interim) and Jake Wolff. More
In Australia, consumer data giant NielsenIQ is to offer clients access to 'one of the biggest receipt panels in Australia', promising new understanding of 'the most important retail consumer group - the omnishopper'. More
In the UK, the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) has fined facial recognition firm Clearview AI more than £7.5m for using images of people in the UK, and elsewhere, collected from the web and social media to create a global online database. More
Xandr, the advertising and analytics division of AT&T, has promoted three execs to its senior APAC team, under recently appointed ANZ Managing Director Nicole Prior. More
US-based private equity firm KKR has acquired a majority of survey software firm Alchemer, with an investment of undisclosed size funding '[accelerated] growth through marketing, product innovation, industry partnerships and strategic mergers and acquisitions'. More
Customer lifecycle and user retention platform CleverTap has agreed to acquire San Francisco-based Leanplum, a multi-channel customer engagement platform, for an undisclosed amount. CleverTap says the move makes it 'a truly global company'. More
Sir Martin Sorrell's S4 Capital is back on the acquisition trail despite its accounting troubles. TheoremOne, which provides software engineering and design for digital transformation, is merging into the company to form the hub of a new Technology Services offering. More
Australia-based research and marketing solutions company Pureprofile has appointed former MediaCom HR leader Michelle Mowle as Global Head of Talent and Culture. More
Kantar has launched Link AI for Digital, an artificial intelligence-powered ad testing solution designed specifically for digital ad formats. More
Insight exchange and sample management platform Cint has expanded its Lucid Impact Measurement service into linear TV, giving marketers a combined view of their campaigns while delivering daily cross-screen reporting for brand lift insights. More
WPP's consumer data specialist Wavemaker has promoted Phil Mumford to the role of Managing Director of its Adelaide office, replacing Matt Hofmeyer who is now MD in Hong Kong. More
Kantar has agreed to acquire Reading, UK-based app survey platform and fraud prevention technology provider Qmee, majority owned by private equity firm capital D. Qmee will become a part of Kantar's primary research division Profiles. More
Nielsen has announced the end of its 45-day 'go-shop' period, in which the Board has investigated the potential for alternatives to its recently-announced acquisition by a consortium of private investors; and says no proposals have been submitted. More
Kantar Australia has formally combined its Insights and Consulting divisions, a move it says will 'turbocharge' its innovation and brand strategy offerings. More
In Australia, Ipsos has appointed Michelle Tustin as Director, Corporate Reputation, based in Adelaide, while Haydn Northover joins as Service Line Leader, Creative Excellence, based in Melbourne. More
Tech researcher and consultancy Forrester Research has announced results for the first quarter ended March 31st, with revenue up 10% to $125.0 million. More
After multiple delays, Sir Martin Sorrell's S4Capital has at last published its full year results for 2021, showing revenue up 100.4% to £686.6m, equivalent to a 52.4% increase on a like-for-like basis. Operating EBITDA increased 62.4% to £101.0m (up 11.9% like-for-like). More
In Australia, Publicis Media Exchange (PMX), the marcoms group's investment arm, has hired Rowena Newman in the new role of Head of Media Intelligence, overseeing a team of auditors and research analysts. More
Australian insight consultancy Fiftyfive5 has acquired Sydney-based research and data consultancies The Leading Edge (TLE) and The Digital Edge (TDE) from marcoms group Enero for $1.35m in cash. The TLE and TDE teams will move into the Fiftyfive5 Ultimo office on Monday. More
Australia-based strategic insights consultancy Nature has appointed Madeleine Berenyi as Senior Associate Director in Melbourne, while making five additional hires across the business. More
Marcoms network Publicis Groupe has acquired eCommerce analytics platform Profitero, for an undisclosed sum. More
In Australia, culture, community panels and smart digital insight specialist Verve has appointed Rikki Pearce as Managing Director and Head of its new 'Global Advanced Quant and Analytics' practice. More
Sho Pogoni has returned to Auckland, NZ-based customer intelligence agency Perceptive as Data Science Team Lead, tasked with providing data science as a supplementary service for other teams (CX and Research), and as a standalone service for bespoke client projects. More
Nielsen has reported first quarter revenue of $877m - a rise of 1.6%, but with organic real-terms growth of 3.4%. Adjusted EBITDA fell around 4% to $372m. More
Marcoms giant WPP has launched an end-to-end eCommerce service called Everymile, which will look after the entire process from the minute a customer visits a brand's web site - having first helped the target audience to find that site - and clicks to order, through to the delivery of their purchase. More
Professional services giant Accenture has renamed its Interactive customer experience and analytics business 'Accenture Song', which it says will 'strengthen synergies' in product innovation, experience design, marketing and commerce. More
MrWeb and its job board partners ESOMAR and WIRe have launched a section dedicated to supporting Ukrainian insights and analytics professionals, whether refugees or those remaining in the war-torn country. This includes free job board postings and candidate registration services. More
In the US, customer experience management (CXM) company Merkle has named John Riccio President of Merkle Asia Pacific, replacing Zhengda 'Z' Shen who has announced his retirement effective July 1st. More
Data and research tech company Schlesinger Group has promoted Chawntae Applegate to the role of Executive Vice President of Global Client Solutions. More
The WindAcre Partnership LLC, now comfortably the largest Nielsen shareholder with 27.3%, says the share price could triple in the next three years and will host a webcast tomorrow arguing for a rejection of the Consortium bid. Meanwhile reports suggest the ratings firm could regain its MRC accreditation soon. More
Kantar has agreed to acquire Copenhagen, Denmark-based marketing measurement and optimisation company Blackwood Seven, for an undisclosed sum. More
Ipsos has reported 12.3% first quarter organic revenue growth and a 17.5% reported increase to EUR 547.8m. The firm says it is planning an 'exciting range' of potential acquisitions in key sectors and territories, especially in the USA. More
ESOMAR has appointed Geraldine Proust as Head of Public Affairs and Professional Standards, responsible for leading global advocacy efforts; managing industry relationships and strategic partnerships; and developing and enforcing global regulatory professional standards for the industry. More
In Auckland, New Zealand, research and insights agency TRA has appointed Joanne Reid as Head of Client Service, supported by Bryce Kelliher and Melanie Kozak, who join as Business Directors. More
Data discovery, governance and insights firm data.world, the latest venture of Bazaarvoice co-founder Brett Hurt, has announced $50m in Series C financing, and says it will expand product offerings, add talent and open new markets. More
Nielsen shareholder WindAcre said this week it would block the ratings giant's latest sale agreement, requesting a $1.1bn 'sweetener' for its support, according to sources quoted by Bloomberg. SEC filings suggest WindAcre has secured millions more shares in Nielsen this week at a cost of around $0.9bn. More
Digital user experience insights specialist UserZoom has received an unspecified amount of strategic growth funding from investment firm Thoma Bravo, the owner of CX management firm Medallia. The funding values UserZoom at $800m. More
Canada-based research tech specialist Torfac has appointed former Branded researcher Vishal Yadav as Senior Director, Client Development, leading the expansion of its Sales team in the EU and APAC. More
Behavioural science consultancy The Behavioural Architects (TBA) has hired 29 new members of staff across its global offices - twelve in China, seven in Australia, and ten in the UK. More
Intrinsic in-game advertising pioneer Frameplay has launched a solution for measuring attention in the gaming sector. Intrinsic Time-in-View builds on the firm's proprietary viewability measures and has been validated by agencies Lumen and eye square, and endorsed by marcoms group dentsu. More
In New Zealand, research and insights agency TRA has appointed Irena Bakker as Head of People and Capability, while Stephen Churchman joins as Head of Design. More
Major league consumer data and insights firms IRI and The NPD Group have announced they are to merge, promising clients 'a view of total retail purchasing and consumption trends powered by advanced, predictive analytics' on IRI's Liquid Data technology platform. More
Community panels and digital research specialist Verve has hired former Research Now AsiaPac MD Jason Buchanan to set up a consumer interaction business unit called Verve Collaborations. He is based in Australia. More
YouGov has launched a dataset called Global Profiles, to help brands, agencies and media planners understand their global audience. Data comes 43 markets, with five more to be added in August. More
Consumer data company Pureprofile has appointed former Ipsos and maru exec Rachel Knowles as Head of Data & Insight UK. More
Facebook parent company Meta has suffered two reverses at the hands of a US District Court, granting class action status to advertisers claiming the company inflated its audience metrics; and allowing to proceed a suit by non-users of Facebook in Illinois over storage of images of their faces. More
Media investment analyst Ebiquity has entered into a conditional agreement to acquire Sweden's MediaPath, and a definitive agreement to buy US firn Media Management Inc (MMi). Terms of the deals have not been disclosed. More
Shares in Sir Martin Sorrell's digital advertising group S4 Capital have slumped after its auditors PwC this week delayed the release of its preliminary statement of results for the second time in a month. The stock remained down 1/3 tonight even after a slight Friday recovery. More
US-based mobile app market intelligence and insights provider Sensor Tower has expanded to Australia, following its 2021 acquisition of ad intelligence platform Pathmatics, which was rolled out in Australia last summer. More
Media insights and business intelligence firm Truescope has raised $6.2m in funding, to support its expansion plans which include its launch in the US market and the further development of its platform. More
Nielsen has entered an agreement to be acquired by a private equity consortium led by Evergreen Coast Capital Corporation and Brookfield Business Partners, together with institutional partners, for $28 per share in an all-cash transaction valued at approximately $16bn. More
The United States government and the European Commission have trailered a new Trans-Atlantic Data Privacy Framework, addressing concerns which led to the demise of the last one in mid-2020, and allowing data to flow more freely again between the two. Critics are already clearing their diaries for 'Schrems III'. More
In Australia, ThinkTV has launched a free planning tool called the Media Engine which draws on sales and campaign data from 60 Australian brands across ten categories, to help demonstrate media return on investment. More
Digital research specialist MetrixLab has appointed Ed Harrison as Managing Director of Australia and New Zealand. He replaces Vincent Blaney, who is returning to the UK in June to take up a position at the firm's London office. More
Commercial Radio Australia (CRA) has announced the recruitment in Sydney of the first panel participants to wear electronic watch meters to capture their radio listening. This is part of the roll out of GfK Radio360, which moves the industry from paper-based surveys to the majority use of e-diaries. More
Nielsen's Board of Directors has opted 'not to proceed' with the unsolicited acquisition proposal reported last week from a private equity consortium, valuing the company at around $15bn. The decision follows major shareholder WindAcre's announcement that it would fight the deal. More
Ipsos has launched its self-service, end-to-end online market research platform Ipsos.Digital in fourteen markets in Asia. More
Kantar Public, the global group's evidence and advisory business for governments and the public sector, has appointed current WPP exec Kathryn Cooper in the new role of Global Head of Behavioural and Communications Advisory. More
In Australia, financial services insights and consulting firm DBM Consultants has partnered with geospatial specialist RDA Research to launch tools for mapping and audience finding; appending variables to databases; and appending and profiling large databases. More
Private equity firm Arsenal Capital has merged Cello Health and four of its other firms to launch Lumanity, offering medical sector product development, market access and commercialization services. Former Cello Health Insight CEO Nicola Cowland becomes the new firm's Global President, Insight. More
In the US, analytics and advisory firm Escalent has acquired consultancy Mercator Advisory Group, which serves the global payments and banking industries. Terms of the deal have not been disclosed. More
New Zealand-based insights agency TRA Group (The Research Agency) has opened an office in Sydney, Australia, and is transferring Terri Hall to it in the role of Managing Partner. She takes up the post on 1st April, and reports to MD and founder Andrew Lewis. More
US-based customer experience management specialist Medallia has launched a solution called Athena Studio, allowing organizations to create custom AI models and analytics for unstructured data, without any coding. More
Nielsen's shares soared by around 30% to $22.85 yesterday, after it was reported in The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) that the firm is in talks to be acquired by a group of investors in a $15bn deal. More
Customer experience platform Emplifi, formed from the merger of VoC platform Astute and social media specialist Socialbakers, has announced a growth equity investment led by Sixth Street Growth and valuing the company at more than $1 billion. More
Stamford, CT-based tech research and advisory firm Information Services Group (ISG) has reported fourth quarter revenue of $69.6m, up 6% at constant currency; and adjusted EBITDA of $10.2m, up 11%. Full year revenues were $277.8 m, up 9%, and full year adjusted EBITDA rose 37% to $38.8m. More
US-based CX platform Birdeye has closed a $60m Series C funding round led by tech-focused investment firm Accel-KKR, and says it will use the money to accelerate development of a full experience suite for local businesses; and to expand into Australia and the UK. More
In New York, in-home product testing platform Highlight has raised $7m in a seed round of investment, including money from Momentive CEO Zander Lurie; Richard Thornton, former CEO of Cint; Tom Bernthal, CEO of Kelton; and Max Mullen, founder of Instacart. More
Nielsen is to launch its Identity System in Australia, Germany, India and Japan, in April, with six other economies to follow later in the year. More
In New Zealand, insights platform Yabble has added a feature called Count to its Hey Yabble product, to help analyze unstructured text data for theme and sub-theme counts, and then add sentiment analysis to provide an understanding of audiences. More
Media and marketing services company ENGINE has rolled out its cookieless 'Attitude-Based Audience' capability in Australia, allowing marketers to target online audiences across auto, financial services, health / pharma, lifestyle and tech sectors. More
Community panels and smart digital research firm Verve is to open a Global Centre of Research Innovation in Sydney, Australia, and has appointed Dan Alexander-Head to lead it. More
Pureprofile has announced a partnership with Southeast Asian content and community platform theAsianparent. More
Comscore and ad management platform WideOrbit have extended their partnership to create a solution called Comscore TV, powering automated TV ad buying and audience targeting across markets and demographics at scale. More
Momentive - formerly SurveyMonkey - has announced a $200m share repurchase program and plans for a renewed focus on delivering stockholder value. The firm has also promoted Priyanka (Pri) Carr from General Manager of its MR business, to COO. More
Global data and analytics provider Verisk is selling its Financial Services business to information and insights company TransUnion, the owner of Neustar, for $515m. More
Data-driven marketing agency network Hearts & Science has extended Jane Stanley's role to that of CEO of both Australia and New Zealand. Jeremy Bolt will step down from his position as CEO, Australia to focus on male longevity start-up firm, Old Bull Health. More
Continuing our focus on 'Measuring Brains & Bodies', Pedro talks about sweat, motor racing, suppliers who always say Yes, investors who always said No, banning the bull and embracing the (one-trick) pony, and how EDA (electrodermal activity) can grow into a currency for media engagement. More
Auckland-based creative services agency Proximity NZ has launched a customer experience management (CXM) division, and named Kate De Marco and Nathalie Philippsen as its Co-Directors. More
MrWeb's special issue on 'Measuring Brains and Bodies' is launched today: viewing and downloading the 72-page pdf supplement is free: click the cover or the link below; or read on for the second part of Michelle Niedziela's article, which offers a guide to Best Practice in consumer neuroscience projects. More
Comscore CEO Bill Livek has announced plans to retire and move to the position of Non-Executive Vice Chairman after a successor has been found. As the news broke, the firm reported positive net income of $29m for the fourth quarter of 2021, compared to a net loss of $13.2m a year earlier. More
Nielsen has reported results for the 4th quarter and full year 2021, with annual reported revenue up 4.1% to $3.5bn (up 4.9% like-for-like), and full year adjusted EBITDA up 5.4% (constant currency) to $1.49bn. More
Shareholders of customer experience (CX) specialist Zendesk have this evening rejected the proposed acquisition of Momentive, parent of SurveyMonkey. Despite Momentive shareholders giving majority support, the acquisition agreement will now be ditched. More
Comscore is partnering with digital media measurement, data and analytics provider DoubleVerify (DV) to develop a cross-platform media quality verification and audience measurement solution. More
In Australia, media research specialist Xtra Insights has named Colleen Rolleston Coordinator of its Regional Radio Audience Measurement Survey (RRAMS), in charge of its radio audience measurement team. More
Ipsos has reported a 16.8% increase in annual revenue to EUR 2.14bn for 2021, with overall organic growth of 17.9%. Perhaps more significantly, the figures represent impressive organic growth of 10.4% when compared with 2019. More
Continuing our focus on 'Measuring Brains and Bodies', HCD Research's Michelle Niedziela runs through the key techniques in 'neuro', with advice on where to use them. The second part of the article, looking at Best Practices, will appear in DRNO when the pdf special issue is published early next week. More
GfK CEO Peter Feld has decided not to seek an extension to his contract, and will leave the company on March 14th. CFO Lars Nordmark will step into the Chief Exec role on an interim basis, while COO Joshua Hubbert has been added to the Management Board. More
Packaged food manufacturing giant Kraft Heinz has announced a far-reaching partnership with Google, with the aim of improving its understanding of consumers, and tailoring products and experience to them. More
Publishing and data group IDG Communications has rebranded as Foundry, reflecting its 'transformation from legacy media network to integrated marketing technology and data provider'. More
Auckland, NZ-based customer intelligence agency Perceptive is to open an office in the country's capital, Wellington, and has appointed former NielsenIQ manager Roman Konopka there as Research Director. More
Kantar has announced senior appointments to strengthen its team in Australia. Straford Rodrigues returns from NA as Head of Media and Marketing Effectiveness; Lee Catlin joins as Senior Director, CX; and Head of Creative Irene Joshy has moved back to Melbourne from Singapore. More
WPP's media investment company GroupM has rolled out its AI-powered influencer and content marketing platform INCA in Australia. More
Australian market research technology platform Glow has hired former Nielsen exec Mike Johnston for its newly created role of Managing Director - Data Products, leading the development of new subscription research products. More
US-based behavioral insights consultancy Behaviorally has expanded its APAC presence to Australia, where it has appointed Liam Gilbert as Vice President to lead its efforts in the country. More
Australian insight consultancy Fiftyfive5 has appointed Kai Lufen as Head of Research Operations, leading a team of technical specialists with core capabilities in data integration, automation, visualisation and data governance. More
In Australia, WPP-owned global data and measurement-driven media agency Essence has appointed Simon Pugh as Managing Director for Brisbane. More
Long-time ad agency exec Tom Ward has joined Australian cultural insights and strategy company The Lab as Executive Director. More
US and Canada-based recruitment specialist Rare Patient Voice (RPV) has expanded its Patient and Caregiver panel to include data from Australia and New Zealand. More
Connected TV (CTV) advertising delivery and measurement platform Innovid has agreed to acquire measurement and attribution specialist TVSquared for $100m in cash and approximately $60m in stock. More
Automated insights platform Zappi has reported $50 million in sales in 2021, representing more than 30 percent growth in twelve months; and the hiring of more than 100 new employees during the year. More
Automated customer experience (CX) solutions specialist Cyara has raised more than $US 350m in a round of funding, which it will use for product innovation, to fund acquisitions of complementary technologies, and to fuel geographic expansion. More
Less than a year after its formation from software firms Confirmit and FocusVision, research tech pioneer Forsta has been acquired by healthcare experience specialist Press Ganey, for an undisclosed sum. More
Continuing our focus on 'Measuring Brains & Bodies', HCD's VP of Research & Innovation talks about a career in 'neuro' (with a rat allergy); quantifying the stress of bad audio on a Zoom call; whether any perfume can live up to one of those weird ads; and much more besides. Available to watch or read. More
In Australia, Advantage Group, which acts as an advisor for CPG and grocery sector B2B engagement solutions, has hired Peter Harris for the newly created role of Global Chief Research Officer. More
Continuing our focus on 'Measuring Brains and Bodies', MindProber's Pedro Moreira looks at the company's use of electrodermal activity (EDA) to analyse the extraordinary success of the hit TV show. What worked best, and why? [Spoiler Alert: this makes reference to surprise scenes etc.] More
STG's newly formed media monitoring and measurement business Onclusive has appointed Manuel Moerbach as Chief Executive Officer. More
Personal data management specialist Swash has hired Arbitron Mobile founder Hannu Verkasalo and research analyst Seth Ulinski to build the business and connect it with their networks of market research contacts. The firm has also raised $19m in an oversubscribed round of funding. More
China-based data collection firm Holden Healthcare and Japanese healthcare researcher Seed Planning have announced a partnership enhancing physician panel access across hard-to-reach markets in the Asia Pacific region. More
Kantar has made its Link AI ad testing solution available on the Kantar Marketplace on-demand research platform. More
In Australia, customer research platform Dovetail has raised $63m in a Series A round of funding, for use in continuing to build its core platform and expanding its product portfolio. More
GfK and cross-device targeting specialist Dstillery have expanded their partnership with the development of 32 new audience segments, through which digital marketers can target CPG shoppers. More
Data-driven experience management company Merkle has fully integrated two of its B2B divisions - creative agency gyro and media agency Merkle | DWA - into its Merkle B2B business, and retired their brand names. More
In Australia, full-service ad agency Howatson+Company has appointed former Appscore exec Hoang Nguyen as its first Chief Data and Technology Officer. More
Wearable tech is everywhere, and offers great potential for collecting data, but how useful is it right now for answering specific research questions? Kathryn Ambroze, Manager of Behavioral and Marketing Sciences at HCD Research continues our month-long focus on 'Measuring Brains & Bodies'. More
New Zealand-based insights agency TRA Group (The Research Agency) has made three appointments in its Australia office - Mark Hutchinson as product owner of its new brand management tool Streamlight; and Andie Lowings and Alex Forrester as Business Directors. More
Customer experience software provider AskNicely has raised $32m in a Series B round of funding, which it will use to expand its Frontline Success Platform technology, and double headcount across its Portland, Auckland and Amsterdam offices. More
In the first feature from our forthcoming special issue on neuroscience techniques, Michelle Niedziela and Glenn Kessler from title sponsor HCD Research give an introduction to the progress and potential of the field, and cut through some of the hype and misconceptions surrounding it. More
Online communities specialist InSites Consulting has acquired US-based 'customer-centric' specialist Gongos, for an undisclosed sum. More
Fonto, the recently launched Australia-based consumer data business headed up by former Kantar and Nielsen leader Ben Dixon, has raised $6m in capital with which to accelerate its growth and expand its suite of services. More
Media and entertainment company WarnerMedia has selected Comscore, iSpot and VideoAmp as measurement partners, tasked with building a new suite of technologies to count viewers across linear, digital and connected television. More
Artificial intelligence and advanced analytics specialist Fractal Analytics has raised $360m, valuing the business at more than $1 billion. More
Software investor Symphony Technology Group has completed its acquisition of Kantar's Reputation Intelligence business, while also buying media management software provider PRgloo and data science company Onclusive. The three businesses will be merged and known as 'Onclusive'. More
S&P Global and IHS Markit have agreed to sell chemical sector pricing data and forecasting business Base Chemicals to media and information services giant News Corp, for $295m in cash. More
This is the last edition of DRNO for 2021 - we'll be back on Tuesday 4th January. From all of us at MrWeb to all those of you celebrating it, a very Merry Christmas; and to all of you, thanks for reading this year and best wishes for a happy and prosperous 2022. Here we look backwards and forwards briefly... More
Advertising and media computer vision specialist GumGum has acquired Sydney, Australia-based ad attention measurement platform Playground xyz for an undisclosed sum. More
Software giant Oracle has paid $28.3 billion to acquire healthcare technology provider Cerner, which itself recently acquired Kantar Health. More
AT&T has agreed to sell its advertising and analytics division Xandr to Microsoft. Terms of the deal have not been disclosed. More
Technology publisher and B2B intelligence and targeting firm IDG Communications has announced the acquisition of Canada-based B2B sales and marketing intelligence platform LeadSift. More
Comscore has acquired social media marketing analytics and measurement company Shareablee, for an undisclosed sum. More
R.R. Donnelley & Sons' $2.1bn acquisition by Atlas Holdings is off, replaced by a $2.3bn deal with private investment firm Chatham Asset Management, which is a longstanding investor in the company. More
First-party data platform Dynata has acquired AI and machine learning company 0ptimus Analytics, whose platform connects, models and transforms insights into activation in real time. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
Pharma specialist M3 Global Research has announced the acquisition of Sydney, Australia-based fieldwork firm Ekas Marketing. More
US-based insight automation specialist Heap has raised $110m in a Series D round of funding, which values the company at $960m. The investment will be used to scale the firm's global operations, and accelerate R&D for its digital analytics platform. More
Data-driven customer experience management (CXM) company Merkle has appointed long time PwC Australia exec John Riccio as Chief Executive Officer in the ANZ region, succeeding Erik Hallander who is leaving to 'pursue other opportunities'. More
Australian market research technology platform Glow has received a seven-figure amount of financing from tech funding business Tractor Ventures, which it will use to further develop its products and platform and to accelerate its international expansion. More
Comscore has promoted longtime employee Janice O'Bryan to Senior Vice President and Managing Director, Domestic for its Movies division. More
Kantar has reported revenue of $2,681m for the first three quarters of 2021, up 11% at constant currency although still down 5% from 2019 figures; and EBITDA of $445m, up 52% on 2020 and 39% (organic growth 33%) versus the same period in 2019. More
Consumer data company Pureprofile has partnered with insight exchange and sample management platform Cint, enhancing its sampling options, data collection process and quality assurance. More
Information services group Informa has sold its Asset Intelligence Business unit to pricing data specialist Randall-Reilly, for an undisclosed sum. More
Media and marketing agency Talent Corp has partnered with research agency Lewers and survey firm Pureprofile to launch a new survey called The Australian Talent Index, which measures the popularity of the country's celebrities. More
Comscore has promoted Brian Pugh to the role of Chief Information Officer, responsible for developing new tech tools, for ensuring that data is secure, and for MRC and ISO accreditation of the firm's services. More
The Stagwell Group, owner of the Harris and Harris Poll brands, has opened a regional headquarters in Singapore, where it has appointed Randy Duax as Managing Director, Asia Pacific. More
Crispin Beale, former Chime I&E CEO, has joined US-based Behaviorally in the newly created role of company President, overseeing all client service and business development efforts across Europe, Asia and North America. More
Nielsen is suing panel-based TV audience measurement firms HyphaMetrics and TVision, claiming separate patent infringements. More
In Australia and New Zealand, Nielsen has launched a client engagement platform called STADIUM, offering a solution for media evaluation, advertising intelligence and consumer behavioural data all in one place. More
Momentive investor Legion Partners Asset Management says it will fight the SurveyMonkey owner's planned sale to online customer service and CX firm Zendesk. Legion says the price tag - originally c.$4bn but after share price falls now equivalent to around $3.4bn - undervalues the business. More
Ipsos has launched an early stage creative development solution called Instant|Labs, providing clients with an understanding of the potential of creative and ideas within just one day. More
AI-based analytics company ThoughtSpot has raised $100m in a Series F round of funding, which more than doubles its previous valuation to around $4.2 billion. More
Product analytics firm Mixpanel has raised $200m in a Series C round of funding, valuing the company at $1.05 billion. The firm will use the investment to accelerate product development and scale its team in North America, EMEA and Asia Pacific over the next 12 to 18 months. More
Marketing and consumer insights platform Prodege has secured an undisclosed 'major' investment from private equity firm Great Hill Partners, for use in rapid organic expansion and for targeted acquisitions. More
Australian media company Southern Cross Austereo (SCA) has made a minority investment in US company Frequency, which uses data signals to create multiple personalised versions of audio ads in real time. Terms of the deal have not been disclosed. More
Consumer insights provider Toluna has promoted Susan Vidler to the newly created position of Global Chief Research Officer, leading the group's global research team and responsible for developing, defining and implementing best practices across the research function. More
In the UK, personalized content and viewer insights provider ThinkAnalytics has hired Samuel Sweet for the newly created role of Chief Executive Officer of EMEA and AP. More
US-based real-time targeting specialist Fanplayr has appointed David Ticconi as Managing Director for Australia and New Zealand; Jack Hallahan as Vice President of Sales for the USA; and promoted Mariano Tripiciano to MD of the Americas. More
Comscore has reported revenue up 5% to $92.5m and adjusted EBITDA of $11.3m, up 55%, for the third quarter of 2021. Net income was $2.0m, compared with a net loss of $11.1m a year earlier. More
Following the recent decision of Facebook / Meta to delete its facial analysis data, a joint probe by the UK Information Commissioner's Office and its Australian counterpart the OAIC has found facial recognition provider Clearview AI in breach of privacy regulations. More
Stamford, CT-based tech research and advisory firm Information Services Group has announced revenue of $71m for the third quarter, up 14% (constant currency) on Q3 2020; and adjusted EBITDA of $10.2 million, up 24%. More
Business data and analytics veteran Dun & Bradstreet has agreed to acquire data onboarding and audience intelligence provider Eyeota and B2B data firm NetWise - strengthening its fast-growing Audience Solutions business and its capabilities in online B2B marketing. More
Technology researcher Forrester has announced third quarter revenue of $118.1m, up around 8.7% when compared either with Q3 2020 or 2019. More
Australian insight consultancy Fiftyfive5 has made 33 new hires since July, boosting its teams in Sydney, Melbourne, Auckland and Singapore. They include Clare Bradshaw as COO and Helen Brocklehurst as NZ-based Head of CX. More
US-based customer and employee experience management firm Medallia has launched a platform combining actionable user feedback metrics with 'complete' behavioural data for real-time optimisation of digital experiences. The firm's $6.4bn acquisition by Thoma Bravo was completed last week. More
Tech consultancy Gartner has announced results for the third quarter of 2021, with revenues up 15.0% at constant currency to $1.16bn, and EBITDA of $305m, up 79.9% on the same basis. More
Data onboarding and audience intelligence provider Eyeota has expanded its partnership with Comscore, to provide cookie-free contextual targeting for a broad range of verticals, across the key global markets. More
Online customer service and CX firm Zendesk is to acquire Momentive, parent of SurveyMonkey, in an all-share deal which values the DIY survey brand and its associated companies at around $4bn. More
Nielsen has reported a 5.5% increase in third quarter revenue to $882m (up 6.6% in organic terms). The figure is about 1% ahead of 2019 Q3 revenues for Nielsen Global Media, although comparisons are difficult after the company split and the sale of the Connect / NielsenIQ business. More
In a trading update, marcoms giant WPP has reported 'very strong' third quarter performance, with revenue minus pass-through costs of £2.64bn, up 6.9% LFL on pre-pandemic levels (Q3 2019). More
Nielsen and mobile audience data and targeting specialist Adsquare have expanded their data partnership to Australia, combining consumer data with location-based targeting capabilities so clients can reach 'hyper-relevant audiences at the right mobile moments'. More
Insight exchange and sample management platform Cint is to acquire rival firm Lucid for approximately $1.1 billion, of which c.$470m will be payable in newly issued Cint shares and c.$580m in cash. The deal should close by the end of the year. More
Australian insights consultancy Nature has appointed Arletta Turnbull as Director in its Melbourne office, with responsibility for several major accounts and for helping drive the firm's business strategy. The company has also made three other appointments in the city. More
Long-time Kantar exec Tim Wragg has been appointed as Chief Executive Officer of brand insights analytics and consulting agency Hall & Partners, succeeding Vanella Jackson who moves to the role of company Chairperson. More
Australia-based digital research platform Pureprofile has announced unaudited revenue of $10.2m for the first quarter of its new financial year, up 61% year on year; and EBITDA of $1.1m, up 29%. More
US-based real-time targeting specialist Fanplayr has appointed Jack Hallahan as VP of Sales for the US, and David Ticconi as MD for Australia and New Zealand; and has promoted Mariano Tripiciano to MD of the Americas. More
Ipsos has posted third quarter revenue of EUR 526.3m, up 12.3% versus Q3 2020 and 5.4% - or 8.5% in organic growth terms - compared with Q3 2019. The firm says profitability is 'in line with the objectives for the year announced in July', with a slight improvement predicted in operating margin. More
Data collection and research services company Schlesinger Group has announced the acquisition of Australian qual research platform Telmy, for an undisclosed sum. More
Brisbane, Australia-based customer feedback technology firm Survey Dynamix has been acquired by CX software developer VHT. More
Retail data provider The NPD Group is to be acquired by private equity firm Hellman & Friedman (H&F), with NPD Executive Chairman Tod Johnson and CEO Karyn Schoenbart retaining a minority stake in the business and continuing to serve on the Board. More
YouGov has reported revenue of £169.0m for the year to July 31st, up 18% in like-for-like terms and 11% reported. Reported pre-tax profit rose 24% to £18.9m, and adjusted operating profit rose 32% like-for-like (21% reported) to £31.2m. More
Toluna has appointed former Verint, Nielsen and Affinnova exec Kevin Daly in the new role of Chief Sales Officer. More
Cint has teamed up with audience profiling and targeting firm StatSocial to help clients target niche market research audiences, quickly and at scale. More
PureSpectrum has appointed former System 1 Research MD Lester Sualog to lead client development in Asia. More
Nielsen has unveiled a new logo, which it says reflects the transformation of its culture and a redefined strategy focused solely on the global future of media. The outgoing logo had been served for the combined Nielsen entity before the sale of Global Connect (now Nielsen IQ). More
Video attention measurement and emotion analytics specialist Realeyes has appointed former Brand Networks CEO Dave Fall as Chief Product Officer. More
Australian financial services insights and consulting firm DBM Consultants has appointed former EY exec Matthew Bond as Executive Director. More
Australia-based digital research platform Pureprofile has launched a data platform called Audience Intelligence, to give retailers and restauranteurs access to market analysis and competitor spending trends in real-time. More
Ipsos has announced the appointment of twenty-year Confirmit exec Wale Omiyale, as Global Head of Sales for Observer and Ipsos.Digital. More
Customer experience (CX) and research tech company Forsta has added new features to Dapresy's StoryCreator and StoryTeller tools, to enable users to build 'compelling, impactful PowerPoint presentations in record time'. More
Digital marketing group Incubeta has acquired Sydney, Australia-based web analytics and marketing optimisation specialist Panalysis, for an undisclosed sum. More
In Australia, Ipsos has appointed Troy Kohut as Director of its qualitative arm Ipsos Understanding Unlimited (Ipsos UU). He is based in Sydney. More
Kantar has launched a creative measurement tool called Digital Video AI, which can be used to predict the performance of online video ads in under fifteen minutes. More
Toluna has appointed Cate Rubenstein as SVP of Global Marketing, responsible for 'expanding and elevating' its brand. More
Market intelligence platform AlphaSense has raised $180m in a Series C round of funding. The money will be invested in product development and content expansion, in growing customer service teams in North America and Europe, and engineering teams in Finland, India and New York. More
Marcoms giant Havas has appointed Lindsay Stein as its first Chief of Social Impact, tasked with partnering with marketers and client firms to help them create research-based social impact solutions. More
WPP and Snap Inc. (the camera company behind messaging app Snapchat) have partnered to help brands engage with more than 200 million 'Snapchatters' and deliver immersive experiences using augmented reality (AR). More
In Australia, media research specialist Xtra Insights has named Bethaney Lawler General Manager, in addition to her existing role as Head of Radio Audience Measurement. More
London-based holding company STRAT7 has acquired Kin + Carta's strategic consultancy Incite, in a deal valued at £18m. More
Ipsos has announced that Nathalie Roos will no longer be taking over as CEO, following the emergence of 'deep discrepancies' in her discussions with Didier Truchot. Instead, Ipsos MORI CEO Ben Page will take the top job, from November 15th. More
WPP has agreed to pay more than $19m to settle charges that it violated several provisions of the USA's Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA). The SEC accused the marcoms giant of breaches of protocols including anti-bribery, books and records, and internal accounting. More
Australia broadcaster Seven West Media has appointed former Nielsen Head of Research Solutions for APAC Craig Johnson as Head of Research and Insights, replacing Emelia Millward who is leaving the company and the country. More
Twitter has agreed a settlement in a case accusing it of misleading investors with overly-bullish predictions of user growth. The company officially admits no wrongdoing but will shell out $809m if the deal is approved by an Oakland, CA judge. More
Programmatic research tech platform Lucid has appointed Eric Denker as Vice President heading up its Corporate Development and Strategy. More
CX and customer intelligence platform InMoment has appointed Eric Weight as VP solutions consulting, supporting its rapid expansion across Southeast Asia and Japan. More
Kantar has been selected by Origin, a joint industry initiative led by UK advertiser trade body ISBA, to supply a single source panel for cross-media measurement; adding to the recent launch of a 'Cross Media Performance' solution in Latin America, with Unilever among the early adopters. More
Sir Martin Sorrell's digital advertising and marketing services company S4 Capital plc has begun the growth of a third main practice area with the acquisition of tech services company Zemoga. More
CX and research tech company Forsta has appointed Brian Bhuta as Chief Product Officer, overseeing product development, leading innovation and evolving the architecture of the product suite. More
Research services and software company Schlesinger Group has announced the full integration of three of its acquisitions - Market Cube, 20|20 Research and Addison Research - under the Schlesinger Group brand. More
Ad agency division Wunderman Thompson Intelligence has launched a new report called 'Into the Metaverse', which covers everything brand owners and their agencies need to know about the 'shared online worlds in which physical, augmented, and virtual reality converge'. More
Ipsos has agreed to acquire New Zealand's Infotools, whose software and services focus on 'harmonizing', analyzing, visualizing and sharing market research data. More
In Sydney, media agency Universal McCann (UM) Australia has appointed Adam Krass as Chief Digital, Data and Technology Officer, replacing Maria Grivas who was named CEO of IPG-owned media agency Reprise earlier this year. More
Industry body Commercial Radio Australia (CRA) has partnered with GfK to roll out a system called Radio360, which will move the industry from paper-based surveys to the majority use of e-diaries and the integration of live streaming data. More
Sir Martin Sorrell's S4Capital has reported a 'very strong' first half, with like-for-like gross profit (net revenue) up 49%, and pro forma EBITDA up 36% - results described as 'more in line with the fast-growing digital platforms' than the more traditional major media groups. More
Professional associations ESOMAR and the Global Research Business Network (GRBN) have released two sets of guidelines - Primary Data Collection and Duty of Care - intended to strengthen the ethical standards framework available to their respective memberships. More
Consumer data and credit reporting agency TransUnion has agreed to acquire data firm Neustar for $3.1 billion, from an investment group led by Golden Gate Capital, with minority participation by GIC. Neustar's security business is excluded from the transaction. More
International data and research services company Schlesinger Group has launched a life-size virtual shopping aisle, which simulates an in-store shopping experience to gain in-context insights. More
Multinational food, snack and beverage corporation PepsiCo has launched an in-house data practice called Pepviz, using real-time insights, advanced analytics and data science to target shoppers. More
In the US, customer intelligence platform InMoment has acquired structured and unstructured data and text analytics firm Lexalytics, for an undisclosed sum. More
Xandr, the advertising and analytics division of AT&T, has appointed Masatsune Shironishi as Managing Director, Japan, and Nicole Prior as Managing Director for Australia and New Zealand. More
New Zealand-based consumer data platform Yabble has raised $NZ 3m in a second round of funding, which it will use to expand to Australia and then the US. More
In Australia, online sample marketplace PureSpectrum has appointed long-time Pureprofile exec Vanessa Scholla as Senior Account Director, ANZ in its Sydney office. More
GfK has expanded its gfknewron platform with the addition of market, consumer and brand data, along with predictive analytics. More
In Australia, conversational AI platform Cognigy has launched an analytics suite called Cognigy Insights, to help enterprises make sense of their conversational data and act on the findings. More
Former dunnhumby CEO Guillaume Bacuvier has been hired as Global Chief Executive Officer of Kantar's consumer panel division Worldpanel. He succeeds Josep Montserrat, who takes on the role of Non-Executive Chairman. More
News distribution, targeting and monitoring firm PR Newswire has rolled out its Cision Social Listening solutions in the Asia Pacific region, where users can now access its database of online conversations and analysis. More
In Australia, Taverner Research Group has announced that its three brands - Taverner, Jetty and IRIS - are being combined under the parent company's name, with a new logo and identity. More
In Australia, creative media agency Cummins&Partners has hired former IPG Mediabrands exec Andy Copeland as Chief Data & Technology Officer. More
In Australia, the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) has appointed Ipsos as its preferred supplier for digital audience data for a three-year term, commencing in the second quarter of 2022. Nielsen previously held the contract for nearly a decade. More
The UK government has announced plans to diverge from some parts of the EU's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), and revealed that New Zealand's Privacy Commissioner John Edwards is its preferred nominee to be the next UK Information Commissioner. More
Australia-based Enero Group, the parent of research firms The Leading Edge and The Digital Edge, has reported an 18.3% rise in revenue to $160.6m for the full year ending 30th June 2021. More
Game technology, entertainment and marketing specialist Livewire has launched a suite of gaming insights and audience solutions for Australia and New Zealand, driven by a partnership with audience database firm HYP. More
Australia's professional insights association the Research Society has appointed Angus Hunter as Chief Executive Officer, replacing Elissa Molloy, who led the society for more than sixteen years. More
In New York, customer experience and analytics specialist Accenture Interactive has appointed David Droga, founder of ad agency Droga5, as Chief Executive Officer and Creative Chairman, effective September 1st. He replaces Brian Whipple, who is retiring. More
In Australia, market research and customer experience consultancy Bastion Insights has hired Ali Dexter as co-Chief Executive Officer, leading the Melbourne office. As part of the announcement, founder Dianne Gardiner is stepping down from her CEO role to become an Executive Director. More
First-party data and insights platform Dynata has appointed Dilip Nagaraja as Chief Technology Officer, driving the continued development of the firm's platform and automating the processing, access and distribution of its products. More
In Australia, Ben Dixon, WPP AUNZ's former CEO of Data Investment Management, has been named Chief Executive Officer of newly launched single-source data business Fonto. More
Omnicom-owned data and analytics firm Annalect has appointed Matt Nolan as Chief Operating Officer, based in Sydney, Australia from September. Separately, Dimitris Tsioutsias has recently been named SVP Measurement & Optimization Solutions, based in the US. More
London-based audience and gamer insights firm GWI is opening its first APAC office in Singapore in October, staffed by a combination of relocated European team members and locally sourced talent. More
Digital research firm MetrixLab has appointed Jayanth Narasimha as Regional Director of Qualitative Research for the AMEA region. In this role, he will integrate early-stage qual solutions with MetrixLab's existing quant offerings for packaging, communications and creative testing. More
London-based market research and healthcare translation specialist GlobaLexicon has been acquired by language services business Toppan Digital Language, for an undisclosed sum. More
Australia's total television measurement system VOZ has gone public, with reports now available on the Virtual Oz web site of operator OzTam, alongside the latter's Total TV reach reports and BVOD-specific reports. More
Tokyo-based Macromill has announced the launch of a digital advertising business, Macromill Ads, tapping the data from its 1.3m proprietary consumer panelists to provide a one-stop service from ad planning and distribution to the measurement of effectiveness. More
Comscore has reported financial results for the quarter ended June 30th, with revenue down 1% to $87.7m, and adjusted EBITDA of $2.6m, dropping sharply from $9.2m a year earlier. The firm says the positive results of recent partnerships and agreements will show up later in the year. More
New Zealand-based insights agency TRA Group (The Research Agency) has opened its first Australian office, in Melbourne, and appointed Mark Hobart as a Partner to lead it. In addition, John Shanahan and Rob McLachlan join the firm's Australian Advisory Board. More
Momentive, until recently known as SurveyMonkey, has announced an expansion of its MR targeting capabilities to meet growing demand from b2b customers, and tapping the resources of Dynata and Schlesinger Group. More
Consumer insights platform Toluna has added a range of new product development methodologies to its Start platform, including needs identification, ideation, and claims testing solutions. More
Global research and advisory company Gartner has reported a 20% increase in second quarter revenue to $1.2 billion, from $973.1m a year earlier. Research revenues rose 14.6% to $1,003.2m, while the Conferences division recovered half its Q2 2019 revenue for a total of $58.2m. More
In interim results, WPP has reported a 'strong' first half, with revenue returning to 2019 levels 'a year ahead of plan'. H1 2021 revenue of £6.13bn was up 9.8% on last year's Covid-hit figure, and the group returned to a profit before tax (£394m) after losses of £3.18bn a year earlier. More
Momentive (formerly SurveyMonkey) has reported a 20% increase in second quarter revenue to $109.4m, from $90.9m a year earlier; with a 33% rise in Enterprise sales to $33.9m and self-service revenue up 15% to $75.5m. More
US-based Data Axle, which was previously known as Infogroup, has acquired multi-channel direct marketing solutions specialist Exact Data for an undisclosed sum. More
In the US, Kantar has appointed former SurveyMonkey exec Chuck Brinker as Brand Guidance Product team Lead, starting next month; and Christoph Haschka as Group Director of Mergers and Acquisitions. More
From September, Nielsen will begin placing approximately 3,000 newly designed Portable People Meter (PPM) wearable audience measurement devices with a subset of its nearly 60,000 active PPM panelists, as part of plans to modernize its panels and improve panelist experience. More
Sir Martin Sorrell's S4Capital has merged its digital content production company MediaMonks and digital media solutions provider MightyHive into a single data, digital media and tech brand called Media.Monks. More
In the US, first-party data company Dynata has acquired consumer engagement and survey platform inBrain.ai, for an undisclosed sum. More
In Sydney, Australia, insights consultancy Fiftyfive5 has hired long-time GfK exec Rob Highett-Smith for a newly created role, Head of Performance Measurement. More
Australia-based strategic insights consultancy Nature has added nine new staff, following strong growth in the last year. More
US-based technology specialist Forrester Research has reported second quarter revenue of $128.7m, up 13.4% on last year. Revenue from its Research division climbed to $81.0m from $75.0m in Q2 2020. More
Experience Management giant Qualtrics has announced a definitive agreement to acquire conversational analytics firm Clarabridge, in a stock transaction valued at $1.125bn. More
Nielsen has announced a 6.2% increase in second quarter revenues to $861m on both a reported and organic basis (4.5% in constant currency terms), up from $811m in the prior year period, and similar to revenue for the Global Media half of the business in Q2 2019. More
Sydney-based TEG, which offers ticketing, live entertainment and data analytics, has merged its Analytics, Digital and Insights divisions to create a marketing and technology solution called Ovation. More
New York-based real-time MR software platform Suzy has closed a $50 million Series D funding round, more than doubling the total is has raised to date. More
Shareholders in marcoms conglomerate MDC Partners Inc. have voted more than three to one in favour of its merger with Mark Penn's Stagwell Group, owner of the Harris and Harris Poll brands. More
Nielsen has launched an approach to measure authenticated and unauthenticated web traffic and validate first-party server data with real consumer behavior. More
Scott Muller has returned to Australian media company Southern Cross Austereo (SCA) in the newly created role of Head of Content Insights. More
US-based customer experience management specialist Medallia has agreed terms of a sale to software investment firm Thoma Bravo, in an all-cash transaction valuing the company at $6.4 billion. Bids from other potential buyers will also be considered over the next 40 days. More
Comscore Chief Financial Officer Greg Fink will be leaving the company at the end of August, 'to pursue new interests'. More
Australian media company Southern Cross Austereo (SCA) has invested an undisclosed amount in artificial intelligence and machine learning company SourseAI, which will provide content recommendations to SCA's listeners. More
In Australia, digital AdTech industry exec Trent Silins has launched a contextual data and technology firm called Kopa, to help marketers improve their video campaigns with contextual targeting, reporting and insights. More
Australian insights consultancy Fiftyfive5 has appointed Ed Harrison as Brand and Communications specialist, after nearly eighteen years at behavioural science specialist System 1 ANZ. More
Australia-based digital research platform Pureprofile has reported a 58% increase in revenue to $8.4m for its latest quarter (Q4) ending 30 June 2021 - its best growth quarter to date. Full year revenue was up 24% to $30m compared with full year 2020. More
In Australia, customer and marketing analytics firm Forethought has hired former Annalect ANZ CEO Darren Stein as its first Global Chief Executive Officer. More
Australia-based multinational mobile marketing research and consulting firm MDI (Mobile Digital Insights) has appointed Kim Albert as MD of its Australian operations, and Marsha Montebello in the newly created role of Commercial Director. More
Marcoms giant Publicis Groupe has acquired Australia-based self-service retail ad-serving and targeting platform CitrusAd, which provides brands with access to customer intelligence based on first-party data from retailers. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
First-party data platform Dynata has hired former Verto Analytics CEO Pat Brennan as VP, Panel Development; while Nancy Brigham joins as VP, Research Science; John Talierco as Product Owner; and Naveen Goel as VP, India Operations. More
YouGov has acquired Australian online-focused insights consultancy Faster Horses. Terms of the deal have not been disclosed. More
Kantar has appointed Annie Ho as Chief Financial Officer, Insights Division, Asia Pacific, replacing Stephen Gardner who is retiring after almost 25 years with Kantar and the WPP Group. More
OMG's analytics, data and tech agency Annalect has hired GroupM's Liesa Newland for the new role of Head of Data Infrastructure and Integration, covering Australia and New Zealand and starting on September 1st. More
In New York, consumer insights platform Morning Consult has added seven former Kantar executives and three from Ipsos to its Commercial team. More
Sample marketplace PureSpectrum has added an Australian office, and appointed Anthony O'Brien to lead it as Vice President, ANZ. Daniel Soh also joins the firm in Singapore as Senior Account Director. More
Online communities specialist InSites Consulting has announced 10% revenue growth for the fiscal year 2020-2021, adding 'up to EUR 66m worldwide'. More
In Australia, M&C Saatchi has launched a marketing sciences practice called Precision, which will work with clients and support a group-wide learning and development program to increase 'data fluency' among the group's employees. More
Kantar has promoted Ilana Sanborn to the newly created role of Head of Kantar Marketplace, Asia Pacific. More
Kantar Public, the group's government and public sector practice, has hired Craig Donovan for the newly created role of National Director, Government Communications within its Australian business. More
From our special issue published this week, KL Communications founder Kevin Lonnie talks about what's changed and what hasn't in twenty years running a communities business; about getting customers to solve clients' business problems; and getting space men to talk to each other. More
In Stockholm, Sweden, sample management platform Cint has appointed Marie-Louise Howett as Chief Human Resources Officer, responsible for guiding the company's global people, culture and workplace strategies. She replaces Johanna Isander, who left the firm in April. More
In the UK, consumer data company Pureprofile has hired former Dynata / Kantar Profiles exec Jon Wadsworth for a newly created role, Business Development Director, working across the UK and mainland Europe. More
Our 2021 Online Communities supplement is published today. In this article, Richard Preedy from title sponsor Verve looks at the role the company's community panels have played in the customer-focused transformation of retailer John Lewis. More
In Australia, market research and customer experience consultancy Bastion Insights has appointed former Potentiate CEO Peter Harris as Chief Exec in Sydney, driving growth and expansion in both the NSW market and nationally. More
In Australia, cultural insights and strategy company The Lab has hired eight new members of staff across its Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane offices. More
Enero Group, the parent of research firms The Leading Edge and The Digital Edge, has appointed Nick Burton as Group Strategy and M&A Director, based in its HQ in Sydney. More
Kantar has chosen a new Chief Executive - Chris Jansen, currently CEO of global schools group Cognita, starts in the role on 1st November. More
Civic engagement tech provider Zencity has secured $30m in funds, which it says will allow it to 'double down' on product development and pursue its dream of 'allowing governments to 'run' on community input data'. More
Business data firm Dun & Bradstreet, Inc. has completed the acquisition of a new global headquarters building, Town Center II in Jacksonville, Florida. More
Kantar has announced the formal integration of New Zealand's Colmar Brunton into its business, with the Colmar Brunton name to be phased out by the end of this year. All 121 staff in the country will join one of two new NZ divisions, Kantar or Kantar Public. More
Santa Monica, California-based ad intelligence company Pathmatics is expanding to Australia and New Zealand, appointing Eugene Du Plessis to lead the new division as Regional Director. More
KPMG Australia has shuffled the leadership team for its customer, brand and marketing advisory (CBMA) business, promoting Carmen Bekker to lead the expanded business. More
Continuing our focus on insight communities, Verve's Joint Head of Research talks about setting up the world's largest community panel; the boom in exploratory digital qual; and why he's seeing research better represented in board meetings than ever before. Available in print or as a video podcast. More
Google's phasing out of third-party cookies is no longer imminent. After sending the marketing community into a frenzy with its decision 18 months ago to drop cookie support from Chrome, the firm this week put the deadline back to at least mid-2023, linking the move to pressure from UK regulators. More
Media intelligence and social analytics group Meltwater B.V. has agreed the acquisition of ten-year-old Silicon Valley-based business information crowd-sourcing company Owler for $18.9m in cash and $5.6m shares. More
Experience Management (XM) company Qualtrics has partnered with cloud customer experience and contact center solutions firm Genesys, adding the latter's customer engagement and activity data to the former's feedback for a single, actionable view of customer satisfaction. More
Dentsu Group is folding its Isobar subsidiary in Australia into two other divisions, BWM Dentsu and Merkle: the former will become BWM Isobar and take Isobar's creative staff, while the latter becomes the group's leading CXM brand in the region and welcomes its CX specialists. More
Australia-based consulting business Fiftyfive5 says it has made 45 new hires in the last twelve months, 'across all geographies and levels', bringing its headcount to 147. More
US-based software and solutions provider QuestionPro has launched a knowledge management (KM) system called the Insights Hub, which offers an indexable and searchable platform for corporate research. More
Ipsos has appointed Brad Hyde as Director of its Perth office, leading the business in Western Australia. More
Comscore is to integrate its contextual Activation suite into ad tech company Viant's cross-channel programmatic ad platform, Adelphic, allowing Viant's advertisers to use Comscore's cookie-free targeting solutions. More
Online physician community Sermo has acquired Australian research panel provider Minter Group, in a move which will add an additional 50,000 Asia Pacific-based healthcare personnel (HCP) to Sermo's panel of 1.3 million physicians. Terms of the deal have not been disclosed. More
Consumer insights platform DISQO has acquired New York and Helsinki-based cross-device measurement specialist Verto Analytics, for an undisclosed sum. More
Media intelligence and analysis firm Isentia has been sold to comms software firm Access Intelligence for $AUD 35.6m (£19.4m). More
Kantar Public has rolled out its PUBLIC Hexis programme and policy evaluation approach to its hubs in Brussels and London. More
Kantar has partnered with data collaboration platform InfoSum to help advertisers ad TGI consumer insights to their own first-party data, improving targeting. More
In the second article from our forthcoming special issue, Toluna's Director, Digital Solutions Jack Lee sets out why communities are an ideal way for a brand to get closer to its consumers; and how to make the most of what they can offer. More
As the insight world emerges from the shadow of Covid, 'only around 50% of formerly face to face activity will revert to type', says Verve's Andy Dexter, introducing a month of features focused on Online Communities, for our forthcoming special issue. More
Kantar has promoted long-time employee Irene Joshy to Head of Creative, leading its Creative Domain in Australia. She relocates from Singapore to Melbourne to take up the post. More
The Australian Data and Insights Association (ADIA) has welcomed the new Australian Polling Council (APC) Code of Conduct, which sets out transparency and disclosure standards for public opinion polling that is released to the media. More
In New York, consumer insights platform Morning Consult has raised $60m in a Series B round of funding, which values the company at $1.01 billion. Funds will be used for development of its data collection technology and expansion into the EMEA and APAC regions. More
In Australia, WPP-owned marcoms agency Ogilvy has appointed Torque Data founding partner Mark Albert as Chief Data and Analytics Officer, leading data execution across the Ogilvy ANZ Network. More
Digital ad verification firm Integral Ad Science (IAS) has today announced the filing of a registration statement with the U.S. SEC, for a proposed IPO of its common stock. More
Toluna has launched what it describes as 'the industry's first and only Enterprise Insights Subscription', giving clients 'limitless access' to its Toluna Start platform, expert personnel and insights from its global panel community. More
US-based media, events and research company International Data Group (IDG) is to be acquired by investment firm Blackstone for $1.3 billion. More
Amsterdam-based research software developer Nebu BV has been acquired by Canadian enterprise software solutions specialist Enghouse Systems. Terms of the deal have not been disclosed. More
Australasian technology-based customer insights agency Perceptive has hired long-time Ipsos exec Ian Mills in a new role, Director of Strategy. He is based in Auckland, New Zealand. More
Comscore has partnered with conversation analytics specialist Spiketrap, to expand its Predictive Audiences cookieless targeting solution specifically for gamers. More
Kantar's first quarter revenue was up 3% to $896m, with six of its seven divisions delivering growth. This includes double digit increases from the group's consumer and shopper behavior specialist Worldpanel, and public policy services provider Kantar Public. More
Consumer data company Pureprofile has expanded its media business Pure.amplify into the UK, where it will be led by Pureprofile's current Head of Performance Marketing, Catherine Jones. More
Australia-based TV data and analytics provider Adgile has added a solution called 'Long Term Effects Attribution' to its TV ad impact measurement platform. More
M&C Saatchi Group AUNZ has promoted James Collier to the newly created role of Chief Data Officer, based in Sydney. He retains his existing role as Head of Performance at the group's full-service media agency Bohemia Group. More
User experience (UX) analytics platform Contentsquare has raised half a billion dollars in a Series E round of funding, which it will use to expand its leadership team in Europe and the US, and move into new markets across Asia. The round values the company at $2.8 billion. More
Australian insights consultancy Fiftyfive5 has appointed Ben Vernon as a Director, leading its customer experience capability. More
UK-based kids, parents and family panels firm The Insights Family has released a free report called 'The New Generation of Families', highlighting trends across Europe such as the future of education. Other versions of the report are available for North America, LATAM and APAC. More
Paradigm Sample co-founder Sima Vasa has joined the US Advisory Board of Australian market research technology platform Glow, to support its plans to expand further into North America. More
Nielsen has announced a $1.25 billion debt refinancing initiative, and says it is allocating funds to drive its new TV ratings platform Nielsen One. More
In New York, location intelligence provider Foursquare has acquired geospatial analytics and visualization platform Unfolded. Terms of the deal have not been disclosed. More
Ad and innovation testing platform Zappi has made three hires to support growth across the EMEA and APAC regions. The firm says its international sales team has doubled in size, and is planned to triple by the end of the year. More
Broadcaster Southern Cross Austereo (SCA) has promoted staff for three new roles: John Musgrove to Head of Research and Measurement; Abi Wallis to Head of Sales Insights and Campaign Strategy; and Jasmine Beech to Client Insights and Effectiveness Director. More
Kantar Public, the global group's government and public sector practice, has launched a data science platform and toolkit, 'PUBLIC Evidential', which promises advanced data blending and analytics to help 'build and enrich' the evidence base for public policy decisions. More
Switzerland-based sports data collection and analysis provider Sportradar has acquired Australian insights and technology company InteractSport, for an undisclosed sum. More
Tokyo-based online specialist Macromill has launched a Life Science Business, which will conduct research and acquire biochemical data relating to healthcare, and use panels for human clinical trials concerning health promotion and disease prevention. More
Software giant Oracle has launched what it claims is the world's first ad measurement technology for 3D in-game environments. More
US-based technology research and advisory firm Information Services Group (ISG) has reported a 4.6% increase in Q1 revenues to $67m - up 1% in constant currency terms. Adjusted EBITDA jumped to $8.6m, from $3.5m in first quarter 2020. More
New Zealand-based MR software provider Infotools has updated its flagship Harmoni platform, with the addition of features for combining, analyzing and reporting on all types of data. More
In the UK, global data company Pureprofile has promoted Rebecca Mansley to the role of Head of its Data and Insights (D&I) team; Georgia Prorok to Business Development Director; and Tanja de Vries Robles to Senior Client Development Manager. More
Australian quant research and analytics specialist Nature has moved Emma Tommasini, Nick Tucker, Sharon Spargo and Adrian Compton Cook into the role of Director. In addition, Scott Watson has been promoted in Melbourne, and Lizi Pritchard in Sydney. More
The Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) has formed a joint venture with customer data analytics firm Quantium, combining the former's transaction data with the latter's data science. The new business will be known as CommBank iQ and will begin trading in the second half of 2021. More
Marcoms group dentsu has partnered with digital ad verification specialist Integral Ad Science (IAS) to bring the latter's Total Visibility product to local advertisers in the Australian and New Zealand markets. More
In Australia, comms agency Think HQ has brought its research department in-house, and appointed recent recruit Pauline Ho to lead it, in the role of Strategy and Insights Manager. More
Nielsen has appointed Alicia Olson-Keating as Australian Managing Director for Television Audience Measurement (TAM), starting next month. In her new role, she will support the new Total TV reporting and planning database, Virtual Australia (VOZ). More
Australia-based full-service MR agency DBM Consultants has appointed financial services specialist Andrew Kim as Managing Director in Singapore. More
Comscore has reported results for the first quarter, with revenue up fractionally from $89.5m to $90.3m. Adjusted EBITDA was down 12.5% to $5.6m, but remains much stronger than in 2019. More
Technology consulting firm Forrester Research has reported revenue up 7% to $113.8m for the first quarter of 2021. The company has also launched Forrester Decisions, described as a 'premium portfolio' of 15 new research services. More
Nielsen has reported a 2.5% increase in first quarter revenue to $863m, with EBITDA climbing strongly (up 18.3%). More
Global industry association ESOMAR has teamed up with NewMR, Confirmit and more than twenty other organisations for the next wave of its survey among buyers and users of insights, measuring how usage and purchasing patterns are evolving. More
First quarter revenues at global research and advisory firm Gartner rose 8.4% to $1.1 billion, with reported profit more than doubling to $164.1m (vs $75m in Q1 2020). Adjusted EBITDA rose 50% to $320m, from $214m a year before. More
New Zealand-based specialist product development and sensory evaluation business Futurescape has been renamed Imagine Research. More
Specialist market research, insights, and data analytics recruiter Resources Group has promoted Gemma Lewis to the role of Joint Managing Director, APAC, based in Australia. More
In Australia, media business the Seven Network has appointed former Nine Network / Axciom exec Dean La Rosa as Head of Commercial Data. The firm has also partnered with Adobe for its 7REDiQ audience intelligence platform. More
Eye tracker developer Tobii is preparing to spin off its Dynavox arm, which develops speech generating devices, eye trackers and eye gaze/eye-controlled devices for people with disabilities and special needs. Along with the spin-off, Group CEO Henrik Eskilsson says he intends to step down. More
Location data provider Geoscape Australia has appointed former Axciom / LiveRamp MD Dean Capobianco as Chief Executive Officer. He takes over from Dan Paull, who left in February after more than 22 years with the business. More
Australia's Association of Market and Social Research Organisations (AMSRO) has been re-named the Australian Data and Insights Association (ADIA) in a move which it says better reflects the emergence of new tech-enabled research methodologies. More
In the US, programmatic sample platform Lucid has announced that The Trade Desk is the first demand side platform to provide its clients in the US, UK, Canada and Australia with access to the Lucid Brand Lift solution. More
Kantar Chief Executive Alexis Nasard has stepped down after just four months in the role. Deputy CEO Ian Griffiths will lead the company until a new appointment is made. More
The recently merged business of research software firms Confirmit and FocusVision has a new name, Forsta. Both the original companies will continue to operate as usual while the organisation continues its integration plans and brand strategy roll out. More
WPP has launched a global data company called Choreograph, which brings the specialist data units of GroupM and Wunderman Thompson into a single business, accessible to all WPP clients and companies. More
Shares in WPP AUNZ have been suspended from the ASX (Australian Securities Exchange), following last week's shareholder vote in favour of a buyout of the business by British parent company WPP plc. More
YouGov has announced the acquisition of open banking start-up Lean App, adding financial transaction data to its panel, profiling and other products and services. More
Digital ad trade body IAB Australia has says it will not at this point endorse the methodology for Nielsen's new-look Digital Media Ratings. The measurement giant announced a 'soft-release' of the new system last week, for clients only. More
A rift in the Australian readership measurement industry which opened a dozen years ago appears to be healing this week, as media alliance Think News Brands shutters its publisher-funded 'EMMA' measurement platform and resumes support for long-time currency provider Roy Morgan. More
Ipsos has posted revenue of EUR 466.3m in the first quarter of 2021, up 8.8% from Q1 2020 and up 10.5% from Q1 2019. Like-for-like, the increase was 14.1%, driven by a very strong performance in EMEA. More
Experience Management (XM) pioneer Qualtrics has reported first quarter revenue up 36% to $238.6m, and also says it turned an operating loss into a small (non-GAAP) profit during the period. More
Insights and data firm Pureprofile has reported revenues up 25% to $7.1m in the first three months of 2021; and says it plans to launch new partnerships, plus panels in Europe and Asia. More
Tech buyer and seller marketplace Spiceworks Ziff Davis (SWZD) has launched a division called Aberdeen Strategy & Research, delivering insights into the business technology market. Robin Peto will lead it as Managing Director. More
Today sees the launch of the inaugural 'Insight250' list, honouring MR industry 'leaders, visionaries and pioneers' who have been selected for their efforts in enhancing market research, enterprise intelligence and data-driven marketing. More
YouGov has launched a service called YouGov Safe, offering a fully opt-in, GDPR and CCPA compliant, cross-device tracker and data marketplace, which incentivises participants to choose who they share their data with. More
In the US, online sample company PureSpectrum has raised $17m in a Series B round of funding, which it will use to continue building its team and to expand its product offering. More
Kantar has reached a definitive agreement to acquire Chicago-based consumer and market intelligence company Numerator from investment firm Vista Equity Partners. Sources suggest the deal is worth about $1.5 billion. More
Long-time Cint executive Richard Thornton has departed from the company for some 'planned time off with the family'. More
Australian data intelligence company Potentiate has promoted Melissa Riley to Head of Client Services, Ante Grabovac to Solutions Engineer, and Amanda Roach to Growth Hacker. More
US-based customer intelligence platform InMoment has appointed tech sales executive Carl Kimball, to support its growth across the Asia Pacific and Japan (APJ) region. More
US-based healthcare technology provider Cerner has completed its acquisition of Kantar Health for $375m in cash, subject to adjustment. More
Online sample marketplace PureSpectrum has expanded to the Asia Pacific region, where it has appointed former Cint exec James Rogers as Managing Director. More
In the US, Comscore has promoted analytics leader Michael Vinson to the position of Chief Research Officer. More
Media and entertainment company Australian Radio Network (ARN) has launched an audience and commercial insights series called Australia Unplugged, promising to 'dig deep' to answer the questions about what's really on audio consumers' minds. More
YouGov has launched a templated suite of brand research approaches called Consumer Journey Diagnostics, which it says 'blends the depth of custom research with the cost-effectiveness and speed of syndicated data'. More
London-based B2B loyalty and incentive programme provider Motivforce has promoted Nick Merry to the role of Global Chief Executive Officer, replacing co-founder David Cox, who is now the company's Chairman. Merry is based in Sydney, Australia More
Kantar has launched a new practice, Dx Analytics, focused on the analysis of unstructured data to provide clients with deeper insight, and help them measure and boost their digital marketing performance. More
Global group GfK has unveiled a new version of its gfknewron solution which gives clients instant access to the company's independent, predictive analytics for tech consumer goods across 27 countries. New features include AI-driven rolling, short-term forecasts; and price optimization tools. More
Recently merged Confirmit and FocusVision have appointed Christopher Nagy and Giles Whiting to their leadership team as Global President / CFO and COO, respectively. More
In Sydney, Kantar Public has today announced the appointment of Kirsty Macmillan to head up its Australian business. More
Sir Martin Sorrell's digital ad group S4Capital has announced a 15.2% like-for-like increase in revenue, in unaudited preliminary results for the full year 2020. EBITDA rose 18.3% on the same basis. Reported revenue, including acquisitions, was up 59.3% to £342.7m. More
Trade association IAB Australia is to conduct an independent review into requirements for a digital audience measurement currency, to form the basis for a tender for online measurement services, published in May. More
Following the first anniversary of the death of Taylor Nelson co-founder Tony Cowling, a not-for-profit foundation has been set up in his name, to help students develop innovations in market research that can be applied internationally for public benefit. More
In New Zealand, consumer insights, brand planning and innovation agency the One Picture Group has acquired full-service social and marketing research agency Gravitas, which has now been re-named GravitasOPG. Terms of the deal have not been disclosed. More
Trade association ESOMAR has named ScaleHouse Consulting founder Kristin Luck as President of its Council, replacing Joaquim Bretcha of Netquest who has completed his two-year term. MindSpark founder Nikki Lavoie is the new Vice President, and five of the remaining eight members are also women. More
Australian data intelligence company Potentiate has appointed Melissa DeVincentis as Head of Research, based in Melbourne. More
In Australia, research consultancy DBM has appointed Kerry Sproston as Executive Director, responsible for developing its offer in the government and social research sector. The firm has also promoted Angela Baker to Executive Director of its client-facing and Advanced Analytics teams. More
Former Sample Central Group CEO Anthony J James has launched what he claims is the 'world's first' business influencer marketplace, offering access to 'highly networked' B2B and B2C leaders across fifteen countries in the US, Asia-Pacific, Latin America and Europe. More
In Australia, outdoor advertising and media company oOh!media has launched an online data resource called the Audience Intelligence Hub, to provide clients with insights for engaging Out of Home (OoH) audiences. More
Experience management firm Qualtrics has announced a 29% increase in revenue for the full year 2020, to $763.5m, with a fourth quarter increase of 24% to $213.6m. Non-GAAP Q4 net loss was $8.1m, improved from $20.3m a year earlier, while for the full year the figure was $46m ($59.3m in 2019). More
WPP has reported a 9.3% fall in revenue to £12bn in 2020 from £13.2bn the previous year, while turning a 2019 profit of £1.3bn into a 2020 loss of £2.3bn. Despite this, the group says it has cut debt to its lowest level in sixteen years. More
Comscore has partnered with enterprise AI solutions provider Hive, to expand the integration of artificial intelligence across its product portfolio. More
Customer experience management specialist Sprinklr has expanded its presence in Singapore, with the opening of a new R&D center. More
Research software firms Confirmit and FocusVision have completed their merger, with Confirmit CEO Kyle Ferguson named Chief Executive Officer of the combined business. More
In London, marketing intelligence and programmatic media specialist MiQ has promoted Giles Ivey to the position of EMEA Chief Executive Officer, while Van Sideras has been named EMEA Chief Operations Officer and Freddie Turner takes Sideras' previous role as UK Managing Director. More
In Melbourne, Kantar has promoted Jon Foged to the newly created role of Managing Director, Australia and New Zealand, Insights arm - he was previously CEO of the division in Australia. Jason Shoebridge, CEO of Kantar New Zealand, will leave the business in April. More
The UK's Market Research Society (MRS) is to award 25 honorary fellowships during the calendar year, to mark its 75th anniversary. Nine names have been revealed, including British statistician Sir David Spiegelhalter and scientist Dr Camilla Pang. More
Customer experience management specialist Medallia is to acquire digital experience analytics firm Decibel, headquartered in London, for approximately $160m in cash. More
Comscore has reported preliminary financial results for the fourth quarter and full year 2020. Q4 revenue fell some 5.5% to $90.0m, but profits rose - adjusted EBITDA was up around 70% in Q4 to $9.4m, and for the year as a whole rose dramatically. More
GfK has announced the launch of Brand Architect, a new framework which it says bridges the gap between consumer attitudes and actual behavior, to measure the strength of brands. More
Nielsen has completed the previously announced sale of its consumer intelligence business NielsenIQ (formerly Nielsen Global Connect) for $2.7bn to affiliates of Advent Interrnational, in partnership with former TransUnion CEO James 'Jim' Peck. More
In London, Kantar has hired former Neustar exec Ted Prince for a newly created role, Chief Product Officer, responsible for defining and delivering new offerings and real-time platforms. More
Google has announced that it won't build alternative identifiers to track individuals as they browse the web once third-party cookies are phased out; nor use them in other Google products. More
Online survey software provider QuestionPro has hired employee understanding specialist Sanja Licina as President of its Workforce Experience division, with overall responsibility for driving growth, product development and client satisfaction. More
Nielsen's music, video and sports tech company Gracenote has launched a solution called 'Personalized Imagery', to help video services present the most appealing program images to viewers through their user interfaces, content carousels and program guides. More
Nielsen is selling its Advanced Video Advertising (AVA) business to TV streaming platform Roku, in a deal which includes Nielsen's video automatic content recognition (ACR) and dynamic ad insertion (DAI) technologies. Terms of the transaction have not been disclosed. More
Ipsos has hired former New York Times insights exec Dan Wong-Chi-Man for a newly created role, Head of Global Marketing and Business Development. He will be based in London. More
Outdoor advertising company JCDecaux Australia & New Zealand has launched a tool called OPTIX, giving advertisers an understanding of which elements of their creative are driving the most audience engagement and viewer attention. More
Paris-based MR data and tech firm Bilendi has announced the acquisition of HumanizeeSAS, the company that owns the Discussnow platform. More
In Illinois, USA, a federal judge has approved settlement of the 2015 lawsuit alleging that Facebook tagged the faces of users and used other biometric data without their permission. The social network will pay $650m, including 'at least' $345 for each of the class action's c.1.6m plaintiffs. More
Comscore has expanded its data agreement with marcoms giant Omnicom Group, to provide privacy-safe e-commerce and audience behavioral data for its Omni media planning and personalization platform. More
UK-based kids, parents & family panels firm The Insights People has added eight new team members since the start of the year, taking its headcount to 54, with a further 16 hires planned. The firm says that so far in 2021 it has added one new client every week. More
Australian researcher Lewers has appointed Katie Altmann and Lisa Tropeano, and promoted company veteran Phil Guarisco to Partner. The firm says on the back of 'another year of strong growth' it will continued to both promote from within and hire new talent in 2021. More
Global PR and marketing company Cision has agreed to acquire Brighton, UK-based social media listening and content marketing analytics firm Brandwatch, for $450 million. More
Debbie Clifford, Chief Financial Officer of SurveyMonkey, is leaving to become CFO of her previous employer Autodesk. SurveyMonkey has already initiated a search to find her replacement, with CEO Zander Lurie taking over the role until one is named. More
US-based sample solutions provider InnovateMR has appointed former Dynata execs Divesh Mahajan as Account Director, APAC and Kanishka Baisoya as Associate Director, Global Bidding. Both are based in India. More
Ipsos has reported Covid-hit full-year revenue of EUR 1.8bn, down 6.5% on a like-for-like basis, but managed organic growth of 1.4% in Q4 (vs Q4 2019). Negative currency effects dented reported figures for both periods. More
Nielsen has reported fourth quarter 2020 net income of $35m, compared to a loss of $109m in the prior year period. Revenue for the period fell just 1.1% to $1.67bn, while adjusted EBITDA was $560m, up 13.8%. For the full year, the company almost broke even, on revenues down 3.2%. More
Comscore has expanded its TV measurement footprint to Australia through a partnership with cross-screen television insights and analytics provider Samba TV; and says it plans to add further regions throughout 2021. More
Communities specialist InSites Consulting has expanded its Asian footprint with the acquisition of Taipei, Taiwan-based Answer. Terms of the deal have not been disclosed. More
Former Body Shop CEO Jeremy Schwartz has joined Kantar as Practice Chairman for Sustainable Transformation, with a remit to increase marketplace visibility for the division, along with C-suite engagement. More
Adgile Media, an Australian firm measuring TV ad impact, has launched a cloud-based platform called Catalyst, designed to help users understand, optimise and extend their TV planning and buying in real time. More
In the US, Ipsos has appointed Christie Kawada as Head of Media Development and Audience Measurement. She takes over from Manny Flores, who moves to the position of Executive Vice President in the Client Organization. More
MR analysis and reporting solutions provider Infotools has enhanced its cloud-based Harmoni survey analysis platform with a feature flagging up 'statistically significant differences'. More
Shares in insight exchange and sample management platform Cint rose 30% to SEK 92.5 (EUR 9.2) per share from the original offer price of SEK 72 (EUR 7.2), after the firm placed its initial public offering (IPO) on the Nasdaq Stockholm this morning. The listing values Cint at more than EUR 1bn. More
Tech consulting and research group Gartner has reported Q4 revenue of $1.11bn, down 9% in the quarter and down 3% in the full year 2020, but the firm's double figure profit growth (full year adjusted EBITDA +20% FX neutral, and Q4 + 10%) supports CEO Gene Hall's bullish appraisal. More
US-based tech specialist Forrester Research has reported a 3.02% drop in fourth quarter revenue to $120.5m. For the full-year, total revenues were $449.0m, down from $461.7m in 2019. More
SurveyMonkey has reported a 20% increase in total revenue to $101.0m for the fourth quarter, ended December 31st 2020. Full-year 2020 revenue was up 22% year-on-year to $375.6m. More
James David 'Dave' Power III, the founder and retired Chairman of automotive industry research specialist J.D. Power, died on January 23rd after a long-term illness. He was 89. More
The second of our new video podcasts is with Eugene Murphy of indeemo and includes discussion of mobile ethnography, the future of shopping, the impact of the pandemic on research methods and budgets, and the potential for qualitative in the post-Covid world. More
In Sydney, Nielsen has appointed former Hearts & Science exec Jonathan Betts as Executive Director, Commercial Growth and Product Strategy, Nielsen Media Australia. He takes up the new role next Monday. More
UK-based firm The Insights People has launched a media planning tool called the Media Mix Compass, to provide an account of kids' media consumption habits and help brands and agencies with their media campaign planning and evaluation. More
US-based experience management company Qualtrics has appointed Jason Laufer as Country Manager for Australia and New Zealand. More
Real-time customer data specialist Tealium has raised $96m in a Series G round of funding, which it will use to drive product innovation and expand its global footprint. More
Australian insights consultancy Fiftyfive5 has brought in six new graduates in its Sydney office and one in Auckland. They are joined by Caelan Bistram who started as an intern last year. More
Customer experience (CX) and DIY survey firm Alchemer, formerly known as SurveyGizmo, has appointed former SAP exec Mary Beth Addison as SVP of Sales. More
Today we kick off our video podcast series with a closer look at how luxury markets are faring in time of Covid, and the challenges of researching this sector. MrWeb's Nick Thomas talks to Lars Long, Chief Executive of Altiant. More
Kantar has joined Google's Ads Data Hub (ADH), enabling marketers to assess YouTube ad performance across all devices and platforms without the use of pixels. More
From this week, Daily Research News will feature video interviews of around 20-25 minutes with leading figures in the insights and analytics world, giving you more depth on some of the stories in the news, and talking about themselves, their companies and their views. More
Sydney, Australia-based business intelligence software firm Phocas has raised $45m in its second round of funding, which it will use to further develop data analytics products including its new budgeting, forecasting and planning tool. More
In the US, experience management company Qualtrics has confirmed the pricing of its initial public offering (IPO) of 51,695,568 shares at a price to the public of $30.00 per share. More
Australia-based digital research platform Pureprofile has appointed former Kantar exec Young Ham as Head of Data, Innovation and Product; plus Kate Richards as Interim Head of Sales, Data & Insights ANZ, and Tom Hamilton as Senior Account Director. More
In the US, experience management company Qualtrics has appointed Julia Anas as Chief People Officer, Edward Chen as Head of Corporate Development and Strategy, and Gina Sheibley as Chief Communications Officer. More
Australia-based digital research platform Pureprofile has announced a record 26% increase in revenue for the quarter ending 31st December 2020. The total of $8.2m was driven by strong performance in all business units, and was 'well ahead of expectations', according to the firm. More
Comscore has announced the launch of Movies Everywhere, which promises daily reporting of box office movie performance across all platforms. More
Online community specialist C Space has promoted Jessica DeVlieger to the role of Global Chief Executive, replacing Charles Trevail, who will continue to lead parent company Omnicom's Interbrand Group around the world. DeVlieger is based in Boston. More
In the US, Kantar has sold its paid search intelligence unit - formerly known as AdGooroo - to AI-powered search intelligence specialist Adthena. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. More
Shopper insights agency PRS IN VIVO USA has been renamed Behaviorally, following its sale to new majority shareholder Alcentra. More
US-based sample solutions provider InnovateMR has appointed Sandeep Singh as Managing Director, APAC, while Sylvia Ortiz-Moscato joins as Vice President of Operations, B2B & New Client Partnerships. More
According to reports in UK media, Paris-headquartered marketing group Publicis has been holding talks with a private equity firm regarding the possible sale of all or a part of the group. More
Google has taken the unusual step of pronouncing its $2.1bn acquisition of wearable tech firm Fitbit a done deal, while regulatory investigations including that of the U.S. Department of Justice are still ongoing. Meanwhile Facebook's WhatsApp is mired in controversy over user data. More
In the US, market intelligence platform Premise Data has raised $85m in a Series E round of funding, which it will use to expand its platform capabilities and global network. More
Video feedback platform Discuss.io has launched Respondent Management, a DIY hub feature allowing users to track respondents through the process of recruiting, screening, scheduling, incentivizing and interviewing. More
In Australia, the Outdoor Media Association (OMA) has commissioned Ipsos to update its audience measurement system MOVE, to deliver a national model that covers all formats and environments, including Digital Out of Home (DOOH) signs. More
Australia-headquartered digital research platform Pureprofile has appointed long-time Kantar Profiles exec Joris Schellekens as Sales Director, Mainland Europe, charged with leading the firm's growth plans across the region. He is based in the Netherlands. More
IT and business process consultancy Cognizant has acquired Sydney, Australia-based enterprise data and analytics consulting firm Servian. Terms were not disclosed. More
UK-based firm The Insights People has rolled out its Parents Insights service across thirteen countries, surveying 130,000 parents of children between the age of one and sixteen. Also new is a trend prediction service called 'Parents Insights Future Forecast'. More
In the US, experience management company Qualtrics has filed for an initial public offering (IPO) with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), valuing the firm between $12bn and $14.4bn. More
Comscore has agreed to an investment deal which it will use to pay off its debt through the issuance of new shares. As part of the deal, the firm will also receive consumer-level data sets and rights from new investor, broadband and cable company Charter Communications. More
Research software firms Confirmit and FocusVision have announced plans to merge. The deal is dependent on receipt of regulatory approvals and expected to complete in the second quarter. Terms have not been disclosed. More
In the US, Polly MacIsaac has returned to online community specialist C Space as Chief Operating Officer, allowing Phil Burgess to relinquish his operations responsibilities and focus on his role as Chief People Officer. More
US-based customer intelligence platform InMoment has announced the acquisition of digital feedback solutions provider Wootric. More
Financial data technology company SRAX has appointed angel investor and cryptocurrency analyst Lou Kerner as CEO of its BIGtoken subsidiary - a consumer-managed data marketplace. More
Sir Martin Sorrell's S4Capital has announced two 'combinations', expanding both its MediaMonks content practice, with the addition of independent marketing firm Decoded Advertising; and its MightyHive data and digital media practice with the acquisition of San Francisco firm Metric Theory. More
DRNO is taking a break now until 4th January. It's been a strange old 12 months, but we're looking forward greatly to 2021. We wish those of you doing it a fantastic Christmas, and everyone a great New Year. More
WPP AUNZ has accepted an increased offer from its majority shareholder WPP, for the remainder of the company. The cash price of 70 cents per share means the total payable would be approximately $AUD 230m. More
Australian Radio Network (ARN) has launched a neuroscience-based media research initiative, aiming to deliver a better understanding of consumer behaviour and provide new insights about audio. More
Communities specialists Verve and Potentiate have merged in the UK, as part of a global strategic partnership between the two firms. Terms of the deal have not been disclosed. More
Research software firm Confirmit, which merged with reporting software provider Dapresy earlier this year, has paid an undisclosed sum for the latter's licensed regional distributor Dapresy Asia. More
Australia-based digital research platform Pureprofile has completed an $18.8m recapitalisation. Most of the proceeds will be used to reduce its debt, with $3.5m earmarked to provide additional capital to fuel future growth and investments. More
In the UK, IT industry professional body BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT, has awarded Information Commissioner Elizabeth Denham its new award for her 'outstanding contribution to making digital technology good for society'. More
Customer experience management (CXM) and insights platform Alida (formerly Vision Critical) has expanded its Asia Pacific and Japan (APJ) team with the appointment of six new members, including Phillip Walsh as General Manager for Australia, New Zealand and Pacific. More
Digital research firm MetrixLab has extended its ACT Instant advertising pre-test tool worldwide, and across multiple ad formats including TV and banner ads. More
Online communities specialist InSites Consulting has brought its seven offices in Asia under its own name, retiring that of ABN Impact, which it acquired a year ago. More
In the US, DIY research software firm SurveyMonkey has hired former Neustar and IBM exec Ken Ewell for the newly created role of Chief Customer Officer, charged with leading and expanding the firm's customer success, professional services and support teams. More
New Zealand-based MR software provider Infotools has upgraded its Harmoni platform with a feature allowing users to automatically cross-reference and streamline the analysis and visualization of multi-level (hierarchical) survey data. More
In the US, Facebook has acquired customer relationship management platform Kustomer, which focuses on omnichannel enterprise customer service. The deal was valued at $1 billion according to a report in The Wall Street Journal which cited 'people familiar with the matter'. More
UK-based management consultancy PA Consulting, parent of a number of data and insight businesses, has changed ownership, with The Carlyle Group making an exit and global tech and professional services firm Jacobs taking a 65% stake. More
Nielsen has appointed Jamie Moldafsky, formerly CMO at Wells Fargo Bank, as Chief Marketing and Communications Officer, effective immediately. More
Next15's data and insights group Savanta has launched a suite of tools called 'Savanta Essentials', promising a low-cost, fast turnaround approach to help businesses research key issues and engage with consumers. More
Apple has confirmed plans to introduce a feature known as 'App Tracking Transparency' (ATT) next year, which will prevent apps and web sites from monitoring the way a user behaves online. More
Continuing our focus on Data Visualization: Richard Thomas, CEO & founder of network monitoring firm Highlight, on the challenges of turning a mass of chaotic traffic and performance information into neat, colourful one-page panoramic views for use by non-technical clients. More
Australia-based digital research platform Pureprofile has appointed long-time industry exec Johnny Caldwell for its newly created role of Senior Business Development Director in the UK. More
In Sydney, Australia, 'Human Experience' agency Potentiate has hired Daniel Alexander-Head as Director of Innovation. More
In New Zealand, global out-of-home media company JCDecaux has agreed to sell half its Calibre audience measurement solution to ANZ-based rival oOh!media. The firms say the move will 'cement Calibre's position as the industry-wide [OOH] audience measurement solution'. More
In Australia, Kantar has launched a cross-channel platform called Media+BOSS, to help brands and media agencies simulate media campaigns and forecast the expected impact on the brand. More
Australian research association AMSRO has published the final report of its inquiry into opinion polls during the 2019 Federal Election, finding evidence of a 'polling failure' rather than simply a 'polling miss'. More
Kantar's former virtual reality (VR) research specialist Alki Manias has joined Sydney, Australia-headquartered shopper research business StoreLab as Vice President, charged with leading the firm's expansion into the EMEA and Americas regions. He will be based in London. More
Consumer intelligence platform Toluna has appointed former Nielsen MD Bruce Haymes as Non-Executive Chairman of its Board of Directors. More
Comscore has reported lower revenue - down 6.7% to $88.0m - but adjusted EBITDA up around 14% to $7.3m, in the third quarter. The company also announced that as a result of its strategic review it will look to recapitalize with an anchor investor, lowering debt and enhancing liquidity. More
Sir Martin Sorrell's digital advertising and marketing services company S4 Capital has issued a trading update for the third quarter, with like-for-like revenue up almost 13% and profit also up 'very strongly'. More
DIY survey pioneer SurveyMonkey has reported third quarter financial results for the period ended September 30th, with total revenue up 20% to $95.4m. More
From the Data Visualization special issue published last week: Ipsos.Digital CEO Andrei Postoaca talks about the challenges involved in developing a DIY research platform for one of the world's biggest and best known insight groups. More
Technology consultancy Gartner has reported results for the third quarter, with revenue down just 1% (constant currency) at $995m, and adjusted EBITDA up 19.4% on the same basis to $168m. Excluding the Conferences segment, revenue rose by around 5%. More
Former employees of GroupM and Comscore, Michael Bologna and Joanna Drews, have launched HyphaMetrics, which will use a proprietary panel of 5,000 homes to track viewing across devices. More
Digital MR products and solutions company Borderless Access has launched a sub-brand, BA Health, combining a range of technology and analytics-driven research capabilities for clients in healthcare, life-sciences and diagnostics, with a team strengthened by 24 recent appointments. More
Australia-based TV measurement firm Adgile Media has appointed its first worldwide CEO, former Vodafone Global Head of Media Paul Evans, as it gears up for expansion of its services into North America and Europe. More
Nielsen has found a buyer for its Global Connect business, in the shape of affiliates of private equity investor Advent and with a price tag of $2.7bn. More
Nielsen has announced revenues of $1,563m for the third quarter of 2020, down 3.3% year-on-year on a reported basis, and 3.0% at constant currency. Adjusted EBITDA was $501m, equivalent to a 6.1% rise at constant currency. More
Forrester Research has reported third quarter revenue of $108.6m, a fraction down on last year's figure in like-for-like terms. However, CEO George Colony says demand for services increased during the pandemic. More
'Human Experience' agency Potentiate has brought in Voxpopme APAC leader Jem Wallis in the role of 'Head of Agile Qual'. More
Australian insights consultancy Fiftyfive5 is launching a creative evaluation framework, Ad Optimi5er, after a year of internal development in partnership with key clients. More
Consumer intelligence platform Toluna has secured a 'significant' round of financing, which it will use to fund planned global growth initiatives. More
In Australia, Publicis-owned marcoms agency Zenith has promoted Joshua Lee to the role of National Head of Digital & Data. More
Our Data Visualization special issue is published today. Here, in his Introduction, Ipsos co-founder & CEO Didier Truchot talks about clients' need for clarity, AI's potential to change our industry, and why insight professionals should be confident about the future. More
Israel-based digital market intelligence company SimilarWeb has raised $120m in a new round of funding, and says it will open offices in North America and Europe, expand through merger and acquisitions, and increase headcount. More
Nielsen has announced that is consumer business will be renamed NielsenIQ, once it becomes a standalone company. Separately, a report in the Financial Times suggests that private equity group Advent International is in talks to buy the division in a deal valuing it at about $2.9bn. More
Leading firms in Australia have announced the launch of the Australian Polling Council (APC), a body to advance and promote the quality and understanding of public opinion polling in Australia. More
Ipsos has posted revenue of EUR 468.6m in the third quarter of 2020, down 6.2% on a reported basis but just 3.3% on a like-for-like, constant currency basis despite the impact of the pandemic. The group says this reflects 'a renewed stability since June', with recovery month by month. More
Australian employee research firm Blue Provident is merging with its UK partner Feedback Works, and will take the British company's name. More
Medallia's Senior Director of Product Management Vache Moroyan and his team are tasked with building dashboards that are a pleasure for research professionals to work with. Continuing our focus on Data Visualization - interview by Nick Thomas on September 22nd. More
In London, Kantar has appointed long-time Procter & Gamble exec Alexis Nasard as Chief Executive Officer, effective 30th December. He replaces Eric Salama, who left the business in February. More
In the US, Ipsos-owned MMA (Marketing Management Analytics) has announced one relocation and two senior leadership appointments in the EMEA and APAC regions. More
Continuing our focus on Data Visualization, the LivingLens co-founder talks in-depth with MrWeb's Nick Thomas about family influences; starting, financing, building and selling the business; the huge potential for video and the importance of good data viz. Video version also available. More
ANZ out-of-Home (OOH) advertising firm Val Morgan Outdoor (VMO) has launched an audience measurement platform called 'DART R&F', which uses facial analytics, third-party consumer data and machine learning to determine hourly audience at a screen level. More
Continuing our focus on Data Visualization, Debbie Senior, Toluna's VP Product Automation, looks at the 'need for speed', and other factors driving changes in the way we process, share and display data. More
In London, insights and planning agency kubi kalloo has appointed Oscar Runeland as Director of Brand, leading its consultancy offer. More
Kicking off a week and a half of articles from our forthcoming Data Visualization special issue, Ipsos.Digital CEO Andrei Postoaca backs AI to unlock its full potential behind the scenes within ten years, allowing business needs to return to centre stage. More
In Australia, Derham Insights Research has launched a solution called the Five Key Customer Insights Monitor, providing a 'quick, targeted, and cost-effective measure' of customers' attitudes and intentions towards a client's business overall, or to individual brands. More
Ipsos has partnered with artificial intelligence specialist Peltarion to launch a tool called Question Library and help researchers build 'better' questionnaires. More
Australian insights consultancy Fiftyfive5 has hired former Kantar ADs Sharon Blair and Roger Kong as new members of its Melbourne team. More
Australian media company Southern Cross Austereo (SCA) has launched two digital audio attribution products - SCA Footsteps, which attributes footfall to digital audio campaigns; and SCA Soundcheck, which provides campaign and brand effectiveness studies for digital audio. More
In Australia, recently formed ad and marcoms holding group RyanCap has launched a marketing data and technology business called Foxcatcher, with former Dentsu Aegis exec David Gaskill at the helm. More
In London, online qual research platform VisionsLive has appointed long-time Askia exec Nick Southwood as Senior Business Development Manager. More
Comscore and LiveRamp have partnered on a new version of the latter's TV measurement solution. Now known as 'Data Plus Math powered by Comscore', the solution integrates the latter's established TV and digital ad exposure data with LiveRamp's identity and data connectivity solutions. More
In Australia, cultural insights and strategy consultancy Crowd DNA has appointed former Vice Media APAC Head of Insight Stephanie Winkler, as a Director. More
UK-based marketing and media consultancy Ebiquity has promoted Leela Nair to the role of Managing Director, Asia Pacific. More
In the US, consumer data and credit reporting agency TransUnion has agreed to acquire TV audience measurement firm Tru Optik, in which it was already an investor. Terms of the buy have not been disclosed. More
In Australia, full-service market and social agency Taverner Research has acquired Wollongong-based economic, community and industry specialist IRIS Research. Terms of the deal have not been disclosed. More
In Australia, Nielsen and financial services insights and consulting firm DBM Consultants have partnered to offer a segmentation and profiling dataset for the banking, insurance and wealth management sectors. More
In the US, online sample marketplace PureSpectrum has acquired market research services firm Inteligx, adding support and full service solutions to its offering. Terms of the deal have not been disclosed. More
In Stockholm, insight exchange and sample management platform Cint has appointed Joakim Andersson as Chief Financial Officer, replacing Lottie Saks, who left the company in May to join commercial vehicle business Haldex. More
Marcoms group Dentsu Aegis Network is to change its name to Dentsu International Limited, dropping a name it acquired with the purchase in 2012 of British-owned Aegis Group. More
Kantar is planning to cut around ten percent of its US staff due to the impact of the pandemic, according to online reports. More
Customer insights firm Vision Critical has changed its name to Alida, and aims to disrupt the global customer experience (CX) industry, taking on the likes of Qualtrics and Medallia. More
Fast-growing communities specialist InSites Consulting is to roll out its 'Culture + Trends' solution worldwide. More
Toluna has appointed former Lightspeed and YouGov exec Sej Patel as Head of Business for Australia and New Zealand. More
Australian digital research platform Pureprofile has appointed Keith Ang in the new role of Client Solutions Director. Ang worked most recently as Client Development Manager at Kantar Profiles. More
YouGov has created two new senior roles - Global Sector Heads for Travel & Tourism, and Leisure & Entertainment - and has a new South African affiliate, MR agency KLA. More
Continuing our focus on Data Visualization this month and next, here are six key considerations for creating clear and engaging visuals, from the team at E-Tabs. More
Australian digital research platform Pureprofile has re-launched its media business under the name 'Pure.amplify', led by media industry specialist Tasneem Ali. More
First-party data and insights platform Dynata has acquired UK-based digital ethnography solution CrowdLab, which captures in-the-moment consumer opinions, attitudes and trends. Terms of the deal have not been disclosed. More
Nielsen has launched a database called Compass, which taps into the company's global scale to establish syndicated normative standards for campaign outcome measurement. More
US online survey software provider QuestionPro has set up a reseller and distributor program, to make it easier for partners to integrate the firm's solutions directly into their own. More
From an interview with Paul Twite, Toluna's MD EMEA and LatAm, looking at the company's recent big announcements - rebranding and the launch of Toluna Start. For the podcast, and a fuller write-up including more personal reflections and detail, see the forthcoming Data Viz supplement. More
IBM has partnered with Nielsen Global to launch a solution called 'Watson Advertising Weather Targeting', designed to help marketers make the connection between weather and product sales, without the use of third-party cookies or identifiers. More
Data collection software developer Nebu has launched a '360-degree' application called Nebu Panel Manager, covering all aspects of panel operations - including multiple recruitment channels, member management functionalities, flexible sampling, and a rewards platform. More
In the US, customer experience management (CEM) specialist Sprinklr has raised $200m at a $2.7 billion valuation from private equity firm Hellman & Friedman, and an additional $150m in convertible securities from growth investment specialist Sixth Street Growth. More
Australian television audience measurement body OzTAM has added connected TV (CTV) co-viewing data to its Video Player Measurement (VPM) report. More
Consumer intelligence platform Toluna has launched an end-to-end solution called 'Toluna Start', which will now form the core of its business. Users can access the firm's panel of more than 30 million members, uncover and share real-time insights to help fully understand the consumer journey. More
In Melbourne, Australian insights consultancy Fiftyfive5 has appointed long-time Colmar Brunton exec Jenny Witham as a Director, while Michelle Newton joins as Marketing Director. More
Hall & Partners has teamed up with first-party data and insights platform Dynata, whose connected data capabilities and technology will power the ad and brand research specialist's data visualization and storytelling platform, The Hub. More
Toronto, Canada-based customer insights solution provider Vision Critical has appointed Steven Medeiros as General Manager, Asia Pacific and Japan, based in Hong Kong. More
Video ad distribution and tracking platform Unruly has appointed former IPG Mediabrands Singapore CEO David Haddad as Australia and New Zealand Managing Director, based in the firm's Sydney office. More
Digital marcoms group Next15 has acquired Silicon Valley-based growth incubator Mach49, which it will use as the cornerstone of its previously announced plans to create a $100m innovation business, working alongside its data, tech and brand marketing firms. Terms were not disclosed. More
Great visuals and wide-ranging automation are a powerful combination for market researchers looking to justify budgets in the Covid era, says Confirmit Chief Product Officer Torbjörn (Tobi) Andersson. This is the first article from our forthcoming MrWeb 21 Years 'Data Visualization' special issue. More
Australian data intelligence company Potentiate and New Zealand-based longitudinal relationship analytics specialist MirrorWave have partnered, to provide a service which 'follows' customers, employees and partners over time. More
Audience technology platform Eyeota has achieved certification from the IAB's Tech Lab industry standards body for the latter's recently launched 'Data Transparency Standard Compliance Program'. More
MR software provider Infotools has appointed Charlotte Hearn as Business Development Lead, Europe, based in the UK. The firm is headquartered in New Zealand. More
Marcoms giant WPP has reported a first half loss before tax of £2.58bn, compared to a profit of £409m a year earlier; and reported revenue down 12.3% to £5.58bn, from £6.37bn. Like-for-like (LFL) revenue declined 11.5%. More
Video ad distribution and tracking platform Unruly has promoted its UK MD Alex Khan to the position of Group Managing Director, International, heading up the company's commercial activity across the APAC region, while continuing to oversee all UK operations. More
Eye tracking hardware and software firm Tobii AB has announced results for the second quarter of 2020, with revenue down to SEK 332 million (US $37.75m) - an organic decline of 6%. More
Cross-screen television insights and analytics provider Samba TV, headquartered in the US, has hired Yasmin Sanders for a newly created role, Managing Director in Australia, based in Sydney. More
Australian-based media intelligence and data technology company Isentia has appointed Kylie Dunstan as Head of Government Business, based in Canberra. More
Research software and solutions company Confirmit has appointed Giles Whiting as its new COO and Rebecca Wright as Head of Legal. More
Open source data visualization specialist Grafana Labs has raised $50m in Series B funding, and says it will 'aggressively accelerate its product roadmap' in key areas. The firm has also launched an Accelerator Program providing finance and developer access to those building with its software. More
Audience profiling firm Eyeota has expanded its data onboarding partnership with GfK to New Zealand and Switzerland, adding to fifteen countries already covered by the deal. More
In Sydney, Australia, customer experience management specialist Medallia has appointed Heather Paterson as ANZ Country Manager, to lead the existing Australia team and the launch of operations in New Zealand. More
Online advertising trade association IAB Australia has launched the 'MeasureUp' Awards, which aim to showcase Australia's media research sector. More
GfK and cross-device targeting specialist Dstillery have expanded their partnership to launch 79 new segments for targeting automotive 'brand loyalists' and 'defectors', as well as those in the market to buy used cars. More
In the US, market research and analytics company GutCheck has named former long-time Nielsen exec Rob Wengel as its new Chief Exec, replacing co-founder Matt Warta who has left the business. More
Australian insights specialist Faster Horses Consulting has hired Mark Hutchinson to set up an office in Melbourne, and Chris Pyria to establish a presence in Brisbane. Paul Croci also joins the firm in Perth and Ann-Louise Brockelsby in Sydney. More
In Australia, recently formed ad and marcoms holding group RyanCap has acquired Melbourne-based digital agency JBZ Digital for an undisclosed sum. More
Comscore has reported an 8% drop in second quarter revenue to $88.6m, but also a strong move towards profitability. Net loss was $10.4m, compared to a $279m loss in Q2 2019; while adjusted EBITDA was $9.2m, against a loss of $3.2m a year ago. More
Panels and first-party data firm Dynata has acquired Salt Lake City and Chicago-based searchable insights platform Sharpr, for an undisclosed sum. More
Data and insight industry association ESOMAR has launched the Insights Festival 2020, taking place online from 14th to 17th September. The event replaces the previously planned ESOMAR Congress 2020, due to take place in Toronto in October, and now postponed to 2021 because of the pandemic. More
Professional bodies for the US, UK and Australia - the Insights Association, MRS and The Research Society - have agreed to collaborate more closely in a number of areas. More
Research software firm Confirmit has appointed former Dapresy CEO Tobi Andersson as Chief Product Officer, leading its product strategy and vision. More
SurveyMonkey has reported a 21% increase in second quarter revenue to $90.9m; alongside a net loss of $22.9m, compared with a loss of $18.5m in Q2 2019. More
Global marketing group Publicis has appointed Adrian Farouk as ANZ Chief Executive Officer of its data company Epsilon, in addition to his existing position as ANZ CEO of marketing and technology agency Digitas. More
In Australia, Nielsen has launched a sponsorship data platform called Sponsorlab, using its existing data sets to help assess the performance of key sponsorship properties, and understand the market value of sponsorship rights. More
Australian media group Southern Cross Austereo (SCA) has brought together its Research & Insights and Strategy & Insights divisions to form a media research and insights unit called SCA iQ. More
Nielsen has reported an 8.1% drop in second quarter revenue (-5.9% on a constant currency basis) to $1.49 billion compared with $1.63bn in the prior year period; while net loss was $30m, compared with net income of $123m in Q2 2019. More
Kantar has launched a survey solution called Accelerated Answers, which promises to deliver 'real insights from real consumers' in as little as six hours. More
Tech industry consultancy Gartner has reported a 6% rise in second quarter revenue for its Research division - from $826.1m in Q2 2019 to $875.3m a year later. With currency effects removed, the rise was 8%. Events revenue was wiped out, but the firm says the division will bounce back. More
Research and analytics group YouGov has signalled its intent to increase market share in the media sector by bringing in US and European 'heavy-hitters' Tamara Alesi and Julian Newby. More
Technology specialist Forrester Research has announced a 3.5% drop in Research division revenues to $73.6m, in the second quarter. Chairman and CEO George Colony said the company had performed better than expected during a challenging quarter. More
In the US, Omnicom Health subsidiary Adelphi Research has promoted Ratna Wynn to the position of EVP, Head of Research, Operations and Innovation, with responsibility for all research functions and operations. More
Research participant recruiter Liveminds has hired former Nielsen exec Kate Domingo to head its APAC regional office in Manila, in the Philippines; where it has also appointed Tristan Chong and John Paul Ocat as Behavioral Recruitment Executives. More
Research & Results, the organiser of the annual Munich, Germany-based trade show for market research, data and insights professionals, has decided to close its whole business because of the impact of the Covid-19 crisis. More
UK-based kids, parents and family specialist The Insights People has expanded to Canada and Australia, to meet international demand for its market intelligence solutions. More
Henry Cheang, founder and Chairman of Australia-based data company Potentiate, has launched a business called AdClarity Pty Ltd, which will serve as the local distributor for digital MR firm BIScience's flagship digital ad intelligence tool, also called AdClarity. More
Nielsen has sold its social media TV measurement and audience insights software provider Nielsen Social to Talkwalker, a specialist in social media listening and analytics. Terms of the deal have not been disclosed. More
In Australia, Nielsen has been hit by a suspected ransomware attack on its servers, resulting in delays to its release of daily television ratings. More
A new study conducted by industry trade association ESOMAR has highlighted that 7 in 10 people are concerned about sharing their personal data with businesses, while two thirds say they don't like the current privacy practices employed by data collectors. More
British big data and analytics firm Quantexa has raised $64.7m in a Series C round of funding, which it will use to expand further into North America, Asia Pacific and Europe. More
Ipsos has posted revenue of EUR 786m for the first half of the year, down 13% from last year's EUR 903.4m. The firm says that after a close to flat performance in the first quarter, the second was heavily affected by the 'havoc' wreaked by Covid-19. More
In the US, investment firm Saroras Private Capital has launched a new company called Apollo Intelligence Corporation, focused on tech-driven data and insights solutions for the life sciences and healthcare sectors; and has acquired data collection company SHG as part of it. More
Kantar has announced the launch of 'Project Moonshot', described as 'a major milestone' on the road to an advanced independent platform for measuring ad effectiveness. The initiative includes deals with Google, Pandora, in-game ad platform Anzu, Dish, Pinterest, Roku, Snap, Spotify and Twitter. More
Staff survey and people analytics platform Perceptyx has announced the acquisition of Kantar's Employee Insights business. Terms were not disclosed. More
The holding company of Toluna, Harris Interactive Europe and KuRunData is adopting the Toluna name as its principal brand, replacing ITWP which will be phased out. Toluna is celebrating this change and its twenty years in business with a new corporate identity. More
Data and marketing services company Acxiom has launched a portfolio of 'digital transformation solutions' called ConneCXions, combining its expertise in martech (including customer data platforms, identity and ethnical data use), with adtech applications. More
In Australia, online automotive, motorcycle and marine classifieds business Carsales has hired former Tesco exec Mark Cripsey for a newly created role, Chief Product and Data Officer. More
Sir Martin Sorrell's digital advertising and marketing services investment vehicle S4Capital has raised £116m through the issue of 36.8 million shares at 315 pence each. Proceeds from the sale will be used to fund further acquisitions. More
Former Lightspeed GMI and Research Now exec Martin Filz has been appointed CEO at Australia-based digital research platform Pureprofile Ltd, effective 3rd August; while John Griffin is promoted to Chief Technology Officer. More
The Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) and the UK's Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) have opened a joint investigation into Clearview AI, whose surveillance activities have been described as a 'threat to privacy, safety, and security'. More
In the US, word-of-mouth specialist Bazaarvoice has acquired visual commerce and analytics platform Curalate. Terms of the deal have not been disclosed. More
Nielsen is carrying out an 'optimization plan' to drive permanent cost savings and 'operational efficiencies', which will result in the loss of around 3,500 of its c.46,000 employees. The firm also plans to exit several smaller, underperforming markets and non-core businesses in H2 2020. More
Asia Pacific media intelligence business Isentia is expanding its coverage to monitor non-English language publications across Australia. The move comes a week after the company 'streamlined' by shuttering its North Asian operations, handing clients off to a partner firm. More
Kantar has added the newly created role of Deputy Chief Executive to the role of Chief Financial Officer Ian Griffiths. More
Sir Martin Sorrell's digital ad and marketing services group S4Capital is to acquire Australian digital strategy and analytics consultancy Lens10 for an undisclosed sum. More
Tech publisher and marketing services firm IDG Communications has acquired account-based marketing (ABM) platform Triblio, for an undisclosed sum. More
Nine researchers with 'various ethnic backgrounds and industry experience' have joined forces to launch Colour of Research (CORe), a non-profit organisation that will champion ethnic diversity in the MR and insights industry. More
Reach3 Insights has appointed Bala Rajan as SVP based in Sydney, Australia, with a remit to help develop new hybrid quant and qual methodologies focused on its core 'conversational research' technologies and techniques. More
Australia-based strategic brand agency Maven Intelligence has closed operations, according to reports, with its founders stating they need to return their focus to their other businesses. More
Kantar has rolled out a suite of innovation and product development solutions on its Marketplace automated research platform. More
Kantar has launched Link AI, a fully-automated, artificial intelligence-powered tool to measure and predict the impact of creative. More
In the US, programmatic sample platform Lucid has launched a real time advertising insights and analytics product called the Impact Measurement Dashboard, whose self-service features can be used to measure brand lift and optimize media performance for digital campaigns. More
Insight marketplace and MR tech provider Cint has expanded its APAC presence with the opening of an office in Singapore. More
In New York, skin care and makeup products manufacturer The Estée Lauder Companies (ELC) has moved billionaire heiress Jane Lauder into the new role of EVP, Enterprise Marketing and Chief Data Officer. She will take up the position on July 1st. More
In New Zealand, full-service agency Glasshouse Consulting has hired Christine O'Sullivan as General Manager of its specialist product development and sensory evaluation business Futurescape Global, acquired 18 months ago. More
Scott Ernst, Global CEO of online specialist Macromill, is to step down after the group's annual shareholders meeting in September. Toru Sasaki, Representative Executive Officer for the group's Japan Operation, will take over the role. More
Gordon Brown, the co-founder of Millward Brown, died peacefully at his home in the UK on Saturday 6th June, after a short battle with dementia. He was 76 years old. More
John Croll, former CEO of media monitoring firm Isentia, has teamed up with ex-colleague Michael Bade to launch a media intelligence platform called Truescope. The firm aims to inform clients about breaking news across all media types and identify issues, fake news and trends in real time. More
Nicole Pike, former MD of Nielsen's video gaming analysis business Esports, has joined YouGov in the newly created role of Global Sector Head of Esports & Gaming. More
Tech-enabled market and customer insights company Maru Group has launched an unstructured data engine, 'Maru/HUB Topic Modelling', which uses AI and machine learning to automatically group relevant comments together, without the need for user-defined rules and human biases. More
Melbourne, Australia-based Telmy has expanded to New Zealand, where it has launched its tech-based platform for qual and UX respondent recruitment. Long-time industry exec Winifred Henderson joins in New Zealand as Managing Director. More
In Australia, magazine publisher Bauer Media has partnered with MR agency The Lab to launch a study called OFFSCRIPT, to understand the thoughts, feelings and social media behaviour of Gen Z, as well as how advertisers can target this generation. More
Retail and consumer goods image recognition and analytics firm Trax has partnered with in-store data and shopper insights platform Snooper, to provide brands in Australia and New Zealand (ANZ) with a new store auditing solution which combines image recognition and crowdsourcing. More
In the US, mobile research specialist MFour has appointed former Corelogic exec Aaron Wepler as Chief Technology Officer. He replaces Wendell Hicken, who left in October to take up the post of CTO at MR business Sense360. More
Nielsen Global Connect has launched a suite of shopper research solutions which use 'extreme' reality and gaming technology for virtual retail shelf and planogram testing, and to uncover in-store shopping behavior. More
Eye tracking solutions provider Tobii has released a new wearable device, Tobii Pro Glasses 3, which it says will provide unbiased insights into human behaviour for both commercial and scientific use despite being 'exactly like putting on and wearing a standard pair of eyeglasses'. More
In the US, Google has moved former Yahoo! Labs research head Prabhakar Raghavan into the senior role of 'Head of Search and Assistant', reporting directly to Google CEO Sundar Pichai. More
Insight exchange and sample management platform Cint and online survey platform Survey2Connect (S2C) have partnered to launch a new solution called Survey2Connect Audience. Cint has also been selected to automate GfK's sampling operations. More
DIY survey software company SurveyMonkey is combining its customer experience (CX) solutions from two recent acquisitions into one umbrella brand, known as the GetFeedback Suite. More
In Australia, full-service public sector consultancy ORIMA Research has launched a specialist Disability Services Research division (DSR), led by former National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA) exec Tamara Reinisch. More
Shopper data and insights business Nielsen Global Connect has appointed Tribune Media veteran Chandler Bigelow as its first Chief Financial Officer. More
DIY research software company SurveyMonkey has launched a post-pandemic offer for enterprise customers, to help them gain an understanding of the health and well-being of staff and convert feedback into an action plan for employees' safe return to work. More
The UK's MRS, the Insights Association in the US and The Research Society in Australia have teamed up to launch a global mental wellbeing study, which they say will assess the impact of the pandemic and inform support for the research sector. More
In the US, community intelligence specialist Fuel Cycle has launched a platform called Ignition, which it says speeds up the gathering of customer and employee insights, simplifying and automating the research process. More
Concluding our DRNO coverage of the Mobile Insights special edition, an interview with the inspirational founder and CEO of app-based feedback business Streetbees. The second half of this, along with lots more mobile-focused content, can be found in the supplement itself. More
Kantar Media's Global CEO Andy Brown has left the business, less than a year after WPP agreed to sell 60% of Kantar to private equity firm Bain Capital. Brown's next career move is not yet known, and his previous role has been filled on an interim basis by former Bain exec Serge Lupas. More
Sir Martin Sorrell's marcoms business S4Capital has acquired Latin American data and analytics consultancy Digodat and merged it with its programmatic media practice MightyHive. Terms of the deal have not been disclosed. More
New York-based qualitative research platform Sympler is expanding to Australia, where it has hired Karen Dwyer as a Partner. More
Continuing our excerpts from the recently published 'Mobile Age' special issue, Reach3 Insights CEO & founder Matt Kleinschmit looks at the rise of the mobile messaging-based Survey - with case studies from work for Jagermeister, Hyundai and Kimberly-Clark. More
India and Australia-based online panel and technology provider Orchidea Research has hired Patrick Callaghan as Director, Business Development for the North America region. More
In Australia, trade body AMSRO has released an interim discussion paper relating to its inquiry into the performance of last year's pre-federal election opinion polls. The association says the inquiry has found disclosure standards relating to the polls to be 'inadequate'. More
Australian research and marcoms group Enero - which owns MR agencies The Leading Edge (TLE) and The Digital Edge - has appointed former Nike exec Brent Scrimshaw as Chief Executive Officer, replacing Matthew Melhuish who left the company in March. More
Global shopper insights agency PRS IN VIVO has expanded its LAB suite of qualitative services (Leverage Authentic Behavior) with the addition of two new modules - LivingLAB and ListenLAB. More
Ken Østreng, CEO of research software firm Confirmit, has left the company following its sale to Nordic private equity fund Verdane. Tech sector exec Kyle Ferguson has now taken over his role. More
Global consulting group Accenture has acquired Ahmedabad, India-based Byte Prophecy, described as an automated insights and big data analytics company, for an undisclosed sum. The buy adds nearly 50 data science and data engineering staff to its Applied Intelligence division. More
The insights sector is in line for an $18.7 billion loss in value due to the Covid-19 pandemic, according to a new report released by industry body ESOMAR and based on a survey of 2,889 professionals from 127 countries. More
DIY survey software provider SurveyMonkey has enhanced its app integration with the Microsoft Teams communication platform, to make it easier for team leaders and employees to generate surveys and collect feedback from one another in the 'new era' of home working. More
Nielsen Global Connect has launched Retail Pricing Analytics, an app which use artificial intelligence modules to help retailers set up, adjust and track pricing and promotion strategies. More
Research software company SurveyMonkey has reported a 29% increase in first quarter revenue to $88.3m, driven primarily by enterprise sales which increased 128% during the period. More
Technology researcher Forrester Research has reported a 5.4% rise in first quarter revenue to $106.3m, equivalent to a 2% rise pro forma. Reported revenue for the research division increased 6% to $72.7m, and for advisory services and events 5% to $33.5m. More
Audience measurement firm Comscore has reported results for the quarter ended March 31st, including a 12.5% decline in revenue to $89.5m. However, the firm also turned a $2.5m adjusted EBITDA loss into a $6.4m profit. More
Technology advisory firm Gartner has announced first quarter revenue up 6.1% (at constant currency) to $1.02bn. Adjusted EBITDA jumped 52.8% on the same basis, to $214m. Results would have looked still better but for a pandemic-related slump in its small Conferences division. More
Sir Martin Sorrell's marcoms business S4 Capital has reported a 17% like-for-like increase in first quarter revenue to £71m, while on the same basis gross profit was up 19% to £60.7m. More
Measure Protocol, a blockchain-based marketplace for person-based data, has launched a solution to help data buyers and market researchers gain a more 'holistic view' of their consumer audiences through passive mobile device data collection. More
The UK's Market Research Society (MRS) and Australia's newly rebranded Research Society have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) through which the two organisations can share expertise, resources and development costs. More
In Australia, branding consultancy Principals has appointed Mary Winter as Insights Director, working on client projects across the firm's three offices in Melbourne, Sydney and Auckland. More
US-based online survey software provider QuestionPro has launched a trivia, quiz and polling platform called LivePolls, to both 'engage and excite' audiences and help understand their preferences. One aim is to allow firms to check in with currently home working employees on a regular basis. More
Continuing our focus on mobile insights, Brandwatch founder & CEO Giles Palmer talks sifting through 1.5 trillion pages of data; pulling apart the Model-T Ford; and why our industry could grow fivefold in 5 years. Excerpts from a podcast interview by Jamin Brazil of Happy Market Research. More
Pharma and healthcare data giant IQVIA has reported Q1 revenue up 3.7% at constant currency, to $2.754bn, and adjusted EBITDA down slightly to $562m from $587m a year earlier. The firm says the pandemic has affected business but it expects 'a strong recovery' by the end of 2020. More
Australia's professional insights association the AMSRS has rebranded as 'The Research Society', aiming to reflect its evolution into 'a more contemporary community association... providing benefits and services to research professionals throughout their career'. More
In Australia, media agency Audience Group has appointed Ron Ramaiya as Director of Analytics, Research and Insights, charged with further developing the firm's audience analytics capabilities for both marketers and publishers. More
Nielsen has announced information sharing and 'cooperation' agreements with one of its largest shareholders, hedge fund Elliott Management Corporation, which now owns a 13% stake in the group. It will also set up a Finance Committee and add IPG exec Jonathan Miller to its Board. More
Nielsen has reported a 0.3% drop in first quarter revenues to $1.56 billion, equivalent to a 1.5% rise on a constant currency basis. It also turned a net profit of $43m in Q1 2019 into a net loss of $18m a year later, although adjusted EBITDA remained positive. More
Long-time Nielsen / Kantar exec Terrance Kent has been appointed CEO of SRDS (Standard Rate & Data Service), which Kantar recently sold to French ad tech company Adwanted Group. More
Marcoms giant WPP has reported a 4.9% fall in first quarter revenue, reflecting the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, and has introduced further cost-saving measures. The group has also applied for a £600m government-backed loan. More
Al (Albert) Angrisani, turnaround specialist and former President and CEO of Harris Interactive, died as a result of complications from COVID-19 at the Princeton Medical Center in Plainsboro on Thursday, April 23rd, at the age of 70. More
Insight exchange and sample management platform Cint has completed its platform integration with P2Sample, which it acquired last year. The combination enables Cint to offer access to more than 100 million respondents. More
Market research socialising and networking group the Research Club will be hosting its first online event, the Lockdown Party, next Monday 4th May from 6pm GMT until late. Everyone is welcome and there is no charge to participate. More
Audience tech platform Eyeota and research and data firm YouGov have expanded their existing partnership, allowing activation of audiences based on the latter's data in seven new markets. More
Continuing our focus on 'Insights in the Mobile Age' Mario Paic, Global Head of Data Science, looks at the rise of the smartphone and discusses its central role today at Ipsos Audience Measurement. More
Ipsos has posted first quarter revenue of EUR 428.7m, up 1.6% from the same period last year; but says its order book in the three weeks from March 30th has seen a significant fall. More
In the US, international data collection business Schlesinger Group has acquired qualitative technology-led research services provider 20|20 Research for an undisclosed sum. Jim Bryson, founder and former Chair at 20|20, is retiring from the business. More
'You've Missed the Boat - but they're Every 30 Minutes'. The concluding part of RealityMine CEO Chris Havemann's upbeat look at the impact of mobile tech on market research. Today: Why MR firms are 'fundamentally well-positioned', and where the immediate opportunities lie. More
... but they're Every 30 Minutes. Kicking off a week of coverage from our 'Insight in the Mobile Age' supplement, RealityMine CEO Chris Havemann looks at the continuing opportunity for market researchers in a world of consumers and media changed almost out of recognition by the mobile revolution. Part 1 of 2. More
British engineering legend Rolls-Royce has announced the launch of Emer²gent, an alliance of data experts aiming to support global businesses and governments recovering from the economic impacts of Covid-19. Members include IBM and Google Cloud. More
Canada-based communities specialist Maru/Matchbox has launched a branded tool called 'Pop-up Communities', which it says can be deployed in just fourteen days. More
The Global Research Business Network (GRBN) has partnered with ten research associations across the globe to update its GRBN Global Trust Survey, which was last conducted in 2018 and measures public trust in research companies compared with other organisations and sectors. More
Angus Webb, the founder and Managing Director of online research supplier Panelbase, died last Wednesday evening from the COVID-19 virus, at a hospital in Spain. He was 45 years old. More
Asia Pacific-based data-led marketing and strategy consulting group Illuminera has partnered with marketing insights professional Ashok Sethi, to launch a specialist marketing and behavior change division called 'Behave!' More
A number of the team behind Australia's Lewers Research have launched a voice and chat bot agency called 'Research by Bot', promising clients ready-to-launch or custom qualitative research at scale. More
Industry association ESOMAR has called on national government and business leaders who commission research to regard data as an 'essential source' in understanding citizens during the Covid-19 pandemic; and has launched two related data-sharing initiatives. More
Private equity firm Bain Capital has sold Kantar's SRDS (Standard Rate & Data Service) to French ad tech company Adwanted Group. Terms of the deal have not been disclosed. More
Marcoms giant WPP has launched plans to make around £2bn in savings, as the impact of the Covid-19 shutdown hits its business. More
DIY research software firm SurveyMonkey has launched a suite of tools called Expert Solutions, through which customers can test product and marketing concepts with a global audience. More
DIY online research software company SurveyMonkey has appointed Amit Sethi as Vice President of Data, Karen Budell as VP of Brand Marketing and Gary Fuges as VP of Investor Relations. More
In Australia, management consultancy Deloitte has acquired local data analytics specialist Bistech, whose co-owners Shane Morgan, Justin Hoareau and Brad Culbert will be joining Deloitte's Analytics & Cognitive consulting practice in leadership positions. Terms have not been disclosed. More
US-based healthcare polling company and online physician community Sermo has invited all doctors globally to participate in a Covid-19 Real Time Barometer study, providing a weekly perspective of physicians' insights and perspectives on the crisis. More
In Australia, marketing intelligence and analytics specialist Impact has promoted Michael Head for a newly created role, Chief Partnerships Officer; and appointed Rob Perdue to its Board of Directors. More
Kantar has launched a study to understand the impact the COVID-19 pandemic is having on citizens across the G7 nations. More
Sunita Gloster, the first Chief Customer Officer of market research and media buying group WPP AUNZ, is to leave the business 'by mutual decision'. More
Last year, Facebook agreed to settle a class-action lawsuit over the alleged inflation of its video audience metrics by anything up to 900%. An amended filing now claims the firm's execs were aware of its overestimating the number of people advertisers could reach, as far back as 2015. More
Global association ESOMAR is teaming up with MrWeb and its existing partner Women In Research to give data and insights professionals access to the world's largest specialist index of job opportunities, with new packages and offers also launched. More
Resuming our series looking in depth at mobile data and insights, QuenchTec Survey Designer Dennis Sewberath highlights seven ways to turn a survey into a 'beautiful conversation', for the sake of better feedback and higher completion rates. More
Australian research and marcoms group Enero, the owner of MR agencies The Leading Edge (TLE) and Jigsaw Research, has appointed CFO Brendan York and Chief People and Culture Officer Fiona Chilcott as acting co-CEOs, while it seeks a permanent replacement for Matthew Melhuish. More
Diane Shelton has been appointed Chief Executive Officer of marketing advisory, insights and analytics firm Forethought Australia; replacing founder Ken Roberts who will move into the Executive Chairman role, while continuing as President of Forethought USA. More
In New Zealand, insights consultancy Fiftyfive5 has expanded its team in Christchurch with the appointment of Niamh Buchanan as a Senior Consultant. More
Daniel Wirth has been appointed as CEO of Kynetec and the Kleffmann Group, following the recent announcement that the two agricultural and animal health research specialists are merging. More
Comscore has completed a second round of discussions with potential buyers including Symphony Technology, according to reports. More
Asia Pacific-based group Illuminera has announced the acquisition of Singapore-based digital and shopper marketing boutique DASS. More
Audience measurement firm Comscore has announced a partnership with multiplayer entertainment platform Twitch, adding tagless audience reporting of the latter's livestreaming, including gaming and esports insights, to the former's digital audience solutions. More
Retail and consumer goods analytics firm Trax has acquired on-demand retail services platform Survey.com, which provides full-service research solutions, survey programming, data management and analysis, and reporting services. Terms of the deal have not been disclosed. More
MR software firm Remesh has raised $25m in a Series A2 round of funding, which will be used to drive expansion of the company and its platform. More
In Australia, marcoms and media buying group WPP AUNZ has launched a new product development business called 'big', promising to create new categories, new markets and new revenue for clients. More
Australia-based media intelligence group Isentia has appointed Brigitte Guerin as Head of Client Solutions (North East). More
Cint has added Helene Stafferöd Westerlund as Chief Technology Officer, heading up its global technology objectives as part of its executive team. More
Online community specialist CMNTY corporation has announced a partnership with first-party data and insights platform Dynata, promising to help brands improve audience engagement via a more complete picture of customers. More
Resuming our series of articles on Insights in the Mobile Age, Ross McLean, Vice President, Mobile Qualitative at 20|20 Research details his four crucial tips for great mobile qual. More
In Australia, digital business transformation company Publicis Sapient has acquired management consultancy Third Horizon, which helps organisations with business transformation, and identifies trends to help them prioritise growth opportunities. More
In the US, Kantar has launched a service called 'Entertainment On Demand', to help the music industry and investors understand the consumer journey for digital video and music subscription services. The service will be rolled out in the UK, Germany, Australia and Japan in H2 2020. More
International data collection group Schlesinger Associates has acquired tech-led sample, survey and quantitative research specialist Market Cube, for an undisclosed sum. More
Australian insights consultancy Fiftyfive5 has promoted company partner Alan King for a newly created position, Head of Pharma, based in its Sydney office. More
In Australia, Omnicom's communications planning and media buying network PHD has hired former OzTAM exec Lillian Zrim for the newly created role of Head of Research. More
Comscore has reported financial results for the quarter and full year ended December 31st 2019, with revenue and EBITDA declining but some indications in Q4 that a cost-cutting turnaround strategy is taking effect. The firm has also announced a data deal with Comcast. More
WPP has reported results for the fourth quarter and full year 2019. Improvements from Q3 were not maintained to the end of the year and shares tumbled around 14% on the news. Nevertheless CEO Mark Read said 'substantial progress' was made in the year the group sold a majority stake in Kantar. More
Nielsen Holdings plc has appointed Sean Cohan as Chief Growth Officer and President, International; and promoted Peter Bradbury to Chief Commercial Officer, U.S. and Karthik Rao to COO of its Media division. More
Ipsos has reported a 14.5% increase in full-year revenue to slightly more than EUR 2 billion; with organic, constant currency growth of 3.8%, the firm's best annual performance since 2011. More
Nielsen Holdings has announced 2019 revenues of $6.498bn, equivalent to a 1.7% rise at constant currency, although a fall of 0.3% as reported. Q4 revenues were $1.69bn, up 2.0% on a reported basis and 2.7% in constant currency terms. More
OzTAM and Nielsen have rolled out the first phase of their Virtual Australia ('VOZ') Total TV database, which brings together broadcast viewing on TV sets and connected devices, to provide all-screen, cross-platform planning and reporting for Australia's television industry. More
Stockholm, Sweden-based brand tracking and consumer science specialist Nepa has promoted Ann-Christine Fick to the position of Chief Financial Officer, while Michael Wallin joins in the newly created role of Head of Investor Relations. More
In Australia, outdoor advertising solutions company QMS Media has launched an 'intelligent' data and insights platform called DYNAMiQ, helping clients understand their audiences, and plan and execute on their digital out-of-home (DOOH) programmes. More
Online competitive intelligence and consumer behavioral analytics provider Hitwise is winding down its US operations after more than twenty years in business. Until March 19, Hitwise users will continue to have access to historical data for the period up to 28 January 2020. More
Adam Crozier, former CEO of broadcaster ITV, the Football Association and Royal Mail, has been named Non-Executive Chairman of Kantar. More
Australian market research technology platform Glow has appointed Neil Gupta as Managing Director for the UK. More
Ipsos has announced the acquisition of a majority stake in survey technology provider Askia, and says it will tap the firm's expertise and technology to develop the 'survey platform of the future'. More
Research, media and events provider Informa Tech is bringing together its analysis and research units into a single entity. Ovum, Heavy Reading, Tractica and most of what was previously IHS Markit's TMT research business will be unified under the new brand, Omdia. More
Consulting group Gartner has reported fourth quarter adjusted revenue up 11% at constant currency, to $1.2bn, with profits also increased. Full year revenue was up 11% on the same basis to $4.2bn. More
Following its acquisition of WPP AUNZ's Data Investment Management (DIM) division, Kantar has announced a number of steps which it says will help drive growth for its clients in Australia, including the retirement of the Colmar Brunton brand in the country. More
In Australia, data-driven marcoms agency Keep Left has extended its Impact Score solution to enable clients to measure and communicate the value of their earned media. More
In Australia, financial services insights and consulting firm DBM has appointed former National Australia Bank exec Kipling Zubevich as its new CEO. Co-founder Dhruba Gupta will continue to focus on business development and promoting the firm's DBM Atlas survey. More
Edinburgh, Scotland-based ad measurement and optimization firm TVSquared has rolled out its TV Performance Insights Report for Australian advertisers. More
Dentsu Aegis has acquired people-based identification and data tech company 4Cite Marketing, and will add it to the fast-growing Merkle data-driven marketing business. More
In Australia, KPMG has added four people to its customer, brand and marketing advisory (CBMA) team, including Jenny Roche as a Partner, Amrita Bhattacharyya and Jingly McLay as Directors, and Samantha Clark. More
US-based UBDI, which allows individuals to be compensated for sharing anonymous, aggregated data, has partnered with Australian insights firm Faster Horses in a bid to expand its global footprint. More
US-based customer experience platform AskNicely has opened its first European office in Amsterdam, where the firm's expansion will be led by Kyle Bolster, Vice President and General Manager for Europe. More
Memories are short (well ours are anyway) and when we started our summary of 'the MR world in 2002' we expected to find an industry deeply affected by the global downturn of that year. Only when we got reading did we remember that of course, until 2009, research used to be recession-proof! More
Innovation insights and data firm Clarivate Analytics is to acquire healthcare-focused research and data provider Decision Resources Group (DRG) from its present owner, Piramal. The $950m price tag comprises $900m in cash and approximately $50m in Clarivate shares. More
New York and Helsinki-based cross-media measurement specialist Verto Analytics has completed a $16m round of funding, which it will use to fuel the commercial roll out of its behavioral analytics research platform in the US and Europe. More
Adam Crozier, former CEO of broadcaster ITV, the Football Association and Royal Mail, is said to be discussing the role of Chairman at Kantar. More
Research and data group YouGov has completed its acquisition of SMG Insight earlier than scheduled, after the sports specialist outperformed its revenue targets. The company has been rebranded as YouGov Sport and fully integrated into the wider Group. More
Big data giant Cloudera has announced a new CEO. Rob Bearden was previously Chief Executive of rival firm Hortonworks, with which Cloudera merged a year ago. More
Australian data intelligence company Potentiate has partnered with auto industry research, advisory and data analytics services provider Differential Asia, to expand its 'Human Experience (HX) Connect' platform and syndicated management model to Southeast Asia. More
Nielsen has appointed David Rawlinson as Chief Executive Officer of its Global Connect business, while Linda Zukauckas will take up the position of Chief Financial Officer of the Global Media business. Both will join on February 3rd. More
Comscore's interim Chief Executive Dale Fuller has resigned as a Director of the company to 'pursue other ventures', following the recent promotion of Bill Livek to the CEO role. More
Australian data intelligence company Potentiate has appointed GreenBook Executive Editor Lenny Murphy as Strategic Corporate Development Advisor, identifying companies that will help accelerate its expansion in North America. More
Rupert Murdoch's media group News Corp has agreed to sell its video ad distribution and tracking platform Unruly to video ad technology business Tremor International. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
Kantar has appointed former ITV plc COO and CFO Ian Griffiths as its new Chief Financial Officer. He will join the company on January 16th. More
This is 2019's last edition of Daily Research News. We wish a very Merry Christmas to all those celebrating it, and a Happy New Year and a great holiday to all readers, clients, contributors, partners and friends around the world. DRNO resumes in the first week of 2020. More
Australian research and marcoms group Enero Group - which owns MR agencies The Leading Edge (TLE) and Jigsaw Research - has announced that CEO Matthew Melhuish will be leaving the company next March to 'pursue other opportunities'. More
Entertainment technology and TV data provider TiVo is to merge with audio, imaging and computing technology products firm Xperi Corp., in an all-stock deal with an enterprise value of $3bn. The TiVo name will remain on its products but the combined company will be known as Xperi. More
Nielsen has named Laurie Lovett as its new Chief Human Resources Officer, starting January 13th; and Christopher Taft as SVP Corporate Controller and Chief Accounting Officer. In addition, former Microsoft and CBS exec Nancy Tellem joins the Board. More
Digital products and services provider Grazitti Interactive, which helps companies manage their CRM, marketing automation, online communities and analytics capabilities, has opened new offices in Sunnyvale, CA; Seattle, WA; and Edmonton, Canada. More
Automotive industry research specialist J.D. Power is to merge with sister company Autodata Solutions, a provider of data and software solutions for the sector. More
In Washington, DC, WPP-owned market research and political polling specialist Penn, Schoen and Berland Associates (PSB) has hired former Hershey CMO Peter Horst as Chief Executive Officer, replacing Mike Chuter who left the firm earlier this month. More
Ipsos has partnered with recently formed marketing agency Alchemy-RX in a deal which will bring each company's expertise to existing and potential clients, and expand client access to experts. More
Venture capital backed sports marketing firm Bruin Sports Capital has agreed to acquire the majority of consumer data analytics, sports marketing and technology practice Two Circles from WPP. Terms were not disclosed. More
Retail data firm The NPD Group has appointed Darren Person as Global Chief Information Officer, and Robert Taylor as SVP, Enterprise Systems. More
Global consulting group Accenture has agreed to acquire Chicago-based data consultancy Clarity Insights, whose expertise spans data science, artificial intelligence and machine learning expertise. More
Australian consultancies Fiftyfive5 and GalKal, which merged a year ago, are to integrate under the Fiftyfive5 name, and co-locate Sydney staff in a newly extended office. More
In Australia, industry execs Elisa Adams and Stephen Prendergast have launched an insights agency called Future EQ, which combines behavioural science, AI and predictive modelling to quantify the drivers of business growth and market share. More
2001, like 1984, was a year for which fiction had given us very specific expectations, and while disappointingly little coasted through the heavens to the strains of the 'Blue Danube', some MR industry giants certainly soared. Here's our review of the year on DRNO. More
Kantar Chief Executive Eric Salama has decided to step down from his role at some point in 2020, after which he will serve as a non-executive Director and Consultant at the company. Kantar has already begun the process of recruiting a successor. More
Global consumer agency InSites Consulting has acquired Asia-based insight community specialist ABN Impact for an undisclosed sum. More
Australia-based start-up Qualie has rolled out its video-driven survey platform in the UK market, through a partnership with consumer and sensory specialist MMR Research Worldwide. More
WPP says it has completed the sale of 60% of Kantar to Bain Capital Private Equity, 'with respect to approximately 90% of the Kantar business', with the proceeds received; and says it will complete the remainder in the first half of 2020. More
WPP has announced that Michelle Harrison will move from CEO to non-executive Chair of its Government Practice - which she has led since its inception in 2012 - so as to focus on her role as Global CEO of Kantar's Public division. Global MD Sean Howard steps up to the vacant CEO role. More
Toluna has been awarded a U.S. patent for a new routing algorithm allowing dynamic profiling. The system pre-qualifies respondents on demographics such as country, age, income and education, and cross-references them with other data to establish qualification for a survey. More
Enterprise data and analytics provider LiveRamp has launched a preference and consent management platform (CMP) called Privacy Manager, to help clients comply with laws such as GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) and CCPA (the California Consumer Privacy Act). More
In Canberra, Australian insights consultancy Fiftyfive5 has hired long-time Colmar Brunton exec Corey Fisher as Director, Social & Community. More
In the first of 21 articles to celebrate our anniversary, we look at the events of a year in the life of the MR industry, as seen through articles in Daily Research News. Quanties among you will work out that the last article will involve a bit of speculation, but we start with a look way back, at the Millennium year. More
Today it's exactly 21 years since MrWeb was officially launched - a traditional coming-of-age here in the UK. In Internet terms, 21 is ancient really, and we'll do a bit of looking backward over the next few weeks, but we also have major plans for the coming year. Details here - and your feedback wanted! More
Animal health and agriculture researcher Kynetec and agricultural MR specialist the Kleffmann Group have completed a transaction to merge. Terms of the deal have not been disclosed. More
In Australia, the Association of Market and Social Research Organisations (AMSRO) has elected Enhance Research CEO George Zdanowicz as its new President, succeeding Engine MD Craig Young. More
Audience data specialist Eyeota has formed a partnership with digital media company Ziff Davis, allowing clients to use its Eyeota Audience Marketplace to access subscribers of the publisher's owned and operated gaming properties and partner sites across AsiaPac. More
Facebook has launched a market research app called Viewpoints, paying users to take part in surveys. The company says it won't sell or share the resulting data with third parties. More
Research agency Roy Morgan has taken the unusual step of calling out a newspaper, The Australian, for its 'fake news' reporting of its own circulation figures. More
Nielsen TV data is to be integrated into YouTube's audience planning tool, Google Reach Planner. Roll-out is initially in the US, with plans to go global next year. More
Marcoms group Interpublic has created a new practice focused on 'digital responsibility', within its recently formed Kinesso targeting and optimisation company. Acxiom / LiveRamp executive Sheila Colclasure has been hired to head it up. More
Consumer engagement and insights platform Glow has announced the appointment of Daniel Calo as Head of Partnerships, based in Melbourne, Australia. More
US-based experience management specialist Qualtrics has appointed former Salesforce exec Brigid Archibald as Country Manager for Australia and New Zealand. More
In New York, Nielsen Global Connect has hired IBM exec Jacqueline Woods as Chief Marketing Officer, starting on December 1st. More
Australian firm Stable Research has appointed Mitch Gross as Chief Executive Officer, and long-time IRI exec Katie Ferro as General Manager. This follows the recent retirement of co-founder Karen Johnston, and the transfer of Pip Hooper to a new role. More
In the US, data-driven marketing and loyalty solutions provider Alliance Data has appointed Ralph Andretta as President and Chief Executive, effective from next February. He will succeed Melisa Miller, who has served in the role since the June 2019 retirement of Ed Heffernan. More
Consumer intelligence platform Toluna has added advanced scripting capabilities to its flagship QuickSurveys on-demand plaform, helping users to create and launch complex studies. More
Nielsen has announced a major expansion of its relationship with US-based food giant General Mills Inc. More
WPP is once again considering acquisitions, in 'faster growing segments such as technology and commerce', according to CEO Mark Read in a call with investors on Thursday. More
Content ratings provider and brand safety specialist OpenSlate, part owned by Nielsen, has appointed Poppy Hill as Managing Director for APAC, as it expands in the region. She is based in Sydney. More
In Australia, consumer engagement and insights platform Glow has hired Oscar Mora for the newly created role of Head of Growth for the Asia Pacific region. More
Expanding Australian television audience measurement body OzTAM has hired Alan Heng as its first Technical Services Manager; while Mitchell Woods joins in the newly created position of Product Manager. In addition, two members of the team have been promoted. More
Tech-enabled research firm Maru Group has launched a direct access end-to-end insights platform, Maru/HUB, allowing users to create, view and analyze research projects 'on demand'. More
Australian-based media measurement group Isentia has promoted Russ Horell to the role of Chief Commercial Officer replacing Sean Smith whose departure was announced two weeks ago. More
DIY research firm SurveyMonkey has reported results for the quarter ended September 30th, with revenue up 22% to $79.3m. Net loss was $16.3m, slashed from $102.4m a year earlier with operating costs falling sharply, although adjusted EBITDA fell from $17.0m to $11.5m. More
Tech research and advisory firm Information Services Group has announced moderate revenue growth of 2 percent in constant currency terms, to $68.1m in the third quarter. More
Nielsen has completed its strategic review, and announced plans to spin off its Global Connect business (similar, but not identical to the former 'Buy' segment), creating two independent publicly traded companies. The company also posted a respectable 2.4% constant currency revenue rise for Q3. More
Ipsos has launched a self-service research platform called Ipsos.Digital, offering clients simplified access to global research capabilities and insights. More
Data visualisation and reporting specialist Dapresy has launched a 'three-tiered' suite of modular solutions which it says removes many of the manual processes traditionally required in the market research reporting process. More
Australian ad targeting and research platform Pureprofile has hired former Mintel / Toluna exec Anna Meiler for a newly created position, Head of Sales and Marketing. More
WPP founder Sir Martin Sorrell's recently launched marcoms business S4Capital has reported third quarter revenue up almost 54% to £56.6m, with a nearly 50% increase in gross profit to £42.1m during the period. The figures reflect rapid organic growth as well as M&A. More
In the US, Sony Pictures has promoted Chris Liberge and Kate Donnelly, both taking the title of Senior Vice President of Global Strategic Marketing and Research. The pair will co-run Sony's new group of film-specific 'strategy pods'. More
Digital research agency MetrixLab has launched a tool called 'ACT Instant', which uses machine and deep learning elements of artificial intelligence (AI) to predict advertising performance, without the need for surveys or respondents. More
Google has acquired wearable fitness / wellness tracker Fitbit in a deal valued at approximately $2.1 billion. Fitbit has issued an assurance that it will continue to put users in control of their data and that its health and wellness data will not be used for Google ads. More
US-based consumer insights and strategy consultancy db5 has been acquired by Australian marketing and communications group Bastion Collective, for an undisclosed sum. More
Australian insights consultancy Fiftyfive5 has hired former Edelman Intelligence exec Nick Williams, who relocates from the US to Australia to lead the firm's Performance Monitoring team. More
Mobile data intelligence and verification specialist Location Sciences has expanded to Australia, where it will be led by digital marketer Rupert Pay as the company's local representative. More
Research software firm Confirmit has appointed Howard Lax as Principal Director, CX Consulting, supporting clients in their efforts to design, develop and implement customer experience strategies. More
In Australia, customer experience management software and solutions firm MaritzCX has launched a suite of products that use artificial intelligence (AI) to help clients derive more value from their data. More
Audience measurement firm Comscore has made two major announcements: a five-year deal with global film exhibitor Cinemex to provide an enterprise data platform and analytics software solutions; and an expansion of its partnership with global entertainment network Discovery, Inc. More
Ipsos has reported organic growth of 3% in the third quarter of the year. Reported revenue rose fully 16.7% to EUR 499.4m, driven by the acquisition of units of GfK since last year, and to a lesser extent by that of Synthesio and by currency effects. More
In a trading update for the third quarter, WPP has reported its first like-for-like (LFL) revenue increase of the year - with insight division Kantar sharing in the improvement. Group reported revenue rose 1.9% LFL to £3.29bn. More
YouGov has appointed Laura Robbie as General Manager of its Australian operations, based in the Sydney HQ and reporting to APAC CEO Julien Chevignon. She replaces David Briggs, who is stepping down two years after his firm Galaxy Research was acquired by YouGov. More
Technology researcher Forrester has announced results for the third quarter, with total revenue up 28% to $108.6m, reflecting the acquisition of SiriusDecisions. More
Data visualisation and reporting specialist Dapresy and data collection software developer Nebu have partnered to launch a combined customer experience (CX) product, offering clients a solution for sample management, data collection, reporting and case management. More
Nielsen has added syndicated measurement of Amazon Prime Video to its Subscription Video On Demand (SVOD) Content Ratings solution. More
Online communities specialist InSites Consulting has renamed its Australian company Direction First in line with the group branding. Founder Erica Van Lieven remains at the helm of what is now InSites Consulting Australia, with the title of MD. More
In Australia, mobile customer experience specialist Geronimo has acquired data science and analytics company Data Hatch. Terms of the deal have not been disclosed. More
Havas Health & You, the marcoms group's healthcare and wellness arm, has partnered with personalized video content creation platform VidMob to launch a Data Science practice. More
In Australia, outdoor advertising company JCDecaux has added facial emotion analysis technology to a panel advertising Yoplait Yoghurt Smoothies, in order to determine whether passers-by have happy or 'hangry' expressions, and dispense vouchers to enable them to sample the product. More
In Australia, marketing intelligence company MiQ has appointed Jason Scott as Chief Executive Officer, overseeing growth in the ANZ region and across media, analytics and technology. More
Dynata has launched a platform integrating market research, advertising and marketing solutions which it promises will simplify 'every step in the insights lifecycle' - from audience selection and survey creation to analytics and reporting. More
Continuing a month of articles from our 21st birthday celebration feature looking at Online Communities, Julia Eisenberg and Isaac Rogers of US firm 20|20 Research look at the rise of the ' smaller, more tactical insights community', and the need to get that 'pit lane' running smoothly. More
Digital research company MetrixLab has opened an office in Sydney, Australia, where it has promoted Vincent Blaney for the newly created role of Managing Director. More
The Australian government has announced that some market and social researchers now have access to the Integrated Public Number Database (IPND), a centralised source containing records of all Australian telephone numbers and their corresponding name and address information. More
Continuing our month-long in-depth look at online communities, Nick Thomas talks to InSites Consulting co-founder and CEO Kristof De Wulf about buying UK online research pioneer Join the Dots, its fourth acquisition in 18 months; and about plans for the future. More
Australian insights consultancy Fiftyfive5 has announced that Kristy Richards and Matt Pearce will lead its Melbourne business. More
YouGov has reported a 17% increase in revenue to £136.5m for the full year ended 31st July. The UK led the way with revenue growing by 31%, while the US also fared well with a 17% rise. More
Product and pricing decisions analytics company Conjoint.ly has launched an ecological initiative to help offset carbon emissions with every automated service it provides to its clients. Conjoint.ly claims to be the first market research agency to tackle this. More
Marcoms giant Interpublic Group has formed a new division, Kinesso, building on its recent acquisition of Acxiom to create data-based marketing applications focused on trust and security, campaign optimization and precision audiences. More
ESOMAR held its annual Congress in Edinburgh last month. Here its Director General Finn Raben chooses his top 3 (or 4) presentations. More
A group of advertisers including EA, Mastercard, P&G and Unilever has launched a global initiative called the Cross Media Working Group, designed to ensure the advertiser's voice is heard in decisions on cross-media measurement. More
Nielsen Sports has launched an online platform to provide a view of fans' interests, media consumption, brand attitudes and purchasing habits from around the world. More
Australian data intelligence company Potentiate has expanded to Europe, where it will be led by former Vision Critical executive Simon Harrington. More
Tech intelligence and events firm IDC has promoted company veteran Tehmasp Parekh to the role of Managing Director for Australia and New Zealand. Additionally, Louise Francis, Research Director for A/NZ, will take on the expanded role of Country Manager, IDC New Zealand, reporting to Parekh. More
Sweden-based holding company Modern Times Group MTG AB (MTG) has announced a partnership with Nielsen, providing sponsorship valuation and media measurement for its esports portfolio companies ESL Gaming GmbH and DreamHack. More
There are lots of options for those wishing to join this successful sector (see job listings in the publication) but how do you find the treasure and minimise the risk? Nick Thomas taps the experience of four of the sector's recruitment specialists to help you pick all the right cards and avoid the blues. More
Our month-long focus on online communities continues with another podcast. Samsung's Director of European Countries CMI on work-life and other kinds of balance; the extremes of 'agile'; working on communities with Verve; backing up insights; and why brands should 'get out more'. More
Comscore has promoted Arturo Guillén to the role of SVP & Global Managing Director of its movie division, taking the reins from SVPs Steve Buck and Jim Zak. More
Richard Millington of FeverBee lives and breathes online communities and has helped build them for everyone from Apple to Lego to the UN, but he's not first and foremost an insights professional. Communities have many other uses - so where do we sit in the bigger picture? More
Insights partnership RealityCheck Consulting has launched HXi, a new service for CX and decision journey mapping More
Our month-long focus on online communities goes client-side today. Hannah Downs, Head of Insight at UK agency ResearchBods, explains how the firm uses a community to help British broadcasting group ITV get closer to viewers. More
GfK has teamed up with digital measurement firm BrandTotal to allow marketers to track social campaigns that target custom segments. GfK says this includes 'dark marketing', highly targeted campaigns invisible to the general public but making up 88% of social media spend. More
... Not Just Talking About It. In the next in our month-long series focused on communities, Verve Executive Director Paul Lawson casts an expert eye over the many great uses of a community panel. More
Audience measurement firm Comscore has paid $5m to finalize a settlement with the Securities and Exchange Commission, resolving its investigation into accounting and disclosure practices in the two years to February 2016. Former CEO Serge Matta has also made payments to both Comscore and the SEC. More
Facebook has announced the suspension of 'tens of thousands' of apps, created by around 400 different developers, as it continues an eighteen-month investigation following the Cambridge Analytica scandal. More
Continuing our month-long focus on Online Communities, Andy Buckley, Head of Client Solutions at Join the Dots / InSites Consulting argues that communities need to 'step up their game' by giving clients access to a much wider range of methodologies and tools. Includes 3 case study summaries. More
Credit scoring and consumer analytics company Equifax has announced a global partnership with utility data aggregator Urjanet, allowing consumers and businesses to share payment data from thousands of utility, telecom and cable providers worldwide. More
Group M agency Wavemaker Australia has promoted Cat Wolkers to the role of National Head of Research and Insight. More
Brighton, UK-based digital consumer intelligence company Brandwatch has unveiled new flagship product, Consumer Research, representing a '$50m investment' and integrating technology from social media analyst Crimson Hexagon, which it acquired last autumn. More
On 29th November 1998 MrWeb - publisher of DRNO - officially launched with the appearance of its first job ad. To celebrate our twenty-first birthday we're publishing special supplements on five major growth areas in the sector, beginning this month with online communities. More
Eurodata TV Worldwide, the international division of French audience measurement firm Médiamétrie has promoted François Lhomme to the role of Sales Director for the EMEA and APAC regions; and Kunal de Souza to an equivalent Americas role. More
Video research and targeting company methinks has appointed Kris Jacob as Chief Revenue Officer for North America and EMEA, while Eung Soo Lee joins as Vice President of Business Development, Asia-Pacific. More
Sir Martin Sorrell's recently formed marcoms business S4Capital has reported revenue of £87.97m for the first six months of 2019 - up an estimated 42%, or 38% in constant currency terms. According to the firm, it is on track to double in size organically by 2021. More
Comscore is extending its audience targeting solution to include connected TV (CTV), by licensing its data through Adobe Audience Manager, Google Display and Video 360, and Oracle Data Cloud. More
Survey software firm Confirmit has appointed customer experience practitioner Andrew Farries as Director of CX Consulting, based in it Sydney, Australia office. More
The insight sector around the world including traditional and new areas turned over around $80bn in 2018, according to ESOMAR's annual Global MR report - up from $76bn in 2017. New areas such as data analytics accounted for most but not all of the growth, rising around 10% year-on-year. More
Steve Buck, Comscore's SVP of Business Relations and Jim Zak, SVP of International Theatrical are among those to depart the company as it cuts 8% of its workforce, according to reports. More
Sample provider P2Sample has partnered with not-for-profit organization Women in Research (WIRe), to launch a study which evaluates the percentage of women in MR executive roles. Across 133 firms analysed, only a third (36%) of exec roles were occupied by women. More
Melbourne, Australia-based mobile researcher MDI has expanded its footprint to London, with the appointment of former GfK NOP leader Arno Hummerston as Director - Europe. More
Research software firm Confirmit has added a number of new features to its flagship Horizons platform, including 'Fieldwork Reporting' which promises researchers instant access to key information on the progress of their survey projects. More
In the US, employee engagement, retention and performance specialist Culture Amp has raised $82m in a Series E round of funding, which it will use for global expansion. More
Marcoms group Omnicom has rolled out its data-driven marketing agency network Hearts and Science in New Zealand. More
Industry veteran Ray Poynter has joined Australian data intelligence company Potentiate as Chief Research Officer, responsible for driving the firm's product innovation, research techniques, team education agenda and supporting client engagements. He is based in Nottingham, UK. More
Not-for-profit industry body the Audited Media Association of Australia (AMAA) has launched a council for the Australian influencer marketing community called AIMCo. More
Australia-based media intelligence group Isentia has reported revenue down 10.7% to $AUD 122.47m, and adjusted EBITDA falling 30.4% to $ AUD 23.06m. However the firm, which is in turnaround mode, described the results as 'acceptable progress'. More
Global CEM Software firm Sitecore has laid off around 70 employees, c.5% of its workforce, according to reports. More
Australian insights consultancy Fiftyfive5 has expanded its teams in Sydney and Melbourne over the past six months, with the appointment of fourteen new members of staff. More
In London, online community specialist C Space has launched a suite of solutions called 'Customer as a Service' (CaaS), which combines multiple sources of data, technology and commercial consultancy to understand the customer and place them at the heart of the organisation. More
In Australia Nic Jones, CEO and MD of online research and digital ad targeting platform Pureprofile has resigned, after the company posted a $10.7m full-year net loss after tax in its statutory results and announced it had renegotiated its debt facilities. More
In Australia, Publicis Media-owned Zenith has appointed Kim Xavier as National Head of Insights. Her appointment follows the departure of Tim Beveridge, who spent the previous four and a half years as Chief Strategy, Data & Insights Officer. More
Comscore has disclosed plans to cut a further 8% of its workforce, adding to around 10% made redundant in the second quarter. More
In New Zealand, Publicis Groupe has acquired customer experience (CX) agency Affinity ID for an undisclosed sum. More
In Sydney, Australia, data-driven marketing agency network Hearts & Science has promoted Luke Hutchinson to the role of Chief Investment Officer. More
In Australia, Omnicom analytics division Annalect has appointed Schalk van der Sandt as Head of its Melbourne operations. More
Comscore Board member Paul J. Reilly has resigned, citing a lack of confidence in its operating strategy and innovation. In the last few days, the company's share price has dropped further to record lows around the $US 1.50 mark. More
Marcoms group WPP AUNZ has agreed to sell its entire stake in insight and analytics arm Kantar in Australia and New Zealand, as part of the global sale of Kantar shares to Bain Capital. The deal values the ANZ business at $AUD 168m. More
Global management consultancy Accenture is to acquire Australian big data and analytics consultancy Analytics8 for an undisclosed sum. More
Australian digital research platform Pureprofile has released unaudited financials showing full year 2019 revenue up 7% to $27.3m. However, last year's EBITDA $0.7m turned into a loss of $0.6m. More
In Australia, MR start-up Qualie.com has closed a $1m seed round as it rolls out a beta version of its video insights platform. More
In Australia, the government has commissioned a multi-year study overseen by the Australian Bureau of Statistics, to uncover the mental and physical health of the nation. According to reports, it will involve 60,000 citizens, cost about $90m and take three years to complete. More
In Australia, data intelligence company Potentiate has conditionally acquired Vision Critical Australia for an undisclosed sum. More
In New Zealand, WPP-owned market and social research company Colmar Brunton has appointed Kathryn Robinson as Behavioural Insights Director, based in its Wellington office. More
In Australia, political pollster Jim Reed has set up his own communications research agency, Resolve, based in Glebe, on the outskirts of Sydney. More
Kantar has launched a dedicated analytics practice in Australia, to help local clients solve business problems using a range of data sources. More
Automotive industry research specialist J.D. Power is to be acquired by private equity investment firm Thoma Bravo. Terms of the deal have not been disclosed. More
Research software company SurveyMonkey has reported a 20% increase in second quarter revenue to $75.1m, driven by a 12% rise in the number of paying users and higher average revenue per user. Net loss was up almost 50% to $18.48m, although adjusted EBITDA was positive at $10.3m. More
Insight exchange and sample management platform Cint has acquired US-based P2Sample. Terms of the deal have not been disclosed. More
Nielsen has reported a 1.2% drop in second quarter revenues to $1.63bn - although excluding currency effects it would have risen by the same amount. Adjusted EBITDA increased 0.4% to $470m - a rise of 2% at constant currency. More
Tech markets consultancy Gartner has posted a 7% increase in second quarter revenue to $1.1bn (up 9% on a foreign currency-neutral basis). CEO Gene Hall says the company is well-positioned for sustained long-term, double digit growth. More
DIY research software company SurveyMonkey has expanded its executive team with the appointment of Lara Sasken Lindenbaum as Vice President of Communications; DuVal Hicks as Vice President of Sales Operations; and Dennis Scott as Vice President of Growth Marketing. More
Ipsos has launched an 'Innovation Testing' service, founded on behavioural science and promising to help users 'successfully compete in today's omnichannel world'. More
Sir Martin Sorrell's digital advertising and marketing services company S4 Capital plc has published a trading update for the first half of 2019, with like-for-like revenues and gross profit up around 40%, well ahead of its target. More
Consumer insights firm PRS IN VIVO has launched the BEQual Toolkit, which applies behavioral science to projective qualitative research techniques using tablets and real-time feedback. More
Kantar has expanded its Worldpanel ComTech smart speaker consumer panel, to measure purchasing and usage trends in the Australian market. More
Ipsos has generated revenue of EUR 903.4m in the first half of 2019, up 14.9% compared with the first six months of 2018. Organic growth for the half year was 3.0%. More
Microsoft has tapped its experience of helping business to test the impact of IT changes, to develop a campaign testing service called Experiments, to be offered shortly to users of its ad platform. More
Australian retail chain Woolworths has officially launched a standalone media business, Cartology, which will run a network of digital screens across supermarkets nationwide, and offer performance tracking modelling to assess campaign effectiveness. More
Marcoms giant Dentsu Aegis Network (DAN) is planning to drop the 'Aegis' part of its name and is continuing to streamline its Asia Pacific operations, reports suggest. More
M&A activity in the marketing sector in the first half of 2019 was largely driven by private equity (PE) investment, with most of the major marcoms networks absent from the list of the most active buyers, according to a report. More
ITWP, the parent company of Toluna, Harris Interactive Europe and KuRunData, has hired Michele Morelli as SVP of Global Marketing Strategy; promoted Tsahi Ben-Yosef to SVP of Product Innovation; and promoted Mathilde Lelievre to EVP of Global Operations. More
Buyout firms Court Square Capital Management LP and HGGC LLC are said to be working with investment bank Evercore Inc. to explore the sale of digital data collection specialist Dynata, with reports suggesting the price tag could exceed $3bn, including debt. More
In Sydney, Nielsen has announced a number of enhancements to its Homescan consumer panel, which measures purchases across the various channels making up Australia's grocery sector. More
Australia-based media intelligence group Isentia has appointed James Merritt, currently Head of APAC at dunnhumby, as Chief Executive for Asia, starting 4th November. More
Commercial Radio Australia (CRA) has launched a new reach and frequency tool allowing advertisers to target the 36% of consumers who do not live in the country's major metropolitan areas. More
Following Friday's announcement that WPP is to sell 60% of Kantar to private equity firm Bain Capital, more details are emerging of the firm's plans, including possible eCommerce acquisitions and expansion of services like Kantar Marketplace. More
Facebook is to pay US regulators a record $5bn fine to settle the privacy breach investigation following the Cambridge Analytica scandal, according to US media. Meanwhile Google is in trouble for allowing contractors to listen to snippets recorded by its 'Home' voice assistant. More
Automated MR platform Zappi and insight marketplace and MR tech provider Cint have announced a partnership to provide 'an integrated technology solution' giving Zappi customers results 'even faster than before, within hours', at much-reduced cost and with 'total control of their data'. More
WPP has agreed to sell 60% of its data, research, consulting and analytics business Kantar to private equity firm Bain Capital, in a deal which values the whole of Kantar at around £3.2bn ($4.0bn). More
In Australia, data intelligence company Potentiate and artificial intelligence (AI) specialist Veriluma Software have formed a joint venture, to help clients predict future purchase intentions within specific categories. More
WPP-owned Kantar has launched a number of services to help marketers directly integrate their own datasets with data from its TGI consumer survey, to give enhanced audience profiling for campaign planning and digital media activation. More
Online community and survey tech provider Toluna has partnered with digital rewards company NeoCurrency to enable its 'influencers' to receive the latter's bitcoin gift cards in exchange for sharing their opinion on brands, products and services through the Toluna Community. More
The partners at pricing and strategy consultant Simon-Kucher have elected Mark Billige, from the UK, and Andreas von der Gathen, from Germany, as co-CEOs for the next five years. They will take up their new positions on January 1st 2020. More
Insight exchange and tech platform Cint has announced a strategic partnership with data platform company Syno International, adding to the former's presence in APAC and EMEA, and to the survey audience available for clients of both firms. More
Spotify's Sydney-based APAC Head of Automation and Data Dan Robins, whose role included overseeing insights across the region - has left the firm. More
In Sydney, Australia, data-driven marketing agency network Hearts & Science has promoted Jonathan Betts to the newly created role of Chief Experience Officer, starting on 1st August. More
Automated consumer insights platform Zappi has launched a tool called Optimize Reach, which uses TURF analysis to understand the combined reach of text-based stimuli, eliminating the need to manually re-run possible scenarios. More
Global consumer agency InSites Consulting has acquired UK-based insight community specialist Join the Dots, for an undisclosed sum. More
WPP has confirmed this evening it is now in exclusive talks with private equity firm Bain Capital, over the sale of a majority stake in Kantar. More
Digital data collection specialist Dynata has launched a multi-supplier, automated research platform called Dynata Marketplace, through which researchers can combine the firm's first-party consumer data with that of multiple third-party providers. More
Alison Lewis is leaving her post as Chief Marketing Officer of consumer manufacturing giant Johnson & Johnson, as part of a business shake-up which will see the role scrapped altogether. More
Enterprise data and analytics provider LiveRamp has agreed to acquire Boston, MA-based media measurement company Data Plus Math. The deal promises clients 'a more effective way to buy, sell and measure data-driven television'. More
Comscore has secured funds from an institutional investor to the tune of around $20m, with potential to grow to $50m. The investor will buy Comscore common stock at just $7.33 per share, close to its current ten-year low valuation, but the funds should strengthen the firm as it continues to 'refocus'. More
Sir Martin Sorrell's recently launched marcoms group S4Capital has acquired Melbourne, Australia-based Adobe-led digital transformation and customer experience company BizTech. Terms were not disclosed. More
In Sydney, Australia, insight and strategy consultancy The Leading Edge has appointed former Ipsos exec Erin Beggs as Director, Brand and Innovation. More
Former Edelman CEO David Brain has co-founded a market research firm called Stickybeak in New Zealand, in partnership with pollster David Talbot, designer Kyle Hickey, and technology specialist Brody Nelson. More
CRM giant Salesforce has agreed to acquire analytics platform Tableau Software, in an all-stock transaction valued at around $15.7 billion, net of cash. More
Ycor, a French company owned by Publicis chairman Maurice Lévy, says it has put in its own bid for the Ad Server and DCO units of struggling tech firm Sizmek, higher than that of retail giant Amazon, and with the aim of maintaining an independent option for the industry. More
Audience technology platform Eyeota has appointed former Dentsu Aegis exec Phoebe Ang as its new CFO, based in Singapore. More
Google is to acquire business intelligence, data applications and embedded analytics provider Looker, in a deal valued at $2.6 billion in cash. More
In the US, Facebook-owned photo and video-sharing service Instagram has promoted Tamar Shapiro to the role of Head of Analytics, leading a team of more than 150 data scientists and data engineers. More
Australian MR body AMSRO has published the draft terms of reference for its review of polling methods, following the surprise outcome of May's Federal Election; and has appointed an Advisory Board to undertake the review. More
Marketing and MR Agency System 1 has reported flat constant currency revenue of £26.90m for the twelve month period ended 31st March 2019, and says it continues to invest heavily in its new AdRatings product. More
Australian television audience measurement body OzTAM is searching for a new Head of Digital, following the departure of Digital Strategy Director Padraig O'Donovan to start his own consultancy business. More
Digital ad industry body IAB Australia has endorsed Nielsen for its introduction of video audiences for tagged content within its Nielsen Digital Content Ratings (DCR) service; enabling users to understand reach and engagement through two second and 30 second minimum video view-time filters. More
In the US, Comscore's recently appointed Chief Operating Officer Kathryn Bachmann has resigned a month after taking up the position. More
Kantar has set up an International Election Team, to provide forecasting, research and commentary for elections across the world. More
In Australia, Nielsen has combined its Consumer & Media View (CMV) and SportsLink products to launch a tool called FANLINKS, linking sports fan engagement insights with profiling data across the retail, media and sports industries. More
Location intelligence provider Foursquare is acquiring rival technology Placed from Snapchat owner Snap Inc. Funding for the deal will come from a $150m investment in Foursquare by merchant bank The Raine Group. More
Amazon has agreed to acquire the Ad Server and DCO personalization tools of bankrupt ad tech company Sizmek. The buy, whose terms were not disclosed, boosts the online retail giant's rapidly growing advertising business. More
Nielsen is extending its Digital Ad Ratings for YouTube's mobile app to 26 more countries, bringing the total to 34. More
In Australia, the Board of out-of-home measurement system MOVE is to invest $1.3m into a neuroscience study as part of the development of a new digital OOH measurement metric. More
In Australia, Kantar has promoted Leigh Mander and Jacqui Brandt to MD roles, leading the Sydney and Melbourne offices respectively. Meanwhile James Brown moves into the newly created position of National Head of Shopper. More
Former SKIM exec Lester Sualog has been hired by System1 Research as Managing Director for the APAC region, based in Singapore. More
Co-founder Julian Hadfield has left UK- and Australia-based specialist MR recruiter Resources Group, and retired from recruitment after nearly thirty years. More
Cross-screen data management platform (DMP) Lotame has relocated Evgeny Popov to its New York office, where it has promoted him to the position of Head of Global Data Solutions, responsible for driving data revenue globally for the Lotame Data Exchange (LDX). More
Vista Equity Partners, a firm co-founded by Robert F. Smith, the richest African-American in the United States, has joined the list of bidders competing to buy a majority stake in WPP's insight and analytics arm Kantar. More
News Corp Australia has announced that it will continue to support its partner Newspoll, while looking to 'fix' the polling system. This follows the newspaper group Nine's decision to end its contract with Ipsos over election predictions. More
In Australia, market research and media buying group WPP AUNZ has appointed former BMW Group exec Jens Monsees as Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director. He will take up his new role on October 1st, 2019. More
In Australia, newspaper group Nine News has ended its contract with Ipsos after it failed - in common with all the other pollsters in the country - to predict the election victory of Prime Minister Scott Morrison. More
Information and analytics firm IHS Markit has exchanged its Technology, Media and Telecoms (TMT) intelligence business for the Agribusiness Intelligence group which was previously part of publishing, information and events group Informa. More
Australia's Association of Market and Social Research Organisations (AMSRO) is conducting a review of political polling methods, probing why all polls incorrectly called the outcome of Saturday's Federal election. More
In Australia, professional services firm KPMG has acquired user experience (UX), web and mobile app technology firm, Love Agency. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
Independently-owned Sydney research and brand strategy consultancy Pollinate has opened a new office in Canberra, where it has promoted Garrett Tyler Parker to the role of Managing Director. More
Kantar has appointed Gregory Aston as Global Head of Research, Digital Advertising Intelligence, based in New York; while Petra Mašínová joins as Global Director for Reputation Intelligence, based in Paris. More
Reports from several sources suggest that WPP has shortlisted private equity investors Bain Capital, Apollo, Platinum and a fourth undisclosed company to submit bids to buy a majority stake in its insight and analytics arm Kantar. More
Mobile research tech firm RealityMine has rolled out a service called RealLife Data Feeds, offering measurement for Walmart's US web site and app, alongside more extensive Amazon shopper data. More
WPP's data, insights and consulting company Kantar has launched the 'Profiles Network', offering permission-based, GDPR compliant access to around 88 million people in 70 countries. The launch combines panel information from Kantar Profiles Division (formerly known as Lightspeed) with that from 28 additional organizations. More
Comscore has promoted to fill the gaps left by the recent resignations of Will Hodgman and Joe Nguyen. Guido Fambach becomes EVP, EMEA & APAC, while Kedar Gavane moves up to the role of SVP, APAC, reporting to Fambach. More
Purchase intelligence platform Cardlytics has appointed former Facebook and Google employee Nate Bucholz as VP of eCommerce advertising partnerships. More
Pharma information giant IQVIA has reported revenue up 7.2% at constant currency for the quarter ended March 31st, to $2.684 billion, and adjusted EBITDA of $587m, up from $547m a year previously. More
Facebook has commenced action against a South Korean firm, Rankwave, which it says sold its data unlawfully for marketing and advertising purposes. More
Technology research and advisory firm ISG (Information Services Group) has announced a decline in revenue for the quarter ended March 31st to $64.8m - down 6%, or 3% at constant currency. The profit measure adjusted EBITDA declined from $5.8m to $3.6m. More
Comscore SVP of Asia Pacific Joe Nguyen has left the company after nearly a decade, as news breaks of an imminent 10% cut in workforce and a possible sale of the business. More
Dynata has partnered with local audience data specialist Eyeota to offer access to hard-to-reach global B2B and consumer audiences at scale. More
Comscore has commenced a strategic review which aims for an initial $20m in cost savings, following a 3.4% fall in first quarter revenue to $102.3m; and an adjusted EBITDA loss of $2.5m, compared with a gain of $3.6m in the prior year period. More
Tech research and advisory firm Gartner has reported an 8% increase in revenue in its Research segment, to $825m for the three months ended March 31st - equivalent to an 11% rise on a constant currency basis. More
Consumer data giant IRI has promoted Paul Hinds to the role of Managing Director for the Asia Pacific region, based in the firm's Sydney, Australia office. More
Sir Martin Sorrell's recently launched marcoms business S4 Capital has reported a 38% increase in revenue to £40.9m for the three-month period ending 31st March, with gross profit up more than 37% to £32.8m. More
In New Zealand, Kantar has named Simon Munro Business Development Director, while Ian Wentworth moves to the post of Business Delivery Director and Stu Eagle is promoted to Technical Solutions Director. More
Melbourne, Australia-based tech-driven research agency Cubery has rolled out its platform in the US and UK. More
US-based Forrester Research has reported a 33% increase in first quarter Research Services revenue to $72.4m, reflecting the acquisition of b2b researcher SiriusDecisions. More
Australia-based insight and strategy consultancy The Leading Edge has closed its London office, citing 'Brexit uncertainty-related issues' which it says have made clients reluctant to commit to budgets. The firm will now run most client accounts from its Sydney headquarters. More
Nielsen has reported a 2.9% fall in first quarter revenue (+0.4% on constant currency terms), to $1.6bn, with net income down 40% to $43m from $72m a year ago, but adjusted EBITDA up slightly (+0.5%) at $415m. More
Bain Capital and Apollo Global Management LLC are among those moving into the next stage of bidding for Kantar, according to sources, quoted on Bloomberg; while private equity firms CVC Capital Partners and Apax Partners have dropped out. More
Cultural insights and strategy consultancy Crowd DNA is to open an office in Sydney in July 2019, to be headed up by Elyse Pigram, who moves from the firm's London headquarters. Meanwhile the London office has added former Flamingo execs Dunstan Kornicki and Yuka Uchijima. More
Ipsos has reported organic growth of 2.4% for the first quarter of 2019, which coupled with acquisitions including Synthesio and parts of GfK drove reported revenue up an impressive 15.0% to EUR 422.1m. More
First quarter revenue less pass-through costs in WPP's Kantar (DIM) division was flat (up 0.1% like-for-like), while the rest of the marcoms group saw declines. Kantar, whose sale process is said to be 'progressing well', saw particularly strong growth in Asia Pacific, LatAm and the Middle East. More
Customer experience platform AskNicely has raised $10m in a Series A round of funding, as it shifts its HQ from New Zealand to the US. More
Cultural insights and strategy consultancy Crowd DNA is opening an office in Sydney, in July. The business will be led by Elyse Pigram, who is transferring back to her native Australia after more than a year in the firm's London office. More
Ipsos India has announced that its CEO Amit Adarkar has taken on the additional role of Operations Director, for the Asia Pacific region. More
In Sydney Australia, technology research and advisory firm Information Services Group (ISG) has promoted Scott Bertsch to the role of Regional Leader for Asia Pacific. More
London-based System1 Group plc has released a trading update for the 12 months ending 31st March 2019, showing a 1% annual decline in its key gross profit measure, to £22m, but a much improved second half performance (up 4%). More
In Melbourne, Australia, full service social research and evaluation organisation the Social Research Centre has appointed Diane Herz as Chief Executive Officer. She will take up the position on 15 April when she replaces founder Darren Pennay, who is stepping down after nineteen years in the role. More
Nielsen is rolling out its Marketing Cloud in Australia, to help clients digitally profile and activate their audiences across Nielsen's 86 categories and groups, as well as across the firm's understanding of consumers' attitudes, intentions, demographics and media behaviour. More
Ipsos has launched Simstore, a suite of automated virtual shopper and packaging solutions to help clients understand how shoppers make decisions, improve navigation and optimize retail conditions and package designs. More
Nielsen has launched a Behavioral Sciences Institute, with the aim of educating leaders across industries on 'the power of conscious and nonconscious decision making'. The Institute will sit within, and tap the data library of the company's Consumer Neuroscience division. More
Chief Executive Bryan Wiener and President Sarah Hofstetter are leaving audience measurement company Comscore due to 'irreconcilable differences over how to execute the company's strategy'. More
Animal health and agriculture researcher Kynetec has acquired Neil Clark & Associates, an Australian provider of agribusiness data and business intelligence. Terms of the deal have not been disclosed. More
Nielsen CEO David Kenny has signed the LEAD (Leading Executives Advancing Diversity) Network CEO Pledge, committing the company to increasing the number of women in senior leadership roles globally. More
In Australia, the Association of Market & Social Research Organisations (AMSRO) has launched new data privacy initiatives, as part of its promotion of the responsible use of customer data in research and analytics. More
Dynata has released the first edition of a Global Trends Report, which benchmarks the environmental, societal and psychological attitudes that impact people's participation in research. More
Masahiro Uenom, former President of ad targeting and retargeting specialist Criteo in Japan, has been hired by data-driven traveller marketing firm Sojern as Vice President of Asia-Pacific (APAC). More
Ipsos has announced the Asia Pacific launch of its Creative|Labs, which use early communication research to encourage and guide 'bold and effective' creativity in advertising. More
Australian insights consultancy Faster Horses has opened an office in Canberra, adding to existing locations in Perth and Sydney; and has appointed James Wunsch to lead it as Director of Social & Government research. More
In Australia, Seven West Media-owned (SWM) Pacific Magazines has merged its Strategy and Insights teams as part of a larger restructure, to create a new division called Pacific Insights (Pi). More
In Australia, Nielsen has partnered with geospatial expert RDA Research to launch a solution called GeoCMV Explorer, which promises to help clients create stronger responses to advertising briefs based on rich audience profiles. More
Sir Martin Sorrell's new group S4 Capital has presented its inaugural results for the period ending 31st December 2018. Pro forma revenue for the company and predecessors was £135.9m, up 58% on 2017; while pro-forma operational EBITDA was £22.4m, up 99%. More
Kantar is dispensing with brands including TNS, Millward Brown, Lightspeed, Worldpanel and IMRB, and from 2nd April will deliver 'all services and offerings under the Kantar brand name'. More
In the UK, automotive and transport customer insight specialist APD Global Research has promoted Kathryn Courtenay-Evans to the position of UK Managing Director, as Rob Whalley steps down as CEO. Additionally, Karl Fisher moves up to the role of Client Services Director. More
Consumer data giant IRI has added AI and machine learning to its suite of analytic solutions, to help clients automatically scan data sets and uncover the best opportunities for growth. More
In London, PR group Newgate Communications has set up a Market and Social Research practice, led by Kantar's former Head of Qual, Dan Clay. More
Confirmit may be headed for new ownership, following a court ruling that shares in the research software firm can be forcibly sold. The ruling is an attempt to recover $320m which the company's Norwegian billionaire owner Alexander Vik owes to Deutsche Bank. More
Dimitrios Casdas, former General Manager of Australian panel provider Quality Online Research (QOR), has avoided a prison sentence after being found guilty of embezzling more than $AUD 300,000 from his previous employer. More
Full-service business-to-business MR company B2B International has hired Silvia Leiva for a newly created role, APAC Regional Insights and Business Growth Director, based in Singapore. More
Kantar has officially launched its 'Marketplace' on-demand research store, which combines a sample reaching 80 million consumers worldwide with the ability to deliver quick turnaround self-serve custom surveys, insight solutions and expert consulting. Will Galgey will lead it as CEO. More
Insight exchange and sample management platform Cint has created a global enterprise solutions team, focusing on clients with 'advanced, high value and technology-led requirements'. Greg Dunbar will lead it, as EVP of Enterprise, joined by Mike Misel as SVP of Enterprise for the Americas. More
WPP expects to announce a deal selling a majority stake in Kantar to an investor by the middle of the year, according to Chief Executive Mark Read. More
Sydney agency Taverner Research has acquired government, academic and financial sector specialist Jetty Research. More
In Australia, financial data specialist DBM Consultants has partnered with ad currency initiative emma (Enhanced Media Metrics Australia) to create a product combining the financial attitudes, intentions and actual behaviours of consumers with demography, lifestyle and media consumption data. More
Audience measurement firm Comscore has reduced its net loss to $27.2m on a GAAP basis, compared with $71.9m a year earlier, while reporting a 6.2% increase in fourth quarter revenue to $109.3m. For the full year 2018, revenue was up 3.9% to $419.5m. More
WPP has reported a 4.5% decline (1.8% in constant currency terms) in revenue for its Kantar data investment management (DIM) division, for the year 2018. Reported revenue was down from £2.7bn in 2017 to £2.56bn in 2018. More
Kathryn Cooper has left her role as Executive Director of WPP's Government & Public Sector practice in Australia, to return to the US. She has been replaced by Michael Harris, former Client Lead at WPP's content division Wavemaker. More
Nielsen has reported a 0.9% decrease in full year 2018 revenue to $6.5bn. The company will now restructure into two new segments, Nielsen Global Media and Nielsen Global Connect, and CEO David Kenny says its 2019 focus is to transform into a 'product-driven technology organization'. More
Ipsos has reported organic growth of just 0.7% for 2018, with currency fluctuations reducing reported revenue to EUR 1.7bn, 1.7% down on the previous year. Q4 revenue was up 4.5% to EUR 535.6m, as the firm consolidates recent acquisitions. More
Dynata - until recently known as Research Now SSI - has received a US patent for its automated graphing system, which will improve both the accuracy of profiling data and the quality of the respondent experience. More
In the US, programmatic sample platform Lucid has promoted former COO Andy Ellis to the newly created role of Chief Revenue Officer and Managing Director, North America. He has been replaced by Rick Rodgers, while Nicole Patel and Ben Hogg have also been promoted to the exec team. More
Australian television audience measurement body OzTAM has added demographic profiles to its Video Player Measurement (VPM) service, enabling age and gender reporting for all content consumed on participating broadcasters' video on demand services (BVOD). More
In Australia, News Corp-owned TV station Foxtel has appointed Jane Eastgate as Chief Data and Analytics Officer. More
WPP has hired Walmart exec Jacqui Canney as EVP, Global Chief People Officer, responsible for all aspects of employee strategy, including recruitment, talent management, leadership development and learning. She joins on June 1st and succeeds Mark Linaugh. More
Dentsu Aegis Network has acquired South East Asia-based agency Happy Marketer Group, which will become part of Dentsu Aegis' existing data-driven performance marketing agency Merkle. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
Facebook must answer questions from Congress about failures over the data security of users of its 'closed' health groups; and has also withdrawn its controversial Onavo VPN app. Rival Google is under fire over a hidden microphone in its 'Nest' security devices. More
Australia-based media intelligence group Isentia has reported a $22m operating loss for the first half of the 2019 financial year, worsening from -$4.0m in H1 2018; with EBITDA moving from a profit of $11.4m last year to a $12.8m loss this year. More
Darren Stein, the former CEO of IPG's digital marketing services platform Cadreon, has been named Australia and New Zealand CEO of Omnicom's analytics and technology division Annalect. He will join on 1 May 2019. More
TNS Australia's Chief Commercial Officer Alistair Leathwood has left the company to join consumer data giant IRI as Chief Commercial Officer (APAC), based in Sydney. More
Digital research and ad targeting platform Pureprofile has sold the Australia and New Zealand divisions of its Cohort lead generation business to call centre tech firm Unit4, for $500k. The sale does not include the Performance business operating in the UK. More
DIY survey specialist SurveyMonkey has partnered with Microsoft, to help users integrate and visualize business survey feedback and uncover insights, within the tools they are already using. More
US-based research and advisory firm Forrester has reported an 11% rise in research revenues to $62.0m for the fourth quarter of 2018, compared with $56.9m in the prior year period. Full year research revenues were up 6% to $228.3m. More
SurveyMonkey's parent company SVMK has reported a 19% increase in fourth quarter and full-year revenue to $68m and $254m respectively. Meanwhile CFO Tim Maly plans to retire, to pursue his passion for 'climbing, skiing and adventure in the mountains'. More
In the US, consumer insights specialists GfK MRI and Simmons Research have formed a joint venture called MRI-Simmons, jointly owned by respective parent companies GfK and SymphonyAI Group, with GfK as the majority partner. More
Online sampling and digital data collection firm Dynata - which until recently was known as Research Now SSI - has partnered with online ad targeting specialist TruSignal, to help brands drive more precisely targeted marketing campaigns. More
Enterprise data and analytics provider LiveRamp has reported a 35% increase in third quarter revenue to $80m, compared with $59m in the prior year period. In addition, the firm has expanded its IdentityLink platform with the addition of connected TV (CTV) identifiers. More
Online sample marketplace PureSpectrum has launched a DIY eCommerce insights platform called Storefront. More
In New York, WPP's media investment arm GroupM has appointed research analyst Brian Wieser as Global President, Business Intelligence (BI). More
Independently-owned Sydney-based research and brand strategy consultancy Pollinate has expanded to Melbourne, where it has appointed former GfK, Nielsen Online and LRW exec Allan Dib as Managing Director. More
Digital ad industry body IAB Australia has appointed former News Corp exec Natalie Stanbury as Research Director to work on a new initiative called the Future of Measurement, which aims to provide a full review of audience measurement across media and platforms. More
Tech industry consultancy Gartner has reported a 7% rise in revenues to $1.1bn for the fourth quarter of 2018 (+12% in constant currency terms), while EBITDA, excluding divested operations, rose 6% to $211m. More
DiscoverOrg has acquired Zoom Information, Inc (ZoomInfo), bringing together two B2B intelligence platforms to service sales, marketing and recruiting professionals. More
Israel-based digital ad platform Taptica has acquired RhythmOne in a $US 176m all-stock deal, creating a powerful combination with another recent acquisition, Tremor Video DSP. Tremor Executive Chairman Ofer Druker will become CEO of the enlarged group. More
In Australia, marcoms group WPP AUNZ has merged its research consultancies AMR and Colmar Brunton. The AMR brand name will go and the newly combined entity will be known as Colmar Brunton. More
Consumer goods giant Unilever has partnered with Kantar Media, Nielsen, Facebook, Google and Twitter to build a standardised cross-media brand measurement model. More
Data-driven performance marketing agency Merkle has named Ted Bray Growth Officer for the Asia Pacific region. More
Former WPP boss Sir Martin Sorrell has repaid the company £170k of personal expenses for items such as ski trips, travel for his wife and child, and objects for his home in New York, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal. More
Pricing and strategy consultant Simon-Kucher & Partners has announced 2018 revenue up 23% to $360m, its strongest growth in more than a decade. More
In Australia, digital research and ad targeting platform Pureprofile has reported a 16% fall in revenue to $23.8m for the second half of 2018, along with a 50 percent drop in EBITDA to $AUD 0.6m. More
Business software giant SAP has completed its acquisition of 'experience management' (XM) software specialist Qualtrics. More
Nielsen has begun the process for a possible sale of the business following interest from private equity firm Blackstone Group, according to an article in the New York Post. Blackstone may make a bid for Nielsen tomorrow, in a deal which could value the business at around $10 billion. More
Dynata - which until last week was known as Research Now SSI - has hired former Zappistore exec Tiama Hanson-Drury as Executive Vice President, Product Development; and announced five further changes to the company's executive leadership. More
Dynata - which until last week was known as Research Now SSI - has acquired consumer insights and marketing services umbrella Reimagine Holdings Group. More
This is the year's last edition of Daily Research News. To all those of you who are celebrating it, a very Merry Christmas - and to all those taking one, have a great holiday! We wish all our readers, clients, contributors and friends around the world happiness and success in 2018. More
Research Now and SSI have completed their merger, with the joint business now known as 'Research Now SSI' and led by former Research Now CEO Gary Laben. More
Pollsters predicted the correct outcome of every major national election held in 2017, according to research conducted by Kantar. More
Retail data pioneer the NPD Group has appointed former GfK exec Stanley Kee as MD of its APAC business, effective January 2nd 2018, based in Singapore and leading teams in China, Japan, South Korea and Australia. More
US-based programmatic advertising and social media influencer marketing specialist engage:BDR has been listed on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX), following its recent IPO. More
Internet giant eBay has acquired Canadian eCommerce research specialist Terapeak for an undisclosed sum. More
comScore CFO Gregory Fink has been appointed as the company's Principal Accounting Officer Elect, replacing Michelle Spencer, who had only served in the role since last January. No explanation has yet been given. More
Digital data collection specialist Research Now has announced a social media data partnership with customer intelligence platform FullContact, to deliver '360-degree' person, customer, and relationship insights. More
In Australia, behavioural economics specialist The Behavioural Architects (TBA) has hired former Kantar TNS exec Sam Paul as Managing Partner to open its new Melbourne office; while in Sydney, Melissa Gill has been promoted to the role of Head of Behavioural Strategy. More
British luxury car and aero engine manufacturer Rolls-Royce has launched a system of innovation hubs called R2 Data Labs, which will use analytics, AI and machine learning technologies to drive design, manufacturing and operational efficiencies. More
Audience measurement firm comScore says it plans to cut 175 jobs, and that COO Cameron Meierhoefer has stepped down. More
YouGov has announced the acquisition of Sydney-based MR firm and opinion pollster Galaxy Research Pty Ltd, which will be combined with YouGov's existing Australian business under the leadership of Galaxy founder and MD David Briggs. More
Publisher News Corp Australia has withdrawn its newspapers from the audit of the country's AMAA and will instead advise advertisers to use EMMA, which is based on readership numbers rather than circulation. More
Global bank Citi has appointed former eBay exec Zoher Karu as Head of Asia Pacific Data and Analytics, within its Consumer Banking business in the region. More
Rupert Murdoch's media group News Corp has launched an audience targeting platform called News IQ, combining first-party data from across its media properties, with data science tools. More
Local audience data provider Eyeota has appointed Peter Hunter as General Manager, ANZ, to lead business in the region and expand the firm's demand and supply side teams. More
Nielsen has announced the roll-out in the Asia Pacific region of its Marketing Cloud platform, which integrates the firm's consumer and media data with marketing activation and analytics applications. More
London-based online community specialist Verve has launched a multi-country 'pop-up communities' approach for qual studies. Local language moderation combined with captioned video allows head office staff to 'hear and feel the customer emotion' firsthand, while understanding it in English. More
Cint is adding its audience data, covering more than 40 million consumers across 100 countries, to the data marketplace and analytics platform of Sydney, Aus-based Data Republic, offering clients improved customer insight and targeting. More
KPMG Australia has launched a new Advisory team for Chief Marketing Officers (CMOs), within its Customer, Brand & Marketing Advisory business - and appointed Carmen Bekker as a Partner, heading it up. More
European online specialist InSites Consulting has acquired Sydney, Australia-based Direction First, adding to its existing facilities in Belgium, the Netherlands, the UK, the US and Germany. Terms of the deal have not been disclosed. More
Marcoms giant Dentsu Aegis Network has agreed to buy Netherlands and Dubai-based performance marketing agency Oxyma Group, which will subsequently be integrated into its Merkle subsidiary. Terms of the deal have not been disclosed. More
Quality Online Research (QOR) has acquired the right to transfer the 100,000 respondents of Australia Post's 'Australian Lifestyle Survey' (ALS) to its own panel, before the ALS closes on 1st December. More
Scientific and medical communications network Porterhouse Medical Group has launched a research division, Porterhouse Insights. Fabrice Allum, previously of Double Helix Discovery and McCann Health, joins to lead it as Managing Director. More
US data firm Verisk Analytics, Inc. has appointed former Nasdaq CFO Lee M. Shavel as EVP and Chief Financial Officer. SVP Eva Huston will depart 'to pursue opportunities outside the company' after a three-month handover period. More
Former GfK, Nielsen Online and LRW exec Allan Dib has joined public relations agency PPR as its first Director of Planning and Insights. More
New Zealand-based MR software provider Infotools has launched a cloud-based platform called Harmoni, which uses machine learning and automation to streamline and improve researchers' analysis of data. More
New York-based VICE Media is rolling out its 'VICE Voices' youth insights platform and portal in the UK, to capture the opinions of UK millennials and understand what drives their attitudes and behaviour. More
comScore co-founder Gian Fulgoni has brought forward his retirement date, originally planned for the end of next January, and stepped down as CEO. No reason has been given for this change. More
Harris Interactive has launched a product called PackTest Express, the latest tool in its digital new product development research suite. More
US-based Information Services Group has announced results for the third quarter of 2017. Revenue rose 30 percent at constant currency to $68.3m, in part due to the acquisition of Alsbridge Holdings in December. More
Ipsos Healthcare has announced the Australian launch of its syndicated Lab Mapping Study, already available in the US and the five biggest European markets. The study delivers a comprehensive picture of the laboratories involved in cancer biomarker testing. More
Health data giant QuintilesIMS has changed its name to IQVIA. From November 15th, shares will trade on the NYSE under the new name and new ticker symbol 'IQV'. More
Nielsen has rolled out a web-based forecasting solution called Marketing Budget Explorer, helping marketers evaluate thousands of combinations of marketing allocations and budget options to make better media planning decisions. More
Toluna has announced its intention to define and lead a new business concept and market category, 'Insights on Demand', and says it is collaborating with industry thought leaders and creating educational resources to advance its vision. More
App store analytics firm App Annie has appointed Cindy Deng as Managing Director, Asia Pacific, based in Hong Kong. More
Digital data collection specialist Research Now has launched a tool called SmartTracker, allowing clients to connect existing tracker survey data directly to a range of other information sources. More
DIY research company SurveyMonkey has partnered with insights exchange operator Cint, to provide its users with access to the latter firm's 40 million respondents in 100 countries. More
Australia-based media measurement firm Isentia is to cut thirty jobs in the country, moving its news monitoring services to Asia. More
Ipsos grew its Q3 revenue to EUR 434.0m, equivalent to organic growth of 4.9% and representing 'solid recovery'. Due to currency effects - a fall in the value of the US dollar and pound sterling against the euro - the reported figure was up only 0.5%. More
Technology research and advisory company Gartner has reported Research revenue of $653.4m for the third quarter of 2017, a rise of 38% at constant currencies - reflecting its acquisition of CEB. For the group, Gartner reported a Q3 loss of $48.2m, compared with a profit a year earlier. More
Australian media monitoring and intelligence group Isentia has made more than half its Singapore-based content marketing staff redundant, following the recent closure of its King Content business. More
Digital data collection specialist Research Now has enhanced its DIY Samplify platform with the addition of a survey authoring tool, designed for individuals with no special research expertise. More
KPMG Acuity, the insights practice of professional services firm KPMG Australia, has announced the hiring of former AMR exec Nick Deverson as a Director; Mike Stokes as a Manager; and Alanna Beracochea as a Consultant. More
Community and survey tech provider Toluna has launched a DIY tool called PowerPack, to help marketers understand the overall strengths and weaknesses of their package concepts - at a speed the firm claims is 'ten times faster' than traditional methods. More
WPP's Data Investment Management (DIM) arm has seen third quarter like-for-like revenue fall 2.9%. CEO Sir Martin Sorrell admitted to investors that it had been a 'tough quarter' as the group predicts a 'broadly flat' 2017. More
Technology specialist Forrester Research has reported third quarter revenue up 3% for its Research division and 6% in its Advisory Services and Events wing, for a total of $80.4m (Q3 2016 $77.4m). Pro forma net income fell slightly to $5.6m on substantially increased operating expenses. More
Professional services firm KPMG UK has partnered with Microsoft to build its Customer Experience Cloud, using both customer and operational insights to help clients redesign customer journeys, improve employee experience, and achieve better financial returns from CX investments. More
In New Zealand, sister agencies Colmar Brunton and Kantar TNS have moved into newly built premises on Sale Street in the Auckland central business district (CBD). The agencies will remain separate, but will come together to collaborate when required. More
Full-service provider BDRC has appointed Floyd McMillan as Client Services Director in its Sydney, Australia office. More
comScore co-founder and CEO Gian Fulgoni is to retire at the end of January, shortly after his 70th birthday. Following this will resume his previous Chairman Emeritus role, and provide the firm with advisory services for a further twelve months. More
In the US, Twitter has formally agreed to submit a set of key metrics for accreditation by the Media Rating Council (MRC), which has begun the first phase of the process. More
Online competitive intelligence provider Hitwise has partnered with Kantar Media to enable marketers to combine data on their audiences' opinions and attitudes with their search and web site visiting behaviour. More
Chime Insight & Engagement Group (CIE Group) has appointed Andy Firman as Research Director in its London-based agency Opinion Leader; while Andres Mendes joins the group's digital specialist Watermelon as a Consultant in Sydney. More
Research software firm Confirmit has appointed Halvor Stokke as Chief Financial Officer, following former CFO Ken Østreng's promotion to President and CEO earlier this year. More
US and Canadian professional bodies the Insights Association and MRIA have written an open letter to Apple, claiming that its new Safari browser poses 'a severe and almost insuperable problem for online marketing research and analytics'. More
Richard Korn has returned to Ipsos as MD of its Loyalty division in Sydney, after a four and a half year spell in Hong Kong. More
Sample marketplace firm Lucid has announced the launch of 'Reach', a machine learning solution providing users of its Fulcrum sample platform with instant feasibility and pricing on a planned study. More
WPP has partnered with customer experience management software company Sitecore, which offers tools for collecting customer data and real-time insights using machine learning. More
Eye tracking solutions provider Tobii Pro and motion capture specialist Qualisys have integrated their technologies to provide combined analysis of eye and body movements. More
In Australia, Roy Morgan Research has teamed up with Adshel to help advertisers profile and precisely target locations where commuters work and shop - 'not only where they live'. The new service is based on the Helix geo-digital psychographic segmentation tool. More
Omnicom has moved its online community specialist C Space into its Interbrand Group, and at the same time named C Space CEO Charles Trevail as the new Chief Exec of Interbrand. He succeeds Jez Frampton who is retiring at the end of the year. More
Commercial Radio Australia (CRA) has extended GfK's radio audience measurement contract by a further five years. The new deal includes investigation of a new multi-million-dollar Measurement Innovation Program (MIP), to explore the potential for a hybrid future for radio measurement. More
Software giant Adobe has appointed former Experian ex Suzanne Steel as Managing Director for Australia and New Zealand. She will join in late November. More
Digital data solutions leaders Research Now and SSI have signed a merger agreement. Terms of the deal have not been disclosed. More
Perth, Australia and Bristol, UK-based Painted Dog Research has launched a Data Technology division, led by Director Matt Gibbs, who is based in the UK. Meanwhile former ThinkField exec Andrew Lim has recently joined the company's Data Tech team in Australia. More
Animal health and agriculture researcher Kynetec has acquired Market Probe Agriculture & Animal Health and Market Probe Europe. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
Insights exchange operator Cint has partnered with data commercialization platform Narrative I/O, to give clients access to 'self-declared' first-person data. More
YouGov has released preliminary results for the year ended 31st July 2017, with revenue up 9% on a constant currency basis to £107.0m, and adjusted profit before tax up 24% to £16.4m. More
Online community and survey tech provider Toluna has integrated passive data-based Digital Tracking within its end-to-end real-time insights platform. More
Kantar Media has teamed up with software firm TechEdge to create a dedicated audience analytics software unit, focused on bringing innovative products to market. Andreas Velter will lead the new business, reporting to Kantar Media CEO & Chairman Andy Brown. More
Media group Dentsu Aegis Network has signed a two-year licence to use YouGov's segmentation and media planning tool Profiles for its audience understanding, strategy and activation needs. The group previously used Kantar TGI. More
Tech giant and big data pioneer IBM has acquired Sydney's data and insights-based design agency Vivant, for an undisclosed sum. More
Along with a host of hardware launches this week, Google has announced the roll-out of the 'Insights Engine Project', including six products using machine learning to promote data visualization and integration. More
Tech consultancy Gartner is 'exploring and evaluating strategic alternatives', including a possible sale, for its CEB Talent Assessment business, formerly SHL. More
UK-based agency System1 has upgraded its award-winning Predictive Markets idea testing technique. Next Generation Predictive Markets draws on learnings from over 40,000 tests and promises clients 'improved accuracy and greater speed at a lower cost'. More
Insights and marketing services holding company Reimagine has appointed Dan Fitzgerald, previously Chief Client and Marketing Officer at Lightspeed, to its leadership team as Managing Partner. More
Research solutions and online data firm Survey Healthcare (SHC) has announced record growth in 2017 to date, including a near 50 percent increase its in production staff, now 35-strong. It has also rebranded, dropping the word 'Universal' from its corporate identity. More
In Australia, KPMG has appointed former Virgin Australia Chief Customer Officer Mark Hassell as a Partner, leading customer and brand transformation for its new Customer, Brand and Marketing advisory business. More
UK firm Ebiquity has announced Interim Results for the six months ended 30th June, with revenue of £44.6m, flat on a like-for-like constant currency basis. The group says its Advertising Intelligence subscription services have returned to growth on the back of two new metrics products. More
comScore has given Wesley Nichols, Paul Reilly and Bryan Wiener seats on its Board of Directors, as part of its settlement agreement with one of its largest shareholders Starboard Value. More
IBM has launched the 'Integrated Analytics System', which gives users access to advanced data science capabilities and the ability to work with their data across private, public or hybrid cloud environments. More
US research and advisory firm Forrester has launched an app called Tap, allowing consumers to suggest how brands can improve their customer experience. More
In the US, comScore has appointed Joseph Rostock as Chief Information Officer, leading the technology division, and at the same time promoted Yvonne Bigbee to CTO, reporting to him. More
Nielsen has agreed to acquire multi-touch attribution and marketing mix modelling specialist Visual IQ, which measures ROI at both the individual person and store level. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
comScore has launched an ad targeting product suite called 'Activation', using a combination of big data, artificial intelligence and machine learning assets. More
DRNO's Nick Thomas wraps up his review of the 70th Congress with a general verdict - and as you may have guessed after the first three reviews, it's a good one. Not by any means unqualified however - whisper it low, he'll even have a go at the clients. Part 4 of 4. More
Cint has relocated Deputy CEO Richard Thornton from San Francisco back to London, taking the new role of Chief Operating Officer; while Oscar Carlsson has been appointed Chief Innovation Officer, based in San Francisco. Greg Dunbar and James Rogers are also promoted to new EVP roles. More
Contrary to what you might have concluded from our last two reports, there was lots of talk in Amsterdam about both the great trends shaping market research, and the specifics of current projects and problems. Our correspondent Nick Thomas found some gems in the latter. Part 3 of 4. More
Ipsos Marketing has launched a screening approach called DUEL, which taps learnings from behavioral science and cognitive psychology to capture consumer reactions without the use of scaled responses. More
Last year saw the MR industry experience its highest level of growth since 2010, according to the latest study by international association ESOMAR. More
Still looking for that killer session or stand-out moment of inspiration, DRNO's roving / raving reporter Nick Thomas continues to avoid the methodological and technology-related papers at the 70th Congress in Amsterdam. Part 2 of 4. More
Tokyo, Japan-based online specialist Macromill has acquired US-based research agency Acturus through its MetrixLab US subsidiary. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
Hardened cynic Nick Thomas headed to Amsterdam for last week's ESOMAR Congress, in search of inspiration. The 70-year-old (that's the Congress, not Nick) seems in Ruud good health, as we say in Holland. Part 1 of 4. More
US-based J.D. Power is adding the Net Promoter Score (NPS) to its automotive and finance industry studies in Asia Pacific, for use in benchmarking clients' performance against competitors. More
Consumer tracking company The NPD Group has announced the appointment of former GfK leader Gerhard Hausruckinger as Group President for Europe and APAC. More
Online survey pioneer Confirmit has announced a partnership with mobile messaging firm Infobip, offering enhanced international SMS capabilities and coverage to those engaged in research, customer experience and employee engagement programmes. More
comScore has announced a global roll-out for its free Viewability measurement service, which allows users to measure digital campaigns continuously within and across publishers and ad networks. More
Australian research company Roy Morgan has partnered with local audience data provider Eyeota, to roll out its consumer segmentation and data integration tool Helix Personas in Indonesia on the latter's platform. More
In Sydney, Australia, video ad distribution and tracking platform Unruly has appointed Ricky Chanana as Managing Director for the ANZ region, replacing Lance Traore who left five months ago to 'pursue other opportunities'. More
Microsoft has patented a tool called the 'Opinion Search Engine', to help companies collect and understand customer feedback and product reviews across the web, and to help consumers with their product choices. More
Prediction market research, analytics and software specialist Consensus Point has launched its Hunnu tool on ZappiStore's automated research platform. More
The Mystery Shopping Providers Association (MSPA) has elected Jill Spencer, Director of UK-based customer experience research specialist ReactCX, as its President for the next two years. She replaces Yvonne Kinzel of German CEM firm Multi-Value. More
Ad technology platform Adform has partnered with digital data collection specialist Research Now, to offer targeting of consumers at the 'right time on the right device'. More
Research data solutions firm SSI has launched a self-service suite of tools, for use by experts and novices. The tools cover everything from sampling and survey building to reporting of results. More
WPP-owned digital data collection specialist Lightspeed has rolled out its LifePoints mobile engagement app in the UK and Australia. More
India-based digital research firm MRSS has appointed former GfK and Nielsen exec Swee Woon Tan as Managing Director, Asia Pacific for its recently acquisition Market Probe Asia Pacific in Singapore. He replaces Saji Kumar, who will guide the integration until the end of the year. More
In Australia, marcoms group WPP AUNZ has named industry veteran Rob McLachlan as Chief Executive Officer of its Data Investment Management group (DIM) - a position previously held by Ben Dixon. More
GfK has announced a transformation and investment programme, aimed at sharpening its focus on customer needs, accelerating digitization and getting the company 'back on a sustainable growth path'. Plans include a 'one office per country' strategy. More
Asia Pacific-based data intelligence and technology company Potentiate has expanded to the US through the acquisition of full-service marketing insights specialist NetReflector. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
COO Alessandra Cama is leaving GfK, resigning with immediate effect after around two years as a member of the company's Management Board. More
Recently-formed research software firm QuenchTec says it has finished integrating the platforms of MARSC and MI-Pro, from whose merger it was born ten months ago; and launched Q_Suite, an end-to-end research platform. More
WPP has slashed its full-year growth forecast for revenues and net sales to between zero and 1%, as clients cut their marketing budgets. For the second quarter, like-for-like revenue in the Data Investment Management (DIM) division fell 4.6% to £669m. More
In the US, Nielsen Sports' Global Co-MD Danny Townsend has left the firm to become CEO of Sydney Football Club. Glenn Lovett, who previously shared the title, has been promoted to sole Global Managing Director, leading all aspects of the global sports business. More
Nielsen has launched a new video gaming analysis business called Nielsen Esports, which will provide sponsorship valuation, fan insights, custom industry research and consulting services to rights holders, media platforms and brands. More
GfK has appointed Jutta Suchanek as Chief Human Resources Officer and Benjamin Jones as Chief Technology Officer. Both take on newly created roles, and will become members of the firm's Executive Leadership team. More
Kantar has announced that Richard Ingleton will take over the role of Chief Executive Officer of its Insights Division, from Travyn Rhall who will be leaving the business in November. A spokesperson for the company declined to comment about Rhall's next career move. More
IT intelligence, advisory services and events specialist IDC has appointed Iggy Pintado as Managing Director for Australia and New Zealand. He replaces Ullrich Loeffler, who is 'pursuing other interests'. More
Lightspeed has launched the 'Gravity Network', a partnership arrangement between selected data companies to provide 'a vastly larger pool than traditionally sourced Double Opt-In (DOI) research panels alone'. Partners in the network include Cint, Lucid, Tap Research, P2Sample and Dalia. More
Optimizely, whose software platform helps clients optimise their customer experience, has opened regional headquarters in Sydney, Australia. More
CEO Jamin Brazil and Chief Product Officer Jayme Plunkett, the co-founders of MR tech firm Decipher, have left research technology and services group FocusVision, according to industry sources. More
US organisation GreenBook has beta launched Savio, a platform inspired by the 'gig economy' and allowing users to buy in research expertise to use with online research tools or as a standalone service. Features include ratings and reviews, project management tools and payment processing. More
Enterprise data and analytics company Acxiom has rolled out its 'people-based marketing' insights services and new omnichannel marketing capabilities in Australia. More
US research and advisory company Gartner has reported a 34% rise in second quarter Research division revenue (33% at constant currencies), to $613.7m. The result follows the acquisition of talent management insights firm CEB. More
Research software firm Confirmit has appointed Jason Mallia as Country Manager, overseeing operations in Australia and New Zealand. More
Toluna has added to its real-time insights platform QuickSurveys with the launch of QuickCommunities, a DIY product for building, creating and recruiting target consumers into a custom community. More
US-based holding company Information Services Group (ISG) has announced results for the second quarter and first half ended June 30th 2017, with revenues up 15 percent at constant currency to $68.0m, in part reflecting an acquisition in December. More
In Sydney, Australia, Telstra's Muru-D incubator program has given its backing to start-ups including mystery shopping app Snooper and online ad campaign planning service Flobox. More
In Australia, insights consultancy Fiftyfive5 has launched a Social and Government offer, and appointed Mathew Densten as its Director. More
In the US, privacy watchdog the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) has filed a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), urging it to halt Google's tracking of consumers' in-store purchases. More
In Australia, the IAB (Interactive Advertising Bureau) and Nielsen have rolled out the latter's Digital Content Ratings (DCR), providing regional publishers, agencies and marketers with daily digital audience data for the first time. More
US-based research body the Insights Association has formed an International Chapter, to provide member companies and individuals operating outside the country with enhanced service and support. This is the association's twelfth chapter, and its first outside the US. More
New York-based hedge fund Starboard Value has bought a stake in comScore, aiming to force the company to schedule its first Annual General Meeting in two years. More
Professional services firm KPMG Australia has hired former Google exec Lisa Bora for its Brand & Marketing advisory business, launched following the recent acquisition of Sydney-based Acuity Research and Insights. More
Nielsen has reported a 3.0% increase in second quarter revenue to $1.644bn, equivalent to a 4.1% rise on a constant currency basis. In organic terms - excluding the acquisition of Gracenote - the quarter was almost flat. More
In the US, technology specialist Forrester has reported a 1% fall in Research revenues for the three months ended June 30th, to $54.6m. However, a strong performance by the Advisory Services and Events division meant group revenue rose 2.2% to $87.8m. More
Ipsos has reported what it has described as an 'uneventful' first-half year, with revenue of EUR 833.8m, almost unchanged from a year before, and organic growth of just 1 percent. More
WPP-owned marcoms group J. Walter Thompson (JWT) has launched an internal artificial intelligence solution called Pangaea, through which those in its network can ask questions and get answers from any of the firm's more than 12,000 employees around the world. More
The Stagwell Group has signed a 13-year lease for two floors in One World Trade Center, where it says it will bring together its portfolio of companies including Harris Insights & Analytics and former Nielsen company National Research Group. More
Media and business intelligence firm Isentia has appointed Alex Yu as General Manager for Hong Kong, with the additional role of driving business development in the region. The company has also moved its Hong Kong operations to a larger office. More
comScore has expanded its APAC team with the appointment of Adam Natiq as Head of Sales for Australia and New Zealand; Alan Jenner as Senior Product Manager; and Derek Wen as Client Services Manager. More
In the US, data activation platform Sizmek is to acquire predictive marketing software company Rocket Fuel for approximately $145m. More
Global MR groups The Research Club, Women In Research (WIRe) and MrWeb have teamed up to put the world's biggest listing of research job opportunities in front of a hugely expanded audience of potential candidates. The search is also in a new more mobile-friendly format. More
DIY research giant SurveyMonkey has unveiled a rebrand and a major upgrade of its products, including a refreshed logo; a new platform, 'People Powered Data'; tools for customer experience data and employee surveys; an integrated version of its Audience product; and a 'Genius' survey design coach. More
WPP-owned digital data collection specialist Lightspeed has been granted a US patent for its 'Honesty Detector' online respondent validation product. More
Kantar Media has expanded its cross-platform ad intelligence capabilities with the addition of programmatic advertising data, initially available in the US and with roll-out planned for other key markets. More
Nielsen has partnered with podcasting company Panoply Media to introduce audience targeting to podcasting for what the firms claim is the first time. More
In Australia, ticketing, live entertainment and data analytics company TEG has hired former Dentsu Aegis exec Mazen Kassis for the newly created role of Managing Director of Data, Digital and Technology. More
Kantar has launched a new service integrating consumer insights and behavioral data from across its portfolio with shopper and media data, allowing clients to 'fully leverage the studies they run with Kantar for targeting purposes'. More
Senior GfK Leader Dr. Gerhard Hausruckinger has resigned from the company after seven years on the Management Board. Meanwhile Christoph D. Erbenich has been appointed as Chief Marketing and Innovation Officer. More
WPP has merged its digital ad agency POSSIBLE with the older and larger Wunderman. POSSIBLE, formed only in 2011, will continue to operate as a standalone brand within its new home. More
Havas Media has launched a division called Socialyse Influence, which will monitor all client influencer campaigns, and ensure they are accurately measured. More
Research consultancy BDRC has launched a rating service called Brand Advantage, giving insights into the impact of hotel brands on consumers' willingness to pay a premium. More
Australian-owned data analysis and programmatic media company Pureprofile has partnered with Branded Research Inc., gaining access to and enhancing the latter's panel of 1.7 million consumer research profiles in the US, UK and Canada. More
Companies' intangible assets - including the value of their brands, reputation and employee skills - should be included on balance sheets in financial reporting, according to a growing lobby of experts from both multinationals and consultancies. More
UK-based data and analytics consultancy MESH has partnered with antipodean shopper consultancy 3Feet to bring the former's Real-time Experience Tracking (RET) methodology and experience metrics to Australia and New Zealand. More
Social media ad targeting firm RadiumOne has been acquired by San Francisco ad tech firm RhythmOne, for a reported $22m of which three quarters will be paid in shares at a future date. RhythmOne has also announced a change of CEO. More
WPP agencies POSSIBLE and Mindshare have linked up to launch an integrated marketing and commerce offer to help companies optimise their investments across the various platforms of online shopping giant Amazon. More
Nielsen has unveiled a 'Connected System' promising FMCG and retail decision-makers analysis of 'what's happening in the market from every angle', and designed to 'foster collaboration and align organizations'. The System integrates Nielsen data with data from partner companies. More
Hall & Partners has launched a new specialist consultancy dedicated to brand invention, under its OpenMind brand. Jen Drexler joins as Managing Partner to lead the company, which promises 'a radical new collaborative approach focused on rapid innovation'. More
British big data firm Quantexa has opened an office in Sydney, Australia, following a launch in Brussels in April. The Sydney office will be led by advanced analytics specialist and former SAS exec Shaun Mathieson. More
Health data giant QuintilesIMS may be looking to divest its contract sales business for as much as $1 billion, according to a report from Reuters. More
Toluna has enhanced its QuickSurveys suite, with users now able to select from more than 200 'hyper-targeted' demographic and profile audiences. More
comScore's Chief Technology Officer Michael Brown is to leave the company, as a restructuring exercise combines the technology and product teams into a group reporting to COO Cameron Meierhoefer - according to a filing. More
In Australia, Leon Bombotas, formerly Head of Data at ad agency Ogilvy, has launched his own firm, Newsroom.ly, combining web analytics, AI and data-science to help clients measure the impact of their content. More
Australia-based media monitoring group Isentia is reportedly challenging competitor firm Meltwater Australia in a Federal Court, claiming its MD and others have breached its contracts and defrauded local publishers. More
On-demand panel and sample company Innovate has appointed former dataSpring exec Jeff Gerken as Assistant Vice President, responsible for sourcing new business opportunities and managing a range of existing client relationships. More
Professional services firm KPMG Australia has launched a specialist Customer, Brand & Marketing advisory business, which has already acquired Sydney-based market research firm Acuity Research and Insights. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
Nielsen has launched what it describes as the first-ever audio data management platform (DMP), which connects radio formats to real off-line purchase data for 'highly specific radio audience targeting'. More
Consumer insight consultancy BDRC has launched the 'Media Global Passenger Study' (Media GPS), which will use a sample of more than 16,000 international air passengers to understand media usage among nearly ten million weekly travellers. More
comScore has expanded its Board of Directors from seven people to twelve. The new arrivals are Lisa Gersh, Joshua Peirez, Mark Harris, Jacques Kerrest and Susan Riley. More
Cross-screen data management platform (DMP) Lotame has partnered with insights exchange operator Cint, to enable publishers and advertisers to create custom research panels. More
France-based market intelligence solutions provider Ubiquick Group has acquired Australian telecoms industry research firm Paul Budde Communications (BuddeComm), for an undisclosed sum. More
Snap Inc., the parent company of photo and video-sharing app Snapchat, has acquired location-based ad targeting firm Placed in a deal reported to be worth more than $200m. More
Andy Bateman, former Global CEO of The Leading Edge (TLE), has joined business transformation consulting practice Monitor Deloitte as National Lead Partner for Innovation Strategy. More
Paris-based mass media conglomerate Vivendi has entered into an official agreement to buy Bolloré Group's c.60% majority stake in multinational marcoms group Havas, at a price of EUR 9.25 per share. More
Online insights exchange Cint has opened an office in Hong Kong, where it has appointed Ronald Leung as APAC Regional VP of Supply and Heather Hughes as APAC Regional VP of Partnerships and Alliances. The firm has also made hires in the US and UK. More
Data visualisation specialist Visual Metrics has appointed Ryan Meegoda as Managing Partner, with a remit to expand the company's services to clients across Australia and Asia. More
Eye-tracking tech firm Tobii has acquired Sticky, which uses webcam-based eye tracking technology to measure ad effectiveness. The deal will be financed with an undisclosed amount of cash, with an option to provide part of the consideration in Tobii shares. More
In Australia, artificial intelligence specialist Jemsoft is being sued by former JV partner Karen Nelson-Feld, who reportedly received no warning of its recent acquisition by Internet of Things firm Xped. More
US data firm Verisk Analytics has acquired Danish wind and solar power market intelligence and advisory business MAKE. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
Former shareholders of Rentrak could receive around $19m to settle claims relating to the effect on share price of comScore's accounting investigation last year. The proposed settlement is currently seeking preliminary approval from a judge in Oregon. More
In the US, two former Apple engineers have launched a foot traffic counting and analytics firm called Dor, with $3.8m in seed funding. More
Business information and events group Informa has expanded and restructured its Business Intelligence division, as it combines with the brands and businesses acquired from New York-based Penton Information Services last November. More
Kantar TNS has promoted James Brown to the role of Executive Director, responsible for leading the business in Melbourne, Australia. More
GfK has reported a 2.4% drop in first quarter group sales to EUR 352m, while the profit measure EBITDA fell 34.3% to EUR 29.4m. More
Nielsen has expanded its measure of Twitter mobile campaigns to 23 new markets, adding to the US where it was launched last year. More
US-based online physician community SERMO has launched a 'Drug Ratings' tool, which it says is the first global peer-to-peer prescription drug review system sourced exclusively from verified licensed physicians. More
comScore has launched a syndicated service called OTT Intelligence, to measure US household viewing of over-the-top (OTT) content on television screens. More
Digital data collection specialist Research Now has launched an automated research solution called SmartAR, promising completed surveys in a matter of days. More
Global agricultural market research firm Kleffman Group has hired Goran Jovcevski as Managing Director, Australia, located in its Melbourne head office. More
Australia's embattled Audited Media Association has dropped quarterly publication of its circulation data for newspapers and weekly magazines, and will now report it six-monthly. More
Australian TV audience measurement body OzTAM has appointed Richard Herring as independent Chairman, replacing Michael Anderson who has served in the role since 2011 and has decided to focus on his new role as CEO of MediaWorks New Zealand. More
In Australia, Omnicom analytics division Annalect has appointed Daniela Elia as Head of Marketing Science. Also joining are Adam Krass as Head of Technology, Nagendra Jayaram as Head of Reporting, and Anthony Tomasello as Head of Ad Operations. More
WPP CEO Sir Martin Sorrell's pay for 2017 will fall by around £22m in 2017, with further drops scheduled for 2018 and 2021. The firm, whose high-paying 'Leap' scheme had in any case expired this year, notes that it 'understands share owners' increasing discomfort' with levels of 'reward opportunities'. More
M&C Saatchi's qual/quant research agency The Source has opened a first Australian office, in Melbourne, to be led by former London MD Matt Swinson. More
In Australia, Dentsu Aegis Network has acquired data-driven customer experience and personalisation agency Accordant. Terms of the deal have not been disclosed. More
Ipsos has recorded first quarter revenue of EUR 390.1m, representing organic growth of 1%, and says sales activity indicates this will increase in subsequent quarters. The group plans to announce a new programme of transformation at its June 6th Investor Day. More
WPP has reported a flat quarter, with group like-for-like revenue up 0.2%. In the Data Investment Management division, Kantar, like-for-like revenue once again trailed the rest of the group, down 3.4%, despite strong growth in net sales in the UK, Latin America and Africa. More
US technology specialist Forrester Research has reported a 3% drop in its first quarter Research revenues, to $51.7m. Overall first quarter group revenues were down slightly from $77.4m to $77.2m. More
Nielsen has reported first quarter revenues of $1.5 billion, up 3.2% after excluding the impact of exchange rate fluctuations. The result was driven by a strong performance in the Watch media research division, while the Buy side saw a decline. More
comScore is to offer a free viewability measurement service, with data for display video, and mobile inventory compatible with metrics from its flagship vCE service. More
The Research Industry Council of Australia (RICA) is fighting the terms of a recent government decision to abolish a visa program for overseas workers, which it claims will have a detrimental impact on the country's market and social research industry. More
Following its recent acquisition of media and entertainment data provider Gracenote, Nielsen is formally adopting the latter's 'IDs' as the standard content identifier across all its audience measurement solutions. More
Media and marketing analytics firm Ebiquity has rolled out its digital ad intelligence platform Portfolio Digital in the UK, following its launch in Australia at the beginning of the year. More
In the US, software giant Oracle has acquired digital ad analytics and viewability measurement specialist Moat. Terms of the deal have not been disclosed. More
Digital data collection specialist Research Now has hired former WPP / Kantar exec George Pappachen for a newly created position, EVP Corporate Development & Strategy. More
Omnicom is closing seven of the eight global offices of its consumer and cultural insight agency Flamingo, citing 'underperformance' and its need to now focus on growth opportunities in London. More
US-based survey technology firm Qualtrics has raised $180m in a Series C round of funding, valuing the business at $2.5 billion. More
US-based sampling automation provider Lucid has raised $60m in a minority investment round led by private equity firm North Bridge Growth Equity. The funds will be used for further product development and to expand the team. More
In the US, MFour Mobile Research has received $5m in funding, which it will use to expand its business, products and staff numbers. More
Global media giant Viacom has promoted Colleen Fahey Rush to EVP, Insights & Audience Science, and Chief Research Officer of its Viacom Media Networks subsidiary, effective immediately. More
GfK has appointed three new members to its Supervisory Board: Thomas Ebeling, Johannes P. Huth and Philipp Freise, following its agreement with investment group KKR which is now its partner in running the global group. They replace Peter Goldschmidt, Aliza Knox and Bruno Piace. More
In Australia, former Bain consultant Nik Samoylov and academic Prof. Ujwal Kayande have launched a technology company called Conjoint.ly, which automates conjoint analysis and discrete choice experiments to provide rapid concept testing, price optimisation and forecasting. More
Research technology and panel exchange operator Cint has hired former Nasdaq director Johanna Isander for a newly created position, Chief Human Resources Officer, supporting its global growth and talent management initiatives. More
In the US, digital analytics specialist Webtrends has sold its Infinity big data platform to software giant Oracle for an undisclosed sum. As part of the deal, just under half of Webtrends' employees will move to Oracle during the next few months. More
Research software company Confirmit has expanded its customer experience assessment methodology with the launch of a model called Compass, which aims to understand the stages of maturity in Voice of Customer (VoC) programme development. More
Kantar TNS has launched a new concept test product called eValuateNow, on the ZappiStore research automation platform. More
Australian micro-influencer platform TRIBE has launched in the UK, following an AUD $5.35m Series A funding round. More
Big data firm Cloudera has filed for an IPO, aiming to raise another $200m to add to around $1 billion in private investments received in previous years. More
WPP-owned brand development and insight consultancy Added Value has appointed Gillian Reilly and Kim Braganza as Associate Directors in its Sydney, Australia team, following the expansion of its client roster. More
UK-based mobile video MR specialist Voxpopme has appointed industry veteran Jem Wallis as Regional Director of Asia Pacific, based in Sydney. More
Online community and survey tech provider Toluna has hired Jay Rampuria to lead global business development for both itself and parent company ITWP. More
Ipsos has promoted industry veteran Dean Luker to the role of Corporate Development Director, responsible for its acquisition programme in support of the company's overall strategy. He replaces Deputy CEO Carlos Harding, who passed away in December. More
Ad group Havas has acquired shopper behavioural marketing specialist BD Australia for an undisclosed sum. More
Interpublic innovation arm IPG Mediabrands has appointed Arun Kumar as its first Chief Data & Marketing Technology Officer. He takes up the new position alongside his existing role managing global operations at sister company Cadreon, which focuses on data, tech, insights and activation. More
Management consulting giant KPMG Australia has hired innovation specialist Nathan Baird as Customer and Operations Partner. More
Ipsos has partnered with viewability measurement specialist Moat to launch a solution called Connect:Digital, which pre-tests digital ads via a combination of creative impact analysis and digital trading measures. More
In Australia, The Lab Insight & Strategy has opened an office in Brisbane, where it has appointed Amanda Windus as Strategy Planner. More
WPP-owned digital data collection specialist Lightspeed has promoted Caroline Frankum to Chief Executive Officer, replacing David Day who is leaving for a role in the UK Foreign Office. Nick Nyhan becomes Chairman. More
IBM and Salesforce have entered a global strategic partnership to deliver joint solutions using artificial intelligence. A new practice within IBM Global Business Services will help clients rapidly deploy tools combining IBM Watson's big data with Salesforce Einstein's customer insights. More
Research and consulting firm Information Services Group has announced results for Q4 2016 and for the full year. At constant currency, full year revenues rose 4% to $216.5m, while the profit measure adjusted EBITDA fell 12% to $19.9m. More
GfK has appointed consumer goods industry exec Peter Feld as its new Chief Executive Officer. His predecessor Matthias Hartmann resigned last August due to 'differing views' on the long-term direction of the business between himself and majority shareholder GfK Verein. More
New York-based agency SIS International has opened an office in Tokyo, which will be led by Andrew Edsall, responsible for client servicing across the Asia Pacific region. More
In the US, not-for-profit organization Women In Research (WIRe) has appointed former FocusVision exec Michelle Andre as its first Managing Director, responsible for organizational development and oversight, fundraising, marketing, and assisting with long-term planning. More
Facebook has partnered with European ad visibility analyst Meetrics, to offer advertisers new options to verify the viewability and view duration of their video ad campaigns across Facebook services. More
Data-driven CRM and performance marketing agency Merkle has promoted long-term exec Zhengda 'Z' Shen to the role of President of Asia Pacific. Under his leadership, the firm plans to grow its team to 1,000 employees in APAC by the end of the year. More
Marcoms giant WPP has reported like-for-like falls in revenue for its Data Investment Management (DIM) arm Kantar, of 1.6% in the fourth quarter and 0.9% for the full year. However like-for-like net sales, which WPP has long said are a better indicator, rose 1.5% and 0.9% respectively. More
WPP-owned digital data collection firm Lightspeed has partnered with emotion measurement specialist Affectiva, to analyse its panellists' reactions to ads via their facial expressions. More
Online community and survey tech provider Toluna is planning to increase the size of its respondent community by 20 per cent during the second half of 2017, and has hired Kyle Kim-Hays as EVP for Global Digital Marketing, responsible for the push. More
Link, the long-established ad copy testing solution developed by Kantar Millward Brown, has completed an audit by the Marketing Accountability Standards Board (MASB), recognised in the industry for assessing connections between marketing activities, metrics and financial performance. More
Ipsos has reported 2016 revenue of EUR 1,782.7m, virtually the same as in 2015 but representing 3 percent organic growth - currency effects cancelled out the growth in the Euros figure. More
comScore CEO Gian Fulgoni has told investors the firm expects the public release of its ExtendedTV product sometime in 2017; and a return to stock exchange listing in the summer. Fulgoni also expressed disappointment with the spread of the flagship vCE product. More
Business information firm GlobalData Plc (previously PDM) has announced final results for the calendar year 2016, including group revenues passing £100m - including organic growth of 24% and the effect of major acquisitions. Adjusted EBITDA increased by 71% to £20.6m. More
Realface, a start-up developing facial recognition technology, has become Apple's fourth buy in the country, for a price reported as 'a couple of million dollars'. More
Digital ad industry body IAB Australia is to launch three new councils this year, all of which focus on aspects of ad measurement. CEO Vijay Solanki says digital measurement and a 'trustworthy digital value chain' are among the organisation's key priorities for the year. More
Australian boutique MR and strategic planning consultancy Ruby Cha Cha has relocated from its central Sydney office to the city's affluent inner city suburb, Surry Hills. More
Nielsen's recently acquired entertainment data provider Gracenote is connecting its video, music and sports databases, allowing clients to use its data and IDs to drive voice and text search, intuitive user experiences, and more personalized media recommendations. More
comScore has announced it will report mobile video metrics for YouTube and its partner channels across its core audience measurement services. More
News and information provider Thomson Reuters has opened an innovation lab in Singapore which will collaborate with government, tech start-ups and universities to create products and solutions for clients across the Asia Pacific region. More
Australian television industry research body ThinkTV has announced a collaboration between a number of organisations to produce a 'Total TV' metric, capturing all the advertising revenue spent across commercial TV. More
Australia-based media monitoring and intelligence group Isentia has appointed Petra Masinova as Global Director of Strategic Partnerships. More
Animal health and agriculture researcher Kynetec has appointed Richard Jameson to its leadership team as Executive Director of Global Custom Research. More
Bonn, Germany-based pricing and strategy consultancy Simon-Kucher & Partners has announced further rapid expansion, and an ambitious long-term growth target - aiming to double in size to 2,000 staff by 2023. More
Eye-tracking tech firm Tobii AB has reported results for the fourth quarter and full year 2016, with SEK 1,053m ($119m) in annual sales, and increasing cash reserves for investment in VR and smartphones. More
Lightspeed's QuestionArts team has announced a range of product enhancements under the banner of Intelligent Components. More
Ad agency network M&C Saatchi has acquired Australian insight-based marcoms group Bohemia, which uses real-time location and other customer data to drive its media planning and buying services. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
Kantar TNS has hired Caterpillar's former consumer insights exec Stephane Sanchez as Regional Head of Customer Strategies, Asia Pacific. He will take up his new role, based in Singapore, next month. More
Australian retail research firm koji has launched a data-as-a-service tool called snapshot, to deliver transactional grocery data to FMCG brand marketers and help them better understand basket share, customer demographics and in-store behaviour. More
GfK shareholders have accepted an offer from US-based private equity firm KKR (Kohlberg Kravis Roberts) for 18.54 percent of the business. The buy is part of an agreement with majority shareholder GfK Verein to support the group's long-term growth strategy. More
Nielsen has reported 2 percent growth in fourth quarter revenues to $1,656m, similar to the growth figure for the whole of 2016. Q4 revenue in the Buy consumer purchase behaviour segment fell 1.3% to $868m, while Watch media research revenue rose 5.8% to $788m. More
In the US, research and advisory group Forrester has reported a 1 per cent rise in revenue in its Research division, to $54.2m for the fourth quarter of 2016. Total group revenues were up 3.0 percent to $83.4m. For the whole of 2016, group revenue rose 4.0 percent to $326.1m. More
Ipsos has made changes to its Asia Pacific operations, with the news that its business in China will operate as a separate region, led by Lifeng Liu as Chairman and Chief Executive. More
Research software pioneer Confirmit has launched a tool promising to halve the time required to create engaging questionnaires. More
Research technology and services group FocusVision has launched a focus group video system called FV360 Live, which uses 360 degree cameras to place observers in the middle of the conversation. More
comScore has announced that it is unable to meet the February 23rd deadline to file late financial reports and regain compliance with Nasdaq's listing requirements, and warns that this may result in its stock being delisted from the exchange. More
In Sydney, former Woolworths exec Emma Gray has joined Australia and New Zealand Banking Group (ANZ) as its first Chief Data Officer. More
Technology research and advisory company Gartner has reported a 9% increase in fourth quarter 2016 group revenue, to $703.2m, driven by Research revenue which was up 15% at constant currencies, to $478.8m. More
In New York, full service agency ORC International has hired former Nielsen marketer Ana Mackay-Sim as Chief Marketing Officer, responsible for overseeing brand and revenue-building marketing initiatives globally. More
MR presentation and reporting specialist Dapresy has promoted Fredrik Osterberg to the role of Managing Director, Europe, while appointing former Cambiar exec Beth Rounds as its Chief Marketing Officer. More
GfK has launched a unit called Supercrunch, which will offer clients a new type of automated, user-defined analysis to support marketing decisions. The division will be led by Norbert Wirth, who previously served as the group's Global Head of Data and Science. More
Research software firm Confirmit has promoted CFO Ken Østreng to the role of President and Chief Executive Officer. He replaces Henning Hansen who, in his own words, has resigned to focus on other priorities, spend more time with his family, and 'start a new chapter'. More
Chime Insight & Engagement Group has appointed nine new members of staff, including former Northstar Research exec Jack Miles as Insight Director, heading qual and quant projects across a range of sectors. More
In a trading statement issued today, GfK said that both sales and adjusted income had fallen in 2016, in part as a result of negative currency effects. More
WPP-owned marcoms network Ogilvy is setting up a Center for Behavioral Science, aiming to establish a new system for defining how audiences think, feel and behave; and to help clients improve their marketing and communications. More
WPP audience profiling and targeting division Xaxis has named John Wittesaele as President EMEA, while promoting Arshan Saha to the role of President Asia Pacific. More
Retail information firm The NPD Group has acquired the US portion of Nielsen's information services for the book industry, including US-based BookScan, Books & Consumers, PubEasy and PubNet; plus the three PubTrack services - Digital, Higher Education and Christian. More
Around forty percent of marketers in a new survey say they will be carrying out independent audits of Facebook's audience metrics, following the social network's recent measurement problems. More
Software veteran Oracle has partnered with audience profiling firm Eyeota, offering the latter's data via the Oracle Data Management Platform and Marketing Cloud. Users will be able to target and personalize campaigns outside the US - in Europe, APAC, and elsewhere in the Americas. More
Nielsen has extended its Digital Ad Ratings service to New Zealand, to help clients there measure and understand unduplicated reach across computers and mobile devices. The service is now available in more than twenty countries including the US, the UK and Australia. More
Paragon Partnerships, a body set up by a group including major corporates, research firms and MR associations, has announced a joint initiative with worldwide research network GRBN, to help provide quality data and insights to governments and others who work towards the UN's 17 'Global Goals'. More
UK-based research and consulting firm Populus has appointed Hamish Asser to lead its Brand and Communications team, part of its Business and Consumer Insight division. More
US market research associations CASRO and MRA have completed their merger, forming the Insights Association. More
Asset management firm The Carlyle Group has joined up with former leaders of Nielsen Catalina Solutions to buy consumer segmentation division Claritas from Nielsen, for an undisclosed sum. More
Technology research and advisory company Gartner has agreed to acquire best practice and talent management insights firm CEB, in a cash and stock transaction valued at around $2.6bn. More
Twitter has followed Facebook in announcing errors in the way it measures ad traffic. Reports suggest a bug in the microblogging firm's Android app inflated video ad metrics by up to 35 percent. Facebook itself has held talks with the MRC on a possible audit of its methods. More
Nielsen has appointed Nancy Ramsey Phillips as Chief Human Resources Officer, effective next week. She joins from Broadcom Corporation where she was EVP and CHRO; and replaces Mary Liz Finn, who announced her retirement from Nielsen in September. More
This is the last edition of Daily Research News for 2016. We wish all our readers, clients, contributors and friends around the world a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. More
Harris Poll creator Louis Harris died of heart problems on Saturday, at his home in Key West, Florida. He was 95 years old. More
In Australia, magazine publishers Bauer Media and NewsLifeMedia are withdrawing from the circulation audits provided by industry body AMAA, leaving only one major consumer magazine group subscribed. More
DIY survey firm SurveyMonkey is to downsize its Australian sales team, reports suggest, with six staff set to leave by March 2017. Meanwhile its base in Ottawa, Canada, is expected to adds dozens of new recruits during the year. More
Real-time information and analytics business Neustar is to be acquired by a private investment group for approximately $2.9 billion. An affiliate of fund manager GIC will also invest in Neustar and will become a minority owner of the company after the transaction has closed. More
ESOMAR and the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) have updated their code to clarify researchers' responsibilities when using new methods for collecting data - in light of current levels of consumer concern about privacy. More
US-based analytics software company Splunk has set up an Australia / New Zealand (ANZ) headquarters in Melbourne. More
Carlos Harding, the Deputy CEO of Ipsos, died suddenly of a heart attack last Friday morning. He was 69 years old. More
Facebook has owned up to another problem with the metrics it provides to advertisers, this time surrounding discrepancies between like and share button counts and those for mobile search queries. More
US private equity firm Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR) is launching an offer for a substantial minority stake in GfK, and has entered an agreement with its majority shareholder GfK Verein to support the group's long-term growth strategy. More
comScore co-founder Magid Abraham has resigned from the company's Board of Directors, to concentrate on his role as Executive Chairman of wearable technology developer APX Labs. More
Cadreon, a recently remodelled division of Interpublic's innovation group IPG Mediabrands dedicated to data, tech, insights and activation, has appointed and Clement Tsang in the new role of Head of Consulting. More
In Australia, digital out-of-home business Shopper Media Group has launched a new research data division making use of its network of 'Smartlite' digital panels installed in more than 150 shopping centres across the country. More
Former Quintiles CEO Tom Pike, who led the company through its recent mega-merger with IMS Health and is now the combined firm's Vice Chairman and President of R&D Solutions, is to retire. His replacement will be Richard Staub III, while Paul Spreen will rejoin as EVP and Chief Customer Officer. More
Online community specialist Vision Critical has partnered with business intelligence and digital media provider RFi Group, to service the financial services sector in Australia and New Zealand. More
Sydney, Australia-based video survey and research platform Verbate has expanded to Europe with the opening of an office in London. More
WPP's media investment arm GroupM has brought together all its data, analytics and digital services in a new suite of products, [m]PLATFORM, creating what it claims is the ad industry's 'most powerful collection of data, technology and expertise for audience addressability'. More
In Australia, digital screen ad network VMO has unveiled DART 2.0, described as the country's 'most intelligent out of home audience measurement system'. More
In Australia, official TV measurement service OzTAM will add a new 'Total Grocery Shoppers' demographic to its TV ratings database next year, alongside the existing 'Main Grocery Buyer' option. More
In the US, Joan Lewis has resigned from her role as Chair of comScore's Board, and has been replaced by former US Postmaster General William Henderson. More
In Australia, management consulting giant PwC has paid an undisclosed sum for Strategic Intelligence Group (SIG), a specialist in infrastructure and urban regeneration. More
In New Zealand, big data insights specialist Qrious has appointed David Leach as Chief Executive Officer, following the promotion of Ed Hyde to CEO of its parent company, Spark Ventures. More
IBM Watson has launched a new Internet of Things (IoT) consulting service, staffed by 1,500 consultants, data scientists and design and security experts at its IoT headquarters in Munich, Germany and in eight other IoT centres in Asia, Europe and the Americas. More
German-based product, pricing and marketing strategy specialist Simon Kucher & Partners has named sixteen new partners, who will take up their new roles on January 1st. More
The Mozilla organisation has launched a new browser, Firefox Focus, which blocks third party tracking software by default and allows users to erase sessions with a single tap. More
WPP has announced the formation of a global multi-year partnership between its Data Alliance organisation and music streaming service Spotify. More
Facebook has owned up to further errors in its reporting of page visits, and has announced moves to give users 'more clarity and confidence about the insights it provides' - including new partnerships, more communication about activities and the formation of a new 'Measurement Council'. More
Audience measurement firm comScore has been granted more time to regain compliance with the listing rules of stock exchange Nasdaq. More
In Australia, Ipsos has teamed up with audience data firm Eyeota to create a new range of targetable audience segments, based on the former's emma media survey and its geoTribes person-level geodemographic classification system. More
Ipsos has announced changes in its ownership structure, designed to simplify it and ensure the company's independence over the long term - following the death in December 2014 of co-founder Jean-Marc Lech. More
A sharp fall in income for GfK's Consumer Experiences segment (-7.4%) more than balanced growth in Consumer Choices (+5.4%) in the first nine months of 2016, giving GfK as a whole a 1.7% organic decline in sales. Third quarter sales fell to EUR 355.3m while EBITDA dropped by around a quarter to EUR 43.3m. More
In Australia, former Mindshare Head of Research & Insights Liz Harley has joined Ipsos Connect, the global group's media and audience division, as Managing Director. The firm has also promoted Head of Business Development Brian Hogan to Executive Director of its emma unit, reporting to Harley. More
In the US, marketing software giant Adobe has acquired online video ad targeting specialist TubeMogul for approximately $540m. The transaction is expected to close during the first quarter of Adobe's 2017 fiscal year. More
Research software firm Confirmit has partnered with video-based insight specialist LivingLens, to offer video capture and analysis within its Horizons platform, for use in market research studies, voice of the customer (VoC) and voice of the employee (VoE) programmes. More
US-based full service researcher Lieberman Inc. has acquired New York-based custom CPG specialist FRC Research, for an undisclosed sum. More
London-based BI, events and academic publishing group Informa has issued a trading update for the nine months ending 30th September, including the news that its Business Intelligence division has put an end to its 'long trend of revenue declines'. More
comScore has been awarded MRC accreditation for its Sophisticated Invalid Traffic (SIVT) detection and filtration methodology, for both desktop and mobile traffic. More
Technology analyst Gartner has reported a 16% rise in third quarter Research division revenue to $461.5m - or a 17% increase excluding the impact of foreign exchange. More
WPP's Data Investment Management arm has reported a 12.1% increase in third quarter revenue to £655m, reflecting the lower value of the pound. On a like-for-like basis, DIM revenue fell 2%, while other divisions averaged more than 4% growth. More
Retail and healthcare data giant IRI and digital data collection specialist Research Now have expanded their relationship to create what the firms describe as the CPG industry's 'most robust and unique data set'. More
Video ad distribution and tracking platform Unruly and social media news agency Storyful have set up a 'Future Media Lab' in Sydney, which they say will help brands and agencies create better ads that people want to watch and engage with. More
Ipsos has reported a 0.9% increase in third quarter revenue to EUR 431.7m, with organic growth a 'satisfactory' 3.2% during the period. More
Technology specialist Forrester Research has reported a 4% rise in third quarter group revenue to $77.4m (compared with $74.8m in the prior year period). Within its Research division the increase was only 1%, to $52.7m. More
In Australia, the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) has set up a Viewability Taskforce, to deliver a consistent understanding of viewability, which it defines as the 'opportunity to see' rather than engagement or ad effectiveness. More
Google has acquired California-based eye-tracking technology firm Eyefluence. Terms have not been disclosed. More
Research data solutions and technology firm SSI has rolled out a real-time, dashboard-based project reporting and monitoring tool called SSI DataView. More
Nielsen has reported a 2.5% rise in third quarter revenue to $1.57bn (3.6% on a constant currency basis) compared to Q3 2015. The 'Watch' segment grew rapidly (up 6.7% at constant currency), while restructuring in 'Buy' held back its revenue and drove an 8.3% fall in Nielsen's overall net income to $132m. More
Australian consultancy Faster Horses has moved both its Perth and Sydney teams to larger premises, following triple digit growth in the last two financial years. More
Sydney, Australia-based data interrogation software firm Hyper Anna has received a $AUD 1.25m investment, to help develop its natural language-driven data analytics solution, and launch it in the USA in 2017. More
In the US, Nielsen Sports has appointed former Repucom execs Danny Townsend and Glenn Lovett as Co-Managing Directors, following its acquisition of the business earlier in the year. In addition, Repucom founder Paul Smith has announced he will leave the business at the end of the year. More
From today, DRNO will be adding a new section focusing on more news of actual surveys - from project wins to interesting fieldwork and results. See the link above for 'Survey Briefs'. We're also, for the first time, offering advertisers a chance to sit at the very top of the news email, for one day. More
Nashville, Tennessee-based MR technology and services firm 20|20 Research is acquiring MR tech developer iModerate, for an undisclosed sum. More
US-based survey technology firm Qualtrics has appointed Microsoft veteran Zig Serafin as Chief Operating Officer, leading operations in the run up to a planned IPO. More
In Australia, television industry research firm ThinkTV has partnered with media academic Professor Karen Nelson-Field, to set up a laboratory which will conduct research into the performance of TV advertising. More
In Australia, The Lab Insight & Strategy has opened an office in Sydney, where it has hired former GfK director Andrew Therkelsen as Managing Director. More
In Sydney, Gai Le Roy is re-joining the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) as Research Director on 1st November, to lead activities tracking media consumption changes and commercial measurement options, while championing the industry's adoption of cross media measurement. More
Kantar Health has launched a new big data platform to help clients spot oncology drug opportunities and understand the competitive landscape. Web-based CancerLandscape lets users review more than 2,000 cancer drugs covering more than 175 tumor types. More
Australian researcher Roy Morgan has launched a suite of new features for its digital audience measurement platform, including measurement of cross-device uniques and new segments. More
Research Now has struck a deal with digital tech services company GlobalLogic, which the MR firm says will increase the quality and speed of its service delivery. More
Australia-based former Y&R Chief Executive Jason Buckley has formed a new firm, ai.agency, combining creative expertise with artificial intelligence to devise 'engaging narratives' for clients without the need for traditional market research. More
Kantar Media has unveiled a new cross-platform ad intelligence offering, including significantly enhanced digital monitoring to help advertising buyers and sellers analyze opportunities across channels in a more 'integrated and holistic manner'. More
Kantar-owned agency Lightspeed has launched eight research products in Asia, combining its proprietary fieldwork and panel management expertise with emerging technology offers from partner companies. More
Insight and brand strategy consultancy Flamingo has launched a new division dedicated to healthcare and pharmaceutical clients, and appointed former Hall and Partners exec Lee Gazey to lead it. More
In Westlake Village, California, former Cint US MD Michael McCrary has launched PureSpectrum, a new global marketplace for buyers and sellers of online sample. The company is backed by strategic investments from Research Now and Critical Mix. More
Professional services and consulting giant KPMG has launched an online resource, designed to deliver insights addressing common issues concerning the public sector globally. More
In London, Harris Interactive has launched a 'rapid concept testing service' called Concept Express, with one option offering results within a day. More
US media conglomerate Viacom has promoted Christian Kurz to the new global role of SVP, Global Consumer Insights, overseeing corporate and consumer research, with a focus on exploring new technologies and consumer behavior. More
Newly announced Kantar Public is to open a Behaviour Change Academy in Sydney early next year, and in Amsterdam in the spring. The new venture will be led by long-time TNS exec Kathy O'Donoghue. More
Australian-owned data analysis and programmatic media company Pureprofile is to acquire digital marketing group Cohort Holdings Australia Pty Ltd, whose lead generation solutions are offered in Australia, the UK and the US. More
WPP's Kantar has unveiled a new global operating brand, pooling expertise to offer advice on the delivery of public policy, services and communications. More
WPP's healthcare panel and patient community solutions provider Lightspeed All Global has appointed industry veteran Jennifer Carrea as Chief Executive Officer. She also joins the Lightspeed Board of Directors. More
In Australia, Nielsen Book General Manager Shaun Symonds has left the company after seventeen years, to seek 'new opportunities', and Julie Winters has been appointed to head up the Australia and New Zealand business. More
Shopper insight specialist Kantar Retail has partnered with eye tracking firm SensoMotoric Instruments (SMI), to create a virtual shopping experience that provides shopper data via a controlled environment. More
Nielsen has partnered with research and technology firm Vision Critical, promising clients the ability to extract additional value from their insight communities and better understand their customers. More
Ipsos has launched its first syndicated Global Business Influencers (GBI) survey, looking at the media, business, financial, luxury and travel habits of senior executives across the US and fifteen countries in Europe and Asia. More
Toluna has added a concept testing tool, PowerConcept, to the Automated Insights suite within its QuickSurveys platform More
Google has acquired location-based analytics firm Urban Engines, which will be incorporated into its Maps product. More
Commodities and energy price information provider S&P Global Platts has completed its acquisition of New York-based PIRA Energy Group. More
A new body supported by major corporations and ad associations will seek to 'improve consumers' experience with online advertising', basing its strategy on consumer research and aiming to counter the rise of ad blocking. More
WPP-owned digital data collection specialist Lightspeed has rolled out ten new capabilities in the Australian market, combining emerging MR technologies such as facial coding and social media intelligence with its proprietary fieldwork and panel management expertise. More
WPP's data investment management division Kantar has re-branded its twelve operating businesses with a unifying prefix, for example 'Kantar TNS' and 'Kantar Millward Brown'. The exception is digital data collection specialist Lightspeed GMI, which now reverts to its original name Lightspeed. More
Bloomberg Media has hired former Dentsu Aegis Network exec Michelle Lynn as Global Head of Data Science and Insights, responsible for leading initiatives, and managing Data and Research teams globally from its office in New York. More
Ipsos division ProductQuest has launched a consumer-centric approach called Sense*Suite, to help guide clients' early stage product development initiatives. More
Audience measurement firm comScore says it will request a hearing to discuss a return to compliance with NASDAQ requirements, after a notification from the exchange's Listing Qualifications Department that its shares will otherwise be suspended in a week's time. More
In Sydney, Australia, former 3 mobile and Yahoo!7 Insights specialist Sharon Keating has launched a company dedicated to improving the wellbeing and performance of execs, particularly in the market research industry. More
Family-owned agricultural and industrial commodities giant Cargill has appointed CPG veteran Chuck Gitkin in the newly created role of CMO of its North America protein business - with a remit to help shift its focus to a customer-centric, insight-based strategy. More
In the US, pharma data giant IMS Health and healthcare consultancy Quintiles have confirmed details of the new senior management team to be established following their planned merger. More
Digital data collection specialist Research Now has opened a new office in India, based in the Cyber City business hub in Gurgaon, near New Delhi. More
GfK's majority owner GfK Verein has dismissed a report published in German weekly magazine WirtschaftsWoche, which claimed the company may be considering putting itself up for sale. More
GfK may be considering putting itself up for sale, alongside other options, according to reports in German weekly magazine, WirtschaftsWoche. More
Instant messaging service WhatsApp has announced it will share user information with its parent company Facebook, whose corporate advertising clients can use it to improve their ad targeting. More
WPP continues to buy comScore shares, with another 120,000 purchased this week at an average cost of $28.39 per share. More
The Supervisory Board of GfK has elected Ralf Klein-Bölting as its new Chairman - he succeeds Dr. Arno Mahlert on September 13th. More
WPP has reported Q2 revenue of £3.46bn, up 3.5% in like-for-like (LFL) terms. Net sales, the group's preferred measure, rose 4.3% on the same basis. As in previous quarters data investment management (DIM) lagged other divisions, with LFL revenue down -0.4% and net sales up 2.0%. More
Australia-based media monitoring and intelligence group Isentia has reported revenue up 22.6% to $AUD 155m, and EBITDA up 20% to $AUD 51m. Most of the revenue growth ($AUD 20.5m) came from its acquisition of King Content a year ago. More
US-based sampling automation provider Lucid has launched an independent, third-party-verified quality assurance and measurement program, which allows market researchers to test multiple characteristics of more than 40 major sample panels. More
Numbers International, the home of brands Q Research Software and DataCracker, has appointed eight new members of staff at its offices in the US, UK and Australia. The firm is also planning to release a new data science platform. More
Australian media group Nine has launched two new data products, Audience Sync and Audience Match, enabling clients to activate their own audience segments and match customer databases against more than fifteen million active unique user accounts. More
Marcomms giant WPP has resumed its buying of comScore stock, with the purchase of a further 120,000 at c.$26 apiece last week. The measurement firm's share price has dropped by a third since January this year. More
Marketing group Enero - the parent of insight agencies Jigsaw and The Leading Edge (TLE), has followed strong 2016 results with an announcement that it is back in the mood for acquisitions - following a seven-year period in which it battled for survival. More
Perth, Australia-based ad agency Marketforce has appointed Alice Manners, until recently CEO of the country's IAB (Interactive Advertising Bureau), as its new Chief Digital Officer. More
London-based video ad distribution and tracking platform Unruly has rolled out its Pulse engine in Australia, to analyse emotional responses to video ads and the resulting trends. More
Online consumer market ratings system TruRating has closed a $16.6m Series A round of funding, bringing the total raised to date to $26.4m. Part of the new investment will be used to expand in to the Canadian market. More
GfK has announced that its results for the first six months of the year are 'below prior year's financials for the same reporting period', and warns it is no longer likely that group sales growth will outperform the market. More
Online MR software company Confirmit and predictive dialing specialist Sytel have jointly developed a series of new CATI features (Computer Assisted Telephone Interviewing), promising improved productivity and flexibility. More
US-based IT industry analyst Gartner has reported a 17% constant currency increase in second quarter revenue for its Research division, to $449.2m. More
Australian news agency AAP has acquired Melbourne-based media intelligence specialist Mediaverse, which it will merge with its own media analysis arm MRG (Media Research Group). Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
In Australia, Ipsos has set up an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Advisory Group, to oversee all research and evaluation conducted by its recently formed Indigenous Research Unit. More
Hyatt Hotels Corporation has appointed former Kraft Foods insight exec Jen Acerra as Vice President, Global Brand Research and Insights, leading the group's global MR team. More
IT industry specialist Forrester Research has reported a 5% increase in second quarter Research division revenues to $55.0m from $52.6m in the prior year period, while revenue rose by 9% from $30.2m to $32.8m in its Advisory Services and Events arm. More
Nielsen has reported a 2.4% increase in second quarter revenues to $1.596bn, with both its Buy and Watch businesses providing a 'solid performance'. On a constant currency basis, revenues were up 4.5%. More
Ipsos has reported first half 2016 revenue of EUR 833.6m, equivalent to 3 percent organic growth once currency effects are excluded. The result is an improvement after a flat 2015. More
US telecoms giant Verizon Communications Inc. has agreed to purchase the core web assets of Yahoo!, for around $4.8bn. Stakes in two other businesses worth around $40bn between them are not included in the deal. More
Recently-acquired Repucom has rebranded as Nielsen Sports. Leaders and staff will remain in place, the firm says, working from the same location. More
comScore co-founder Magid Abraham has resigned as Executive Chairman of the Board, to focus on his new role as Executive Chairman of wearable technology developer APX Labs. He will remain on the comScore Board for the remainder of his term, which expires in 2018. More
Australian TV audience measurement (TAM) body OzTAM has extended Nielsen's contract to supply TAM services in the country's five mainland capital cities and nationally for subscription TV (STV); and is also increasing the number of homes in its TAM panels by 50 per cent. More
The Behavioural Insights Team (BIT), set up by the UK government and often known as the 'Nudge Unit' is expanding with the opening of new offices in Singapore and Manchester, and additions to its existing team in Sydney. More
German-based product, pricing and marketing consultancy Simon-Kucher & Partners has announced first half revenue of EUR 116 million, up nineteen percent versus the first half of 2015. More
WPP Chief Executive Sir Martin Sorrell, 71, and his wife Cristiana are expecting their first child together in November. More
US Democratic Senator Al Franken has written to the CEO of Niantic, the company behind smartphone game Pokémon Go, demanding information regarding the record-breaking app's privacy settings. More
UK-based data science firm Jaywing has acquired Australian search marketing agency Massive Group in a deal worth £9.25m (AUS $16m). More
Professional services and consulting giant KPMG is to open an Innovation Lab in Sydney, Australia, and two clients Insight Centres in Sydney and Melbourne, starting in September this year. More
Twitter has introduced a solution called Emoji Keyword Targeting for its Twitter Ads service, allowing advertisers to target people who have recently tweeted or engaged with Tweets featuring emojis. More
Microsoft is to buy LinkedIn Corp for $26.2bn in cash, a premium of just under 50 percent to its Friday closing share price. The firms say LinkedIn will retain its distinct brand, culture and independence. More
Australian digital health platform iPug has launched a Research Suite, which recruits and engages targeted participants for real-time research. More
Australian brand and communications research agency Luma has opened a new office in Sydney, where it has appointed ad and brand researcher Kate Platter as Client Service Director. The firm has also expanded its team in Melbourne. More
Asia Pacific media monitoring group Isentia has acquired South Korea-based media intelligence firm Social Net Creator for an undisclosed sum. The firm has also completed a 'bolt-on' acquisition in Thailand and is close to finalising company buys in Vietnam and Hong Kong. More
Global airline alliance SkyTeam has launched a customer feedback tool called the SkyPriority Audit App, through which passengers can rate their travel experience. More
Australia's Roy Morgan Research has introduced an integrated electorate database, which allows analysis of attitude and opinion profiles across the country's 150 federal electorates. More
ORC International has appointed Bhavya Sehgal as Senior Vice President, Asia, to lead and expand its strategy business across the region. More
WPP-owned digital ad targeting specialist plista has appointed long-time GroupM exec Serina Tsou as Head of its Asia Pacific region. More
In Singapore, WPP-owned digital data collection specialist Lightspeed GMI has promoted Neha Jindal to the role of Regional Operations Lead for the Asia Pacific region. More
Online specialist BrainJuicer has opened an office in Australia, led by company veteran Ed Harrison as Managing Director. More
In Sydney, WPP AUNZ has appointed former Kantar Australia/New Zealand CEO Ben Dixon for the newly created role of CEO Data Investment Management. The business has also moved former Ogilvy PR Australia CEO Kieran Moore to CEO Public Relations and Public Affairs. More
Mobile survey technology specialist Lumi has released a new version of its Meetoo real-time messaging and polling app, allowing anonymous feedback and a range of customisation features. More
Amsterdam-based passive metering technology firm Wakoopa - now a subsidiary of GfK - has launched a marketplace giving researchers access to behavioral data on a global scale. More
Research data solutions and technology firm SSI has appointed Ignite Research founder Mark Lloyd as Client and Business Development Manager for New Zealand. More
Australian industry body The Readership Works has added a media planning tool to its 'emma' cross-platform audience insights and readership survey, allowing planners to track the 'complete' readership of magazines over time. More
GfK has achieved 'moderate' organic growth of 0.9% during the first quarter of the year. Currency effects meant the reported sales figure declined 0.6% to EUR 360.5m versus Q1 2015. The firm's Consumer Choices sector grew strongly while 'Consumer Experiences' revenue fell. More
Research data solutions and technology firm SSI has launched a service called Smart Cell Sample, centred on a cell phone database of 480 million numbers, through which researchers can target US participants by geographic and demographic variables. More
GfK has unveiled a tool called Connected Consumer Index, to provide a single measure of how much, and on what devices, consumers in 78 countries and eight regions connect with each other and with digital content. More
Ipsos innovation and forecasting business InnoQuest has launched a concept development tool, InnoConstruct, which promises to optimize products, simulate and compare scenarios, and help differentiate new offerings. More
WPP-owned online specialist Lightspeed GMI has rolled out is tracker design review service 'Re-Track', and its QuickTurn Insights and Fast Track Service solutions in the Asia Pacific region. More
IMS Health and healthcare consultancy Quintiles are planning to merge in an all-stock transaction which will value the combined company - Quintiles IMS Holdings - at $17.6 billion. Combined 2015 revenue for the two firms was around $7.2 billion. More
Online marketplace provider Cint has launched a real-time insights tool, Cint Connect, which it says offers 'the world's first self-serve eco-system for audience and ad effectiveness measurement'. More
Online community and survey tech provider Toluna has reported a 20 percent increase in staff numbers, supporting 'mass customer adoption of its digital research platform'. More
There may be no timescale set, but WPP has confirmed that it is beginning to think about who may eventually replace CEO Sir Martin Sorrell, including internal and external candidates. More
Personalized entertainment and audience discovery specialist Rovi Corporation is spending around $1.1bn to buy 'next generation TV' and audience analytics firm TiVo. The TiVo name will be retained for the combined corporation. More
WPP has reported first quarter revenue of £3.076bn, up 5.1% in like-for-like terms. Net sales - its preferred measure - rose 3.2%. As in recent quarters however, insight division Kantar performed less well than other units, with like-for-like revenue and net sales figures flat (up 0.5% and down 0.1% respectively). More
Technology-focused Forrester Research has announced first quarter revenue of $77.4m, up 3 percent on Q1 2015. More
Expanding Australia agency Jigsaw has appointed former employee Eva Ladas-Meyer as Head of Quant Research and former Millward Brown exec Jo Goddard as Head of Qual. More
Ipsos has announced organic growth of 3.7 percent for the first quarter of 2016, with revenue rising to EUR 386.9m, its best result for some time. The rise 'concerns all regions', with revenue up 4.6% in emerging economies and up 3.3% in developed markets. More
Nielsen has launched a new service, the Total Channel Solution, promising its clients the ability to 'unify' all their data sets - proprietary and third party, across multiple platforms - and get 'a full picture view of all factors affecting their business '. More
In Australia, Ipsos has appointed Shaan Tainton as Head of its Business Consulting division, which it is relaunching in the country. More
Fast food leader McDonald's is in buoyant mood, pushing a growth agenda by 'applying forensic analytics across all aspects of the business', according to CEO Steve Easterbrook. More
Video ad tech company Tremor Video is expanding to New Zealand, with Vice President Josh Ismin relocating to lead the new office. More
Facebook has three new partners verifying metrics on viewings of its photo and video ads: comScore, Nielsen and Integral Ad Science. The firms will start verifying ad viewability and attention metrics 'in the next few months'. More
In Australia, influencer marketing firm TRIBE is looking to raise $5m at a pre-money valuation of $15m, and is currently in discussions with a number of investors. It will use the funds to expand to new regions. More
In Australia, research consultancy AMR has hired Dorothy Dudley as Qualitative Director and Nick Deverson as Group Account Director. More
Nielsen has reported a 2.0% rise in first quarter revenue to $1,487m, equivalent to growth of 5.2% on a constant currency basis. Growth reflects what it describes as 'solid performance' in both its Buy and Watch businesses. More
The Media Rating Council (MRC) has accredited the Audience module in comScore's vCE 2.0 tool. Now, with both its Audience and its Validation modules accredited, the firm claims to be the first to offer an MRC-accredited viewable GRP for desktop display and video campaigns. More
Automotive research pioneer J.D. Power & Associates is moving on from McGraw Hill Financial after eleven years with the group. The new owners are London-based XIO Group, and the price is $1.1bn in cash. More
Kantar Media has today announced a partnership with local audience data provider Eyeota. Beginning in the UK, the deal will give advertisers and media buyers access to pre-defined segments built from the research firm's TGI consumer and media study, for use in online ad targeting. More
Behavioural ad targeting and technology specialist Phorm is to cease trading, having been unable to secure the additional equity and/or debt funding it needed to continue operating. In almost a decade, the company has run up debts of more than $300m. More
Nielsen has launched its own 'Marketing Cloud', allowing clients to deliver targeted promotional and engagement initiatives to their customers across multiple platforms. More
Media services division Omnicom Media Group (OMG) has unveiled a new data-driven marketing agency network, Hearts & Science; and appointed Scott Hagedorn - formerly Chief Executive of its analytics division Annalect - as its CEO. More
WPP division MEC has launched a specialist content division, MEC Wavemaker, pulling together its diverse existing services in the area into one unit. The insight- and data-driven unit will operate initially in ten markets across Europe, Asia and the Americas, and will be led by MEC's global COO Alastair Aird. More
Media and comms research specialist Millward Brown has launched a new version of its Link ad copy-testing solution, allowing B2B marketers to assess the performance of their ads against brand and sales objectives. More
US-based DIY research company SurveyMonkey has launched a mobile app insights platform, providing app publishers with data on more than a thousand mobile apps ad well as the overall app economy. The launch follows the acquisition of app data start-up firm Renzu. More
Chinese investment and research firm XIO Group is considering a bid to acquire US-based auto research specialist JD Power and Associates, according to a report published by Reuters. More
Global panel marketplace provider Cint has promoted Richard Thornton to the position of Deputy Chief Executive Officer. His remit includes driving corporate business development in future markets. More
IAB Australia and Nielsen have launched 'Digital Ratings (Monthly)', a new service promising to measure the country's total digital audience unduplicated across PC, smartphone and tablet, for both web browsers and apps. More
In Australia, marcoms giant Dentsu Aegis Network (DAN) has promoted Matthew Crook to the role of Chief Strategy Officer and Chief Executive Officer Performance and Data, ANZ. More
Digital data collection specialist Research Now has launched a suite of study templates for common research topics, offering a rapid and lower-cost solution for business decision-makers, but still with input from a researcher. More
Toluna has combined its QuickSurveys DIY survey and analytics platform with its Toluna.com online panel community, to create a service which guarantees more than 1,000 nationally representative survey responses in 21 countries within hours. More
Australian television audience measurement body OzTAM is to include 8 to 28-day time shift viewing in its television ratings database from next Sunday. More
Online video analytics specialist Innovid has appointed former Sizmek exec Carolyn Bollaci as Managing Director of APAC, supporting the company's growth in Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Japan, Korea, Southeast Asia, India and China. More
Palo Alto, CA-based intelligent machine learning startup Adatos has opened an office in Australia, led by former AMAA Chief Executive Paul Dovas as Manager, and David Perez as Director for Australia and New Zealand. More
Nielsen is planning to expand Digital Ad Ratings to eight new markets globally by the end of 2016, adding to seventeen countries where it is already available. More
US-based energy and environment information giant IHS has announced it will merge with financial data company Markit. The all-share transaction is a mega-merger for the sector with an estimated equity value of more than $13 billion. More
UK-based online research agency YouGov plc has announced interim results for the six months ended 31st January 2016, showing revenue of £41.5m, up 13% at constant currencies, and adjusted profit before tax up by 42% to £5.0m. More
WPP is linking the panels and other data sources of its Kantar / DIM division with the expertise and planning tools of its GroupM media investment management division, to launch LIVE Panel. The new consumer and media insight solution will help advertisers develop and measure 'precise and targeted' media plans. More
DIY online survey platform SurveyMonkey has opened an APAC office in Sydney, Australia, with an initial staff of fifteen. More
Google has unveiled a new suite of analytics solutions, including four new and two rebranded tools, intended as an 'enterprise-class' platform to help developers and marketers with the challenges posed by a multi-screen world. More
Full service agency Morpace has promoted Bryan Krulikowski, VP of Automotive Diversified and Morpace Asia Pacific, to the role of Senior Vice President. More
In Australia, digital media authority Karen Nelson-Field and artificial intelligence (AI) firm Jemsoft have formed a joint venture called Media Intelligence Co, to develop media measurement and targeting technologies and real-time media research solutions. More
Digital data collection specialist Research Now has appointed former WPP exec Gary Laben as Chief Executive Officer, replacing Kurt Knapton who resigned last October. Meanwhile John Rothwell has added the title of President to his existing role as Chief Operating Officer. More
Millward Brown has launched a real-time communications measurement tool called AdNow, to help marketers evaluate campaign performance for multiple pieces of advertising across digital media channels. More
WPP Chief Executive Sir Martin Sorrell has received shares worth £60m, according to reports. With salary and annual bonuses the figure is 'likely to approach £70m'. The share award is triggered by the group's success in outperforming both its peers and the FTSE 100 over five years. More
Melbourne, Australia-based mobile researcher MDI has launched an interactive chat based platform, combining qual and quant data. More
Digital data collection specialist Research Now has launched a new panel management platform, while expanding its capacity across North America, EMEA and Asia Pacific through the addition of nineteen new panel partners. More
Shares in audience measurement specialist comScore plunged 35% to $26.52 yesterday, after the firm disclosed that its Audit Committee has not finalized an ongoing review of 'certain potential accounting matters'. More
WPP has reported total 2015 revenue up 5.3% on a like-for-like basis, with headline EBITDA of £2.002bn, up 7.7% at constant currency. Revenue in pounds was up 6.1% to £12.235 bn. The insight-focused 'data investment management' division (DIM) remained flat for the year, although slightly improved in Q4. More
Digital audience, brand and ad effectiveness analyst Effective Measure has been acquired by emerging markets specialist Insiight, which is led by the former's co-founder Scott Julian. As part of the deal, Effective Measure has sold its Oceania assets to online survey tech firm Pureprofile. More
Millward Brown has partnered with on-demand online community specialist GutCheck to launch a qualitative tool called Pre-LinkNow, which offers a copy-testing framework to help marketers better understand ad performance. More
Nielsen has promoted Megan Clarken to the newly created role of President of Product Leadership, leading its Marketing Effectiveness practice and Watch media research products. More
Berlin-based mobile app attribution and analytics company adjust has expanded in Europe with the opening of an office in Paris, France, where it has hired Aline Reiniche as Country Manager. More
Australian media research and data specialist Roy Morgan Research has launched a tool called 'Audience Search', through which media agencies and buyers can pinpoint the exact data segment they are looking for. More
Nielsen has reported constant currency revenue rises of 5.6% for the fourth quarter of 2015 and 5.0% for the year as a whole. Reported revenue dipped 0.6% in Q4 to $1.624bn, and 1.8% for the full year to $6.172bn. More
Technology specialist Forrester has reported revenue of $313.7m for the full year 2015, $81m of it in the fourth quarter. In constant currency terms Research revenues rose 5 percent while advisory services and events were up 2 percent. More
Brand insight agency BrandHook has open an office in Sydney and appointed Leading Edge co-founder Tim Biddlecombe as Head of Strategy. More
Kantar has moved Adrian Gonzalez into a broader group role in charge of its Consumer Insights businesses - he was previously CEO of Millward Brown's Africa, Middle East and Asia Pacific (AMAP) region. TNS APAC CEO Chris Riquier is among those leaving the business in the restructure. More
IT industry research and analysis specialist Gartner has reported a 10% rise in fourth quarter revenue to $643.8m, driven by a 13% revenue increase in its Research division to $420.5m. For the full year 2015, Research revenue was up 10% to $1.58bn. More
In Australia, Ipsos has appointed Sharon Barnes for the newly created role of Director, Public Affairs in its Indigenous Research Unit, focusing on research into Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. More
IBM has launched a cloud data portfolio with more than 25 services for app developers and data scientists. More
In Australia, insights consultancy fiftyfive5 has expanded into retail strategy, category management and shopper insights, appointing Sue Temple as Director Shopper and Category, and Peter Firth as a Consultant. More
GfK returned to organic growth (up 1.1%) during the 2015 financial year, after a decline of 2.0% the previous year. Reported sales increased by 6.3% to EUR 1.54bn (from EUR 1.45bn). More
Shareholders have approved comScore's bid to buy film and TV measurement firm Rentrak, and the acquisition is expected to close by end of business today. More
Research industry body ESOMAR has teamed up with Kantar, comScore, GfK and Nielsen to launch an initiative called 'Research Choices', which aims to help the general public understand how their data is used for audience measurement research. More
Digital data collection specialist Research Now is preparing to roll out an automated, template-based suite of survey solutions for those with limited budgets. More
Australian TV audience measurement body OzTAM has announced it will launch the initial phase of its Video Player Measurement (VPM) Report in February. More
Research data solutions and technology firm SSI has acquired LA-based Instantly - whose services include panels and product concept testing - for an undisclosed sum. More
In New Zealand, the Radio Broadcasters Association (RBA) has commissioned GfK to provide official radio research services for the country. The contract sees New Zealand's commercial networks, public broadcaster and independent stations join the same radio ratings system for the first time. More
In the UK, Guardian News & Media (GNM) has outlined a three-year business plan, which includes the creation of a new Data and Insight team to support editorial and commercial innovation; and the implementation of an ad model that tracks evolving market trends. More
In Australia, comms group Bastion Collective has acquired Melbourne and Sydney-based research agency Latitude Insights, which will be re-named Bastion Latitude on 1st February. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
US research technology and services group FocusVision has acquired software firm Kinesis Survey Technologies, and renamed it KinesisPanel. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
Former IAB exec Gai Le Roy has joined eye tracking and biometric MR specialist Gateway Research, as Partner and Chief Operating Officer. More
UK-based mobile video market research specialist Voxpopme is rolling out its on-demand mobile app in Australia. More
IBM has acquired Koblenz, Germany-based anti-fraud software firm IRIS Analytics, for an undisclosed sum; and simultaneously announced the launch of a cloud-based service for retailers, IBM Dynamic Pricing. More
US-based energy and environment intelligence specialist IHS has agreed to acquire Oil Price Information Service (OPIS), which reports prices for the oil, natural gas and biofuels industries, for $650m. More
Ipsos has rolled out its suite of location-based tools, powered by Google Consumer Surveys, in the Asia Pacific region. The initial launch covers Japan and Australia. More
Palo Alto, CA-based DIY online survey platform SurveyMonkey has appointed Zander Lurie as its new Chief Executive Officer, less than six months after hiring former HP exec Bill Veghte to replace CEO Dave Goldberg, who died suddenly last May. More
WPP brand, media and comms researcher Millward Brown has introduced a solution called Digital Behavior Analytics (DBA), which uses data drawn from search patterns and social media conversations to provide insights on brand health and marketing campaign performance. More
Nielsen has appointed James A. Attwood, Jr. as non-executive Chairman of its Board of Directors, effective January 1st and succeeding David L. Calhoun. More
Cinema management, film distribution and customer analytics software firm Vista Group International has acquired a 50 percent stake in cinema intelligence specialist Share Dimension. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
Commercial Radio Australia (CRA) has appointed Xtra Research as the official provider of regional radio surveys across the country. The contract commences next month. More
Australian market and opinion specialist Roy Morgan Research was locked out of its offices in Collins Street, Melbourne yesterday, following a dispute with its landlord over a lift. However, at an emergency hearing this morning, the court granted the firm the right to re-enter the building. More
GfK has announced that based on its financial performance for the first eleven months of this year, it is no longer likely to achieve its predicted annual guidance for AOI margin (adjusted operating income based on sales). More
Women's non-profit MR networking group WIRe has launched an initiative which aims to increase the number of female speakers at industry conferences and events. More
Tapestry Research has hired former Microsoft Thought Leadership exec Ivy Esquero, to lead its Consumer Journey practice. She will be based in SIngapore. More
WPP-owned online panel provider Lightspeed has announced the promotion of Martin Filz to Chief Executive Officer, Asia Pacific, effective January 1st, 2016. President and Global CEO David Day will temporarily take over Filz's former role as CEO for EMEA. More
Following months of rumours, WPP has agreed to merge its Australian and New Zealand businesses with struggling Australia-based STW Communications Group Ltd, increasing its shareholding from 23.6% to 61.5%. STW's name will be changed 'to align it with WPP'. More
In Australia, Ipsos has announced a partnership with indigenous communications and research company Winangali, aimed at increasing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander economic participation and providing employment opportunities and business partnerships. More
Ipsos has named Simon Wake Managing Director for Australia and New Zealand, replacing Hamish Munro, who has been promoted to the position of CEO of Ipsos South East Asia. They will take up their new roles in January. More
More than one-third of insights providers agree with the statement that '50% of full-service market research suppliers will be out of business within five years', according to findings from the latest GreenBook Research Industry Trends Report (GRIT) *. More
Online community and survey tech provider Toluna has added several new features to its DIY sampling platform SampleXpress, including the ability to schedule project field, or select 'rush' to expedite project completion. More
London-based video ad distribution and tracking platform Unruly has rolled out a new capability called 'Unruly Custom Audiences', in Australia. The tool helps advertisers connect with those consumers most likely to experience a strong emotional connection to a specific video. More
Global marketing activity continued to grow in November, with European execs the most optimistic and those in the Americas least so, according to the Global Marketing Index (GMI) compiled by World Economics. More
In Australia, full service media agency Slingshot Media Ventures has hired former Carat digital expert Chris Johnston for its newly created role of Head of Digital and Data. More
In Australia, the government has set up a unit, which will focus on making subtle changes to government policies and communications in order to 'nudge' citizens into making better decisions and choices for themselves and others. More
WPP's audience profiling and targeting division Xaxis has expanded to New Zealand, where the new market will be overseen by Australia Managing Director, Esther Carlsen. More
US-based sampling automation provider Lucid has launched a digital marketing tool called Proof, which promises to combine measurement of audience exposure with reaction across mobile and non-mobile platforms. More
Consumer tracking firm The NPD Group has launched a new analytic service integrating clients' own segmentation schemes with sales and market share 'data of record' for every industry and country covered by its survey-based trackers. More
US-based company Information Services Group has announced constant currency revenue growth of 4% for the third quarter of 2015, led by strong performances in Asia Pacific and parts of Europe including the UK and the Nordic countries. Reported revenue was $51.4m. More
GfK has agreed to sell its global Animal and Crop Health division to a consortium comprising private equity investor Inflexion and the current management team led by Stephen Hearn. Terms of the deal have not been disclosed. More
GfK has reported 0.7% organic growth for the third quarter, with sales in Euros up 4% to EUR 371.4m. For the first nine months of the year, the group saw sales rise 6.0% to EUR 1.118bn - up just 0.4% in organic terms. More
GfK has introduced a new brand and communications tracking platform, providing real-time access to data, dynamic 'hot alerts' based on a variety of KPIs, and data visualization tools. More
Focusing in on its role as an all-round audience measurement firm, comScore is selling its BI service Digital Analytix to Adobe; entering a strategic partnership with streaming service Spotify; and launching a household media measure called the 'Total Home Panel'. More
Real-time information services provider Neustar, Inc. has agreed to acquire analytics technology provider MarketShare Partners, LLC for $450m - although the resulting tax benefits mean it will effectively pay $390m. More
WPP division Mindshare is rolling out its Shop+ real-time retail data unit globally. The unit works with a range of methods from beacons in physical stores to real-time response technologies used by online retailers. More
comScore has reported third quarter results for 2015, with revenue up 13% to $92.4m vs Q3 2014, and a slightly larger rise in the profit measure adjusted EBITDA, which rose 16% to $23.4m. More
Multi-screen audience measurement specialist Rentrak has reported a 30% rise in second quarter revenue to $32.8m. The result was driven by a 53% increase for the TV Everywhere product line, up from $13.3m to $20.4m in the prior year period. More
In Australia, digital publishing industry body the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) has confirmed that its Director of Research Lisa Walsh will leave the organisation before the end of this year. More
US-based IT industry researcher Gartner has reported an 8% increase in revenue for its Research division - to $396.2m from $365.3m in Q3 2014. More
STW Group-owned brand development and insight consultancy Added Value has promoted Dennis Wong to the position of Managing Director, Australia, replacing James Pike who has moved to sister agency Bohemia. More
In New York, tech media and services company IDG Communications has partnered with Google to introduce a new program which the firms claim will provide 100% viewable ads. More
Taiwan-based cross-screen advertising technology firm Appier has raised $23m in a Series B round of funding, which it will use to further expand in Asia, and to strengthen its R&D team. More
Chief Operating Officer Brian J. West has resigned from Nielsen, effective at the end of the year when his responsibilities 'will be divided among existing company executives'. More
IBM is not just partnering with The Weather Company, but buying most of its assets. Data from its B2B, mobile and cloud-based web properties will be integrated into IBM Watson's new IoT Unit and IoT Cloud platform. More
McGraw Hill Financial is considering selling its US-based auto research specialist JD Power and Associates for up to $1 billion, according to an exclusive report published by Reuters. More
Australian firm Local Measure, which provides customer intelligence for the tourism sector, has expanded to the US with an office in Miami. The new office will help local hotels, malls, airlines and attractions extract customer insights from publicly shared social media posts. More
Technology consulting specialist Forrester Research has reported a 3% increase in Research revenue to $52.2m for the third quarter, compared with $50.6m in Q3 2014. However, on a constant currency basis, Research revenue rose 7%. More
Ad agency Commonwealth//McCann has moved Ash Farr to the US-based role of Executive Vice President, Global Director of Strategy and Research. He previously served as National CEO of McCann Australia. More
WPP has reported like-for-like revenue up 4.6% for Q3 2015. The insight division, known as 'Data Investment Management', was among those 'improving versus the second quarter' but once again was the only one to report a slight decline in revenue. More
Nielsen and GfK have announced a partnership for future co-operation within the book sector, with the aim of helping clients identify multinational trends and giving them more detail on market developments. More
Marketing services giant Dentsu Aegis Network is expanding its digital performance agency Columbus, currently focused on Australia, into Asia, where it will operate in parallel with sister agency iProspect. More
Seattle, US-based mobile ad analytics company Marchez has opened an office in Sydney, where it has appointed digital marketing veteran Daniel Benton as Country Manager, Australia & New Zealand. More
Digital TV and DVR pioneer TiVo has announced that its TiVo Research audience measurement division will provide free TV ratings from the first quarter of 2016, in order to 'celebrate' comScore's forthcoming acquisition of Rentrak. More
Nielsen has reported a 5.0% constant currency increase in third quarter revenue to $1.53bn on a basis, and adjusted EBITDA up 6.9% to $479m on the same basis. More
Ipsos has reported a 3.7% increase in revenue to EUR 428m for the period from July to September, but at constant scope and exchange rates this equates to a fall of 2.2%. The decline cancels out a small real-terms rise in the first half of the year. More
Digital data collection specialist Research Now is looking for a new President and CEO, following Kurt Knapton's decision to resign for personal reasons. He will remain on the Board of Directors once his successor has been identified. More
WPP has increased its holding in struggling Australian group STW Communications, owner of a number of data and MR agencies. More
Nielsen has added mobile campaign measurement to its Digital Ad Ratings service in five more countries - Australia, France, Germany, Italy and the UK - and will add Brazil by the end of the year. More
US-based customer service platform Zendesk has introduced a machine learning and predictive analytics feature called Satisfaction Prediction, which uses historical customer survey results to predict which individuals are likely to provide negative feedback. More
Global panel marketplace provider Cint has opened an office in Hong Kong, moved to larger premises in Tokyo, and appointed former Toluna MD James Rogers to lead its continued expansion in Asia as Regional Head of Supply Acquisition & APAC MD. More
Asia / Pacific Managing Director Greg Wayman is to leave ORC International at the end of the year, and will be replaced by former Nielsen exec Oliver Rust, who joins on November 10th. More
WPP's Government & Public Sector practice has launched a 'hub' in Sydney, Australia, offering communications and research services for public sector clients in the ANZ region. More
Digital analytics specialist comScore is to buy film and TV measurement firm Rentrak in an all stock deal valued at around $732m. This acquisition, which will create a new giant in cross-platform measurement, is expected to close in early 2016. More
GfK has announced it now has all the assets needed to fully evaluate ads across media - including at a brand impact level. This involves the actual measurement of individual exposure to ads, as well as attribution of those exposures across multiple devices and different ecosystems. More
In Sydney, TNS has promoted Anne Rayner to the newly created role of Global Head of Communications Research. More
Tokyo-based panels and technology company Research Panel Asia (RPA) is changing its name to dataSpring, following its acquisition by Marketing Applications Inc. (MApps). MApps will retain its name in Japan while merging its overseas assets into dataSpring. More
GfK has announced that Debbie Pruent will retire at the end of December, and will be replaced by David Krajicek as Chief Commercial Officer for the Consumer Experiences sector. In addition, Alessandra Cama will take up the new role of Chief Operations Officer. More
Research software firm Confirmit has added a range of enhancements to its Horizons solution, supporting large-scale programs for omni-channel feedback capture, and personalized, role-based analysis. More
Australian company Inlink, a digital out-of-home (OoH) advertising specialist, has launched a real-time audience measurement and analytics platform using Wi-Fi to count footfall volumes, dwell time and the proximity of people to specific locations. More
Rupert Murdoch's media group News Corp has agreed to acquire London-based video ad distribution and tracking platform Unruly, for an initial £56m and with potential for £56m more in future performance-related payments. More
Online community and survey tech provider Toluna has received a $10m investment from its holding company ITWP Acquisitions, for use in promoting its QuickSurveys DIY online consumer insights platform. More
European auto industry information provider Deutsche Automobil Treuhand (DAT) has partnered with GfK to create a range of new products for car dealerships, manufacturers, importers and end consumers. The pair will also develop joint services covering the entire life cycle of a vehicle. More
Data and marketing services firm Acxiom has announced a partnership with independent Australian research company Roy Morgan, helping marketers to find and target their most valuable audiences on Facebook. More
WPP has extended its strategic partnership with marketing software giant Adobe, to provide solutions to clients through six specialist WPP agencies called 'the WPP-Adobe Alliance'. Separately, WPP boss Sir Martin Sorrell has spoken about the 'very low standards' of some online audience measures, including Facebook's. More
Research software firm Confirmit has developed a location and beacon triggering solution, to help clients understand 'in-the-moment' customer behaviour. The company has also ammounced its official launch in Australia. More
Online research company Lightspeed GMI has announced a global roll-out for its survey programming platform, QuestionArts, backed by a newly strengthened leadership team. More
Veteran online company AOL has acquired end-to-end mobile platform Millennial Media, Inc., whose services include ad targeting and analytics. The deal, $1.75 per share of the acquired firm's common stock, values it at around $US 238m (£156m). More
Full-service agency Stable Research has bought a stake in mobile-based consumer MR firm Mobile Digital Indaba (MDI), partnering to create what the firms say will be Australia's largest dedicated mobile research community / panel. More
Berlin-based social media analytics specialist Searchmetrics has appointed Volker Smid as Chief Executive Officer, replacing Tom Schuster who has left the company. More
Czech Republic-based social media monitoring company Sociabakers has appointed Robert Lang as its new Chief Executive Officer, replacing co-founder Jan Rezab who takes on the role of Executive Chairman. More
Online community and survey technology provider Toluna has introduced the 'Mobile Member App', allowing users to participate in surveys while on the move, and post their own questions to the firm's community of nearly nine million members. More
Tesco customer data business dunnhumby has set up a joint venture with Chinese supermarket chain China Resources Vanguard (CRV), through which the latter will provide the former with data from its shoppers and twenty million loyalty card users. More
Publicis-owned full-service digital agency Razorfish Global has acquired Sydney-based firm 2DataFish, a consultancy focused on Adobe data analytics and marketing optimisation. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
Chicago-based advertising and pricing intelligence specialist Market Track has acquired Australia and New Zealand retail advertising tracker Commercially Retail. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
In Australia, WPP firm MediaCom has acquired a minority stake in full-service media communications agency Rapid Media Services, whose offer includes media strategy development, media buying, PR and market research. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
Interpublic division IPG Mediabrands has hired media auditor Charles Godbold for the newly created role of Global Director of Media Intelligence Systems. He will take up the post in October, after relocating from Sydney, Australia to London. More
WPP CEO Sir Martin Sorrell is urging Rentrak and comScore to join forces and find a solution to what he describes as 'faulty measurement' of digital ad views and viewability. More
WPP has reported that revenue in its Data Investment Management (DIM) arm fell slightly (0.3%) to £1.173bn during the first half of the year, from £1.176bn in last year's first six months; while DIM headline profit before tax rose 11.7% to £100.6m from £88.1m a year earlier. More
WPP's audience profiling and targeting division Xaxis has rolled out a solution called Viewpoint, in Asia Pacific, and says it is the first fully programmatic product to guarantee 100% viewability in the region. More
Technology industry B2B data and insights provider Aberdeen Group has announced major enhancements to its CI Technology Data Set, following the company's change of ownership in April. More
In Australia, media monitoring and intelligence group Isentia has acquired content marketing agency King Content. While terms of the deal were not disclosed, reports suggest that if King Content hits its targets over the next five years, it will be worth $48m to its owners. More
Media and marketing insights firm Ebiquity has appointed former Nielsen MD Peter Cornelius as Director of Client Service - Media for Australia and New Zealand. More
GfK has reported organic growth of just 0.3% in the first half of 2015. Reported sales climbed 7.1% to EUR 747.2m, but almost all this increase resulted from the weak Euro. Adjusted operating income rose 3.7% to EUR 71.2m, and CEO Matthias Hartmann sales should pick up in the second half. More
Three months on from announcing that it would embark on a 'bruising' restructure, Australia-based STW Communications Group has reported 'disappointing' results, with organic revenue down 4.2% and underlying net profit after tax sliding 22.5% to $15.1m. More
GfK has acquired a Swedish software company, NORM Research & Consulting AB, whose core product simulates environments for virtual shopper research. More
A busy two weeks for Google: alongside the high profile announcement of a new CEO and the creation of a parent company, Alphabet, the search and advertising giant has signed new metrics deals with comScore and Nielsen, and registered a new ad viewability patent. More
Multi-screen measurement specialist Rentrak has reported a 23% rise in fiscal 2016 first quarter revenue to $27.5m ($22.3m in the prior year period), driven by a 49% revenue increase in its TV Everywhere division. More
Finnish information technology giant Nokia has sold its HERE digital mapping and location analytics business to a consortium of automotive companies, with a price tag of around EUR 2.8 billion. More
Digital measurement specialist comScore has reported a 16% pro forma increase in second quarter revenue to $91.3m, and first half revenues up 15% to $178.3m. More
Pharma research giant IMS Health has reported second quarter revenue up 5.2% on a like-for-like basis, allowing for currency changes and the acquisition of assets of Cegedim. Reported revenue was up 12.0% to $742m, equivalent to a 24.6% rise at constant currency. More
Industry bodies the Institute of Analytics Professionals of Australia (IAPA) has merged with the Association for Data-driven Marketing and Advertising (ADMA). More
In the US, IT industry analyst Gartner has reported a 5% increase in second quarter revenue to $547.9m, amounting to a 12% increase at constant currency. More
Nielsen has reported second quarter revenues of $1,559m, down 2.2% in dollars but up 4.8% on a constant currency basis, compared with the second quarter of 2014. More
In Sydney, Havas Media Group has appointed Rogan Gilhespie as Head of Data (APAC), responsible for leading and developing its data offering in Australia and across APAC. Mark Campbell has also joined in the newly created role of Head of Content. More
German communications scientist and former WAPOR President Professor Wolfgang 'Wolf' Donsbach died on Tuesday following a heart attack. He was 65 years old. More
Asian panel platform GMO Research and global panel marketplace Cint have announced an agreement adding more than three million of the former's Asia Cloud Panel respondents to the current fifteen million active panellists in the latter's OpinionHUB exchange. More
Ipsos has reported half-year revenues up 10.2% in Euros to EUR 832.9m. Given that the Euro has lost around 20% of its value against the dollar and 10% against the pound in the last 12 months, this equates to a real-terms decline of -0.4%. Profit measures showed a slight improvement. More
In Australia, TNS has expanded Robyn Rutley's role to include oversight of its Social and Government teams in Sydney and Brisbane. More
Information solutions giant Experian has sold its retail intelligence business FootFall for £38.5m ($60m) to Tyco, a provider of retail performance and security solutions. More
Microsoft has launched Pulse for Market Research, part of its Bing Pulse audience engagement division and billed as 'a [free] self-service solution for surveys, live content rating, and moderated response groups of any size'. More
Australia-based online survey tech company PureProfile has raised $AUD 12.1m in a funding round ahead of its IPO next week; has acquired media trading group Sparc Media; and is opening an office in New Zealand. More
Sports marketing firm Repucom has appointed Shane Mattiske as Joint Managing Director, with a remit to drive the consulting and strategy side of the business. More
ISP-level ad targeting company Phorm has announced change at the top as it enters a new phase in its development. Out goes company founder and long-time CEO Kent Ertugrul, along with CFO Andy Croxson, and in comes former Arbitron exec Timothy Todd Smith as the new Chief Exec. More
The founder of Australian media benchmarking company Faulkners Media Monitoring (FMM) has left Ebiquity, four years after selling his firm to the London-based information giant. Eric Faulkner says he has no immediate career plans other than possibly 'putting his feet up for a while'. More
Marcoms group Chime's Insight & Engagement (CIE) division has appointed Floyd McMillan as Managing Director of Australia, based in Sydney. More
Research software firm Confirmit has acquired Information Research Management (IRM), its exclusive reseller in Sydney, Australia. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
Ad targeting firm Phorm in its accounts for 2014 has once again reported a colossal operating loss - this time $37.9m (2013: $35.1m) - and tiny revenues of $351k (2013: $280k). The company has closed its operation in Turkey to focus on China, the US - and Russia where some revenue is now arriving. More
Travel industry technology firm Amadeus has launched a suite of intelligence tools giving travel agents worldwide access to data and insights for business growth and strategic decision-making. More
Research data solutions and technology provider SSI has completed the acquisition of the assets of Australian panel MyOpinions and New Zealand's SmileCity, from their parent company PermissionCorp. More
Airline company Virgin Australia has acquired predictive analytics firm Torque Data, which it plans to integrate into its customer loyalty business, the Velocity Frequent Flyer programme. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
Ipsos has brought together several of its retail measurement services to form a new Market Measurement business unit, which will be managed globally. More
In Australia, Director of Analytics Tristan Masters is leaving real-time ad spend data specialist Standard Media Index (SMI) to join Red Planet, the data division set up by national carrier Qantas last year. More
Nielsen is to launch two new analytical services within its Buy consumer purchase data unit: Marketing ROI Snapshot and Revenue Management & Optimization (RMO). The company says the tools will help mid-sized businesses with marketing and sales effectiveness. More
Phoenix, AZ-based consumer research and analytics firm Blueocean Market Intelligence has announced a new version of its LiNK data integration software, with improved sharing and reporting, and allowing users to upload all data into a single repository. More
The University of South Australia (UniSA) is planning to open an industry-supported media science research centre, which will be tasked with exploring the world of online video content and converting ad tech data into insights for business. More
According to reports in the press, dunnhumby founders Edwina Dunn and Clive Humby are 'considering involvement' in a bid to buy back the company from Tesco. More
In Australia, the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) has appointed media research exec Lisa Walsh as Director of Research, replacing Gai Le Roy who stepped down in February. More
London-based research and planning agency ruby cha cha UK has been renamed kubi kalloo; and has moved into new offices in Shoreditch. More
Technology veteran James Powell is to join Nielsen as Global Chief Technology Officer, from July 6th, from Thomson Reuters where he is EVP and CTO. More
Mark Pejic, the CEO of Australia's second largest media agency MediaCom has left after four years leading the WPP firm, which was recently embroiled in a controversy over faked campaign reports for three major clients. The departure adds to a number of key roles already vacant at the company. More
Mobile data intelligence platform AdNear is expanding into Europe, appointing former TrustE Managing Director Ken Parnham as General Manager of Europe, based in its new London office. More
New York-based ad tech company AppNexus has agreed to acquire RealMedia Latin America (RMLA) - its fifth company buy in twelve months - giving it a strong foothold in the continent. Separately, AppNexus has joined comScore's 'Trust' initiative and launched a new tool. More
Business information giant Dun & Bradstreet is selling its entire Australia and New Zealand (ANZ) business to a private equity firm, for around $AUD 220m. More
UK-based mobile research technology firm RealityMine has appointed former TNS Director Jonathan Briggs as MD of Australia, based in its Sydney office. More
Australia-based STW Group, which owns a number of research and analytics agencies has announced a new management structure and plans to merge a number of its businesses, following a troubled 2014 and a slump in share price. More
WIN/Gallup International, the worldwide association of independent market research and polling firms, has announced the election of its new Board Members. More
Around 20% of WPP's investors refused to endorse CEO Sir Martin Sorrell's £43m pay package at this afternoon's Annual General Meeting - quite a lot, 'though quite a lot fewer than in some previous years. More
WPP's audience profiling and targeting division Xaxis has launched a new 'mobile-first' performance ad business called Light Reaction, which will combine Xaxis data with scientific insight into how audiences perceive, relate and react to ads. More
Media and information giant Thomson Reuters has expanded its MarketPsych analysis service, to provide investors with insight about the emotions and perceptions embedded in news, blogs and social media, and their impact on markets and trading strategies. More
Nielsen has appointed Craig Johnson to head up its Reach portfolio in Southeast Asia, North Asia and the Pacific, including television and radio audience measurement, and Consumer & Media View and advertising measurement. More
SSI has agreed to buy online panel MyOpinions in Australia, and its sister panel SmileCity in New Zealand, from their parent company PermissionCorp. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
Nielsen has acquired neuromarketing firm Innerscope Research, which it will merge with its brain specialist company NeuroFocus under the Nielsen Consumer Neuroscience brand name. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
FEPE, the worldwide association of outdoor advertising companies, has partnered with a consortium of firms to develop what it claims will be the first standardised industry approach to measuring digital out-of-home (OOH) audiences. More
KPMG Capital, the venture fund belonging to accounting and advisory giant KPMG, has invested in data mining and predictive modelling firm SDART, while also providing funding for KPMG proprietary solutions Astrus and Customer Compass. Terms of the deals were not disclosed. More
In Australia, real-time marketing tech firm Signal has announced a partnership with beacon technology provider iProximity, promising marketers the ability to connect customer journeys across channels, target promotions accordingly, and even alert sales staff to the arrival in-store of a hot prospect. More
SSI has launched a geo-location product, SSI Proximity Sample, which integrates with its mobile data collection app QuickThoughts and survey quality tool QuestTest to provide an end-to-end mobile survey solution. More
WPP has acquired a majority stake in London-based and data-driven sports marketing agency Two Circles Ltd, and will immediately incorporate it into ESP, a new global agency within GroupM serving rightsholders from the worlds of sports and entertainment. More
Digital agency group Razorfish Global has appointed former Gravity4 exec Samih Fadli as its first Chief Intelligence Officer, based in Seattle and leading its fast-growing Data Intelligence Practice. More
Roy Morgan has announced an exclusive partnership with location technology provider AdNear, allowing the research firm's Helix Personas segments to be targeted on over 11 million mobile devices across Australia and New Zealand. More
London-based MR recruitment agency Sparkle Recruitment has announced a partnership with veteran Australian market research recruiter Andy McLellan of AML Resources. More
A number of research organisations have come together to lead a new industry initiative called 'Insights 2020 - Driving Customer-Centric Growth', with the aim of studying the future of market research, insights and analytics strategy, structure and capability. More
GfK has reported first quarter sales of EUR 362.5m, an 8.2% rise of which 6.8% is the result of currency effects, and just 1.3% is organic growth. However, operating income and margins were up. More
Australian MR agency Colmar Brunton has hired Marian McCormick for a newly created role, Chief Strategy Officer. More
Technology specialist Gartner has reported a 5% increase in first quarter revenue to $471.2m, with the profit measure normalized EBITDA falling 5% to $80.7m. Separately, the Board has authorized $1.2bn for share repurchase. More
Edelman Berland, the research and analytics business within PR giant Edelman, has appointed Catriona Muspratt-Williams as Head of Singapore, and Andrew Chapman as Head of Australia. More
In the North of England, online panel firm ResearchBods has acquired Harrogate-based phone, panel, community and online qual specialist ClearStream Research. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
In the UK, Ipsos Healthcare has launched the 'EquityVision Normative Database', which contains seven years' worth of Rx pharma brand health and brand equity research. More
Sports data and content provider STATS has acquired Leeds-based athlete tracking and performance analytics specialist Prozone for an undisclosed amount. More
Digital audience measurement firm comScore has announced the acquisition of California-based digital ad analytics specialist Proximic; and has reported first quarter revenue up 14% to $87.3m, and the profit measure adjusted EBITDA 25% higher at $21.3m. More
TNS has announced a number of leadership changes in Asia, including the promotion of former CEO Greater China Chris Bonsi to the newly created role of Chief Client and Insights Officer for the APAC region. Grace Liu, MC Lai and Jon Foged also earn promotions while Narelle Burke joins as HR Director. More
SurveyMonkey CEO Dave Goldberg died on Friday whilst on holiday in Mexico with his family, apparently as a result of an accident in the gym. He was 47. More
Tech specialist Forrester Research has reported first quarter revenue up to $75.2m from $73.1m in Q1 2014. Revenues from the Research division were up 2% to $51.9m from $50.8m, while Advisory Services and Events revenues rose 5% to $23.3m from $22.2m a year earlier. More
Kantar Media has launched a solution to help clients promote media inventory, using insights from its TGI consumer study. More
A group of six independent research companies have set up an international association called The Digital Insight Network, focusing purely on digital methodologies. Members will share best practice and innovations, and assist each other with global research projects. More
comScore and Kantar Media are rolling out their first joint offering for cross-media audience measurement, to key clients. More
Specialist MR recruiter Felice Mockford has launched a new employment agency, Ignite Talent Asia, based in Singapore. More
Manchester, UK-based mobile research tech firm RealityMine is expanding its syndicated TouchPoints and passive measurement business to 20 new markets worldwide; simultaneously securing rights to the TouchPoints name and the services of the co-founders of USA TouchPoints. More
Pharma data giant IMS Health has announced results for the quarter ended March 31st, with revenue up 7.0% at constant currency, to $632m and profit also jumping - adjusted EBITDA was $216n, up 9.8% at constant currency. More
Nielsen has announced the sale of another 20-23m of its shares with another underwritten secondary offering. Shares were trading last week above $46 - a considerable rise since the last offer, in December. More
Digital audience specialist comScore has rolled out its 'Industry Trust Initiative' in Canada; and is shortly to extend its 'Trust Profiles' metrics to a total of 44 global markets. More
WPP has reported like-for-like first quarter revenue growth across all its business sectors except for the Data Investment Management (DIM) division, where revenue fell 1.4% to £558m from £566m in the prior year period. More
Ipsos has reported 0.8% organic growth in revenue for the first quarter of 2015 - though measured in Euros revenue was up 10.6% to EUR 379.6m. More
Nielsen has reported a 2.1% drop in first quarter 2015 revenue to $1.46 billion, caused by the impact of foreign exchange - at constant currency, revenue was up 4.4%. Profits rose 8.6% to $63m from $58m in Q1 2014. More
In Australia, Dentsu Aegis Data & Analytics Managing Director Andrew Norris is leaving after around six months in the role. More
Ipsos has announced a suite of research offerings based on geolocation technology and exploiting the Google Consumer Surveys platform. More
Marcoms giant WPP has launched a consultancy called Gain Theory, which brings together analytics, technology solutions, and consumer research and insight capabilities from around the group. More
Twitter is planning to cut off access to its data 'firehose' - the stream of tweets and related information it currently provides to third party vendors. More
Online DIY research specialist SurveyMonkey has launched a new data offering, to help organizations understand how their performance stacks up against peers, competitors, industry segments and companies of similar size. More
Online community and survey technology provider Toluna has appointed Ludovic Milet as Managing Director, APAC, based in Hong Kong and leading the business across the region. More
IBM is to invest $3 billion over the next four years to establish an Internet of Things (IoT) unit, which will capitalize on the company's expertise in gathering, combining and making sense of real-time data gathered from a variety of sources. More
Australian telecoms company Telstra has acquired UK-based healthcare data analytics specialist Dr Foster. While terms of the deal were not disclosed, the Sydney Morning Herald says 'market sources' value it at £20 - 25m. More
Today we're launching a new recruitment site, 1potato, dedicated to opportunities for data and analytics professionals. Many readers and users of MrWeb / DRNO have been asking for something like it for years, and with the big data / data science boom, the time should be ripe. More
Laurence (Larry) Gold, the former publisher of market research industry journal Inside Research, has died at the age of 80 after a battle with cancer. More
Online MR software company Confirmit has introduced a new SaaS environment for its Horizons product in Australia and New Zealand. More
Research technology and services group FocusVision has acquired Melbourne, Australia-based Insight Marketing Systems, creator of the Research Reporter SaaS platform. The buy is FocusVision's third in the last 12 months, as it seeks to round out its family of research offerings. More
Sampling, data collection and analytics firm SSI has agreed to purchase the majority of the assets of MRops, which supplier end-to-end research operations services to research agencies and consultancies. More
DIY online research platform SurveyMonkey has appointed former Microsoft and LinkedIn exec Tony Ward as MD in Australia and New Zealand. More
Research and advisory group ISG (Information Services Group) has reported fourth quarter revenues of $53.2m, up 4% at constant currencies. Full-year revenue was flat at $209.6m, with growth in Europe balancing declines in the Americas and Asia Pacific; but adjusted EBITDA rose 5% to $23.2m. More
App store analytics firm App Annie is to open an office in Singapore, which will act as the centre of its operations across India and South East Asia, as well as Australia and New Zealand. More
Energy sector data firm Verisk Analytics is to acquire Edinburgh-based research and consulting company Wood Mackenzie for £1.85 billion in cash (around $2.8bn). More
Investment continues to flow into analytics companies: VoC predictive analytics firm First Insight, location-based social media specialist Geofeedia, people analytics company Culture Amp and prospect scoring firm Growth Intelligence have all announced funding wins so far in March. More
WPP has announced preliminary results for 2014 including like-for-like revenue up 8.2%, like-for-like net sales up 3.3%, and good profits - EBITDA grew 7.5% at constant currency. However like-for-like revenue in the firm's insight or 'Data Investment Management' division (DIM) was up just 0.6%. More
Staff at WPP agency Mediacom in Australia deliberately faked campaign reports for three major clients for at least two years, according to conclusions from an audit started in the autumn by consultants EY, and published today. More
In Australia, the Outdoor Media Association (OMA) has upgraded its MOVE out-of-home (OoH) audience measurement system with a number of new features, including the ability to target reports to more precise geographies. More
Research community and survey tech firm Vision Critical has expanded in Australia, with the opening of a new office in Melbourne and a move to a new location in Sydney. More
Japanese research and online panel provider GMO Research (GMOR) has teamed up with emerging markets specialist Borderless Access to add the latter's panellists to the former's Asia Cloud Panel, which now reaches more than fourteen million consumers across the APAC region. More
Ipsos has brought together its brand communication, advertising and media businesses under a new division called Ipsos Connect, which has replaced legacy brands Ipsos ASI and Ipsos MediaCT. More
Ipsos has reported a 2.2% increase in fourth quarter revenue to EUR 500.7m - a rise it describes as a 'timid return to growth' reflecting more favourable foreign exchange trends - and 'slight' organic growth of 0.8%. More
In Australia, Gai Le Roy has stepped down from her role as Director of Research at the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB). More
According to reports in the Australian media, Prime Minister Tony Abbott's government is considering canning the country's census, and replacing it with a smaller sample survey. More
UK-headquartered youth research and marketing strategist Dubit has opened an office in Melbourne, Australia, where it has appointed kids brand specialist Adam Schoff to lead its expansion across the AsiaPac region. More
In Sydney, Australia, telecoms and media firm Telstra has opened a purpose-built unit called the Customer Insights Centre (CIC), offering a combination of technologies, innovations and insights to help clients with their new product development strategies. More
The Enero Group, parent of Australian-based MR agencies The Leading Edge and Jigsaw Research, has reported net revenue down 9 percent to $AUD 56.2m for the half year to December 31st 2014; and profits down also with EBITDA falling 8 percent to $AUD 4.6m. More
Pharma research and data giant IMS Health has announced results for the quarter and year ended December 31st 2014, including revenue up 6.2% to $678m in Q4 and 5.9% to $2,641m for the full year on a constant currency basis; and adjusted EBITDA up 8.5% and 9.5% respectively. More
In a deal with some similarities to the recent US tie-in with Rentrak, WPP is to take a 15% to 20% stake in comScore through its Kantar data and insight arm, while comScore acquires a number of Kantar assets in Europe. More
Nielsen has reported Q4 revenue up 1.4% to $1.6 billion. Excluding the impact of the Arbitron and Harris Interactive acquisitions, the increase was just 0.1%. However the firm notes that this was its 34th consecutive quarter of revenue growth. More
Digital measurement specialist comScore has reported a 19% increase in its four quarter 2014 revenue to $89.1m on a pro forma basis, while full year revenue increased 18% to $325.2m. More
Technology specialist Forrester Research has reported a 5% increase in Research revenues to $53.8m in the fourth quarter of 2014. The group's Advisory Services and Events revenues rose 3% to $26.9m. More
Digital data collection provider Research Now has made a number of changes in its executive leadership team, including the promotions of John Rothwell, Kathy Rowley and Melanie Courtright to C-suite and EVP roles. More
The Audited Media Association of Australia (AMAA) has appointed media industry exec Josanne Ryan as Chief Executive Officer, replacing Paul Dovas who has left after sixteen years' service. More
Roy Morgan Research has partnered with big data insights specialist Qrious to offer clients an in-depth understanding of the trends, needs and wants of New Zealanders, and the communities in which they live. More
Australian business intelligence specialist Metrix Consulting has expanded to the East Coast, with the opening of an office in Melbourne. The office will be led by former GfK exec Asher Hunter, supported by Laura Millington. More
In Brisbane, Australia, Ipsos has appointed Kathy Benson as Strategy & Research Director, and Kylie Brosnan as Director of Ipsos Public Affairs, while Anna Eden moves from the Perth office to take up the role of Senior Client Services Director. More
In Australia, behavioural insights firm Beyond Analysis has appointed ad agency veteran Jeff Sanders as Chief Executive Officer, replacing Neil Boulton who is leaving the company this month. More
Sydney, Australia -based insights consultancy Jigsaw has appointed John Matthews as Managing Director. More
Tech research firm Gartner has reported a 12% rise in fourth quarter 2014 revenue to $584.0m, compared with Q4 2013. Revenue in its core Research division also increased 12%, to $373.4m. More
Public sector research specialist Richard Abraham has relocated from the UK to Sydney, Australia, to take up the role of Director - Social & Government at TNS. More
GfK has reported a 2.9% drop in annual sales to EUR 1.451 billion from EUR 1.495 billion the previous year. Currency effects accounted for a 0.9% reduction: in organic terms, sales were down by 2.1%. More
Nielsen has partnered with customer experience management (CEM) software provider ResponseTek to create a solution called the Nielsen Listening Platform, which measures and analyses customer feedback as it happens. More
In Sydney, The Leading Edge (TLE) MD Lee Naylor is taking over the role of Chairman from Nigel Marsh, who is leaving the firm to become a Partner at strategy consultancy Growth Mantra. More
The year 2015 is starting with marketers in buoyant mood, according to the Global Marketing Index (GMI) compiled by WARC sister company World Economics. Individual ratings for trading conditions, marketing budgets and staffing levels all showed positive movement. More
Millward Brown has launched a rapid copy-testing solution for TV, LinkNow, promising results in as few as six hours. Based on the firm's well known Link solution, the new product is available through MR app store ZappiStore. More
Retail tracking specialist The NPD Group has expanded Michel Maury's role as Group President for Europe, to include management of its Asia Pacific operations; meanwhile former Ipsos exec Philippe Cabin Saint Marcel joins as General Manager of Commercial Activities for Europe. More
WPP-owned Lightspeed GMI has expanded its online respondent validation product Honesty Detector to 27 markets across the Americas, EMEA and Asia Pacific. More
MR tech provider Dapresy has opened a new office in Brisbane, Australia, led by former Sprout Research MD Heath Adams. The firm has also hired former TNS director Alexander Skorka to lead its office in Germany. More
US-based digital marketing specialist MediaMath has appointed Rahul Vasudev as Managing Director for the APAC region. More
UK-based behavioural economics specialist The Behavioural Architects (TBA) has appointed Nikii Dahlgren in Sydney, Natasha Xue and Lynette Xu in Shanghai, and Andreea Balica and George Deane in London. More
Singapore and Bangalore, India-based marketing intelligence firm Tookitaki has raised $1m in seed funding, which it will use to expand into new regions including Australia, New Zealand, Japan and Southeast Asia. More
From all of us at MrWeb and Daily Research News to all of you, our readers and friends around the world, a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Thanks for your support in 2014! More
Customer and employee research specialist ORC International has promoted Craig Young to the new role of Managing Director in charge of its Australian business. The firm has also promoted Mia Wong to SVP Customer Research Asia, based in Hong Kong. More
Professional services firm Deloitte Australia and social media analytics technology company Digivizer have partnered to create new business consulting and technology services. More
UK-based cart abandonment analytics and personalisation specialist Yieldify has launched in the ANZ market with the opening of an office in Sydney, Australia. More
TNS has appointed Serena Jacob as Managing Director for TNS Qualitative in Asia Pacific, based in Singapore. She takes up the role on 2nd January. More
WPP marcoms group JWT has acquired a majority stake in Wellington, New Zealand-based digital agency Heyday. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
Online community and survey technology provider Toluna has launched a short-term branded panel product called PanelPortalLight, which can be launched in less than four weeks and host up to 2,000 members. More
Recently formed market strategy division Millward Brown Vermeer has appointed former London2012 consultant Patrick Fry as Director, responsible for leading the firm's engagements in Australia and New Zealand. More
The Merlien Institute - which runs conferences and events for MR professionals - has launched a new set of Awards to celebrate innovation in the industry and recognize individuals who have achieved 'significant breakthroughs' in mobile market research. More
UK-based digital communications group Next Fifteen has acquired a 75% stake in London-based brand performance researcher Morar, for up to £1.8m in cash. More
WPP has extended its relationship with IBM, to expand its use of big data and analytics, and develop new digital services that will be run and managed within a global hybrid cloud infrastructure. More
Ipsos has announced that its Co-President Jean-Marc Lech died this morning in Paris, after suffering from a 'serious health issue' since the summer. More
Multi-screen measurement specialist Rentrak has completed its acquisition of the US-based TV measurement assets of Kantar Media, in an all-stock deal worth about $128m - c.$30m more than was initially anticipated. More
Australian professional MR association AMSRO has become the first body to have its privacy code registered by the Australian Privacy Commissioner under new legislation. More
A number of execs have left WPP agency Mediacom in Australia after the discovery that ratings figures for campaigns for two clients, Foxtel and KFC / Yum Brands, had been overstated - according to press reports. More
Norfolk, UK-based consultant Simon Anholt - the man responsible for the Anholt Nation Brands Index - has launched an ambitious worldwide political organisation, Good Country. More
Roy Morgan Research has appointed former Ipsos Australia Chief Exec and AMSRO President Hugh Amoyal as its new Deputy CEO. The firm has also given Head of Client Services Howard Seccombe the new role of Chief Digital Officer. More
TNS has announced the appointment of Will Galgey, formerly of The Futures Company (TFC) as UK CEO from mid-January 2015, following the departure of Maureen Duffy earlier in the week. Separately, Michelle Harrison will become Global Head of Political and Social at the beginning of the year. More
Business information and events group Informa has agreed to buy US trade show operator Hanley Wood Exhibitions for £237m; and is consequently considering 'alternatives' for its Consumer Information and Forecasting businesses. More
Online panel services provider Borderless Access has launched panels in Australia, Singapore and Thailand, bringing its total coverage to 1.5 million respondents across twenty countries. More
Former Nielsen Indonesia MD Catherine Eddy is to join GfK in January as Managing Director of Australia and New Zealand. She takes over the role from Gary Lamb and Juergen Merz, who are moving to new positions within the group. More
UK-based Kadence International has today been sold to full service Japanese MR group CMG (Cross Marketing Group) for an undisclosed sum. More
London-based agency ruby cha cha has appointed former Engage Research director Hetta Bramley as Director of Insight and Planning at its Shoreditch office. More
Yahoo! has acquired video ad firm BrightRoll, which measures billions of video impressions each month using a reporting suite featuring tools from comScore, Nielsen, Vizu and InsightExpress. The deal was valued at around $640m in cash. More
Sydney, Australia-based Q Research Software has opened an office in London, which will be led by former Infotools director Nigel Cartman. More
Palo Alto, California-based private equity firm HGGC has become the majority owner of the parent of sampling, data collection and analytics firm Survey Sampling International (SSI). The company was previously owned by two other investors, who will retain minority stakes. More
Research technology and panel exchange operator Cint has announced a new strategic global relationship with DIY online research firm SurveyMonkey. More
Millward Brown has expanded its team in Indonesia with eight appointments, including former Diageo exec Chris Thomas as Director of strategic consulting arm Millward Brown Vermeer. More
Information Services Group has announced third quarter revenue up 3% in constant currency terms, to $53.3m. Revenues in Europe rose strongly (up 10% to $19.7m) while elsewhere they were flat or fell back. More
Marcoms group Dentsu Aegis Network has acquired full service mobile agency Fetch, which offers mobile strategy, media, creative and analytics services. While terms of the deal were not disclosed, it is estimated to be worth around £30m. More
Technology research and analysis specialist Gartner has reported a 15% increase in third quarter revenue to $470.9m. For the Research division specifically, revenue was also up 15%, to $365.3m. More
Maritz is to acquire customer and employee feedback software provider Allegiance, which it will combine with Maritz Research to create a new company called MaritzCX, with more than 900 employees in eighteen offices worldwide. Terms of the acquisition deal were not disclosed. More
Japanese online specialist Macromill has merged with Netherlands-based online research and analytics firm MetrixLab. The combined firm will now operate under the Macromill brand, and has plans to open new offices in Southeast Asia, the Middle East and Russia. More
Nielsen has acquired concept testing and forecasting software specialist Affinnova, and will integrate the latter's team into its Innovation Practice division. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
Marketing services network WPP has reported a slower than expected 3.1% rise in third quarter revenue to £2.76bn. Reported revenue in its Data Investment Management division fell 4.7% to £588m, but allowing for currency effects and acquisitions, like-for-like revenue growth was 0.5%. More
Twitter and IBM have formed an alliance to help businesses and institutions better understand their customers, markets and trends. More
Technology specialist Forrester has reported an 8.3% increase in third quarter revenue to $75.4m, with research division revenues up by a more moderate 2%, to $50.6m. More
Kantar Retail has invested an undisclosed sum in Paris-based image recognition tech company Planorama Group. More
US-based information and analytics firm IHS is to acquire two subsidiary firms from retail researcher the NPD Group: flat-panel display specialist DisplaySearch and solar energy MR business Solarbuzz. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
Industry association ESOMAR has elected Laurent Flores as its new President for the two-year term from January 2015 to December 2016. He will be supported by newly elected Vice President David Smith. More
Digital measurement specialist comScore has reported a 15% increase in third quarter revenues to $82.1m, but posted a GAAP net loss of $3.3m on the back of a $6.9m impairment charge. The latter relates to the firm's mobile operator analytics division, which it intends shortly to divest or shut down. More
Australian-based custom research firm The Leading Edge (TLE) has appointed Katharine Milner as Director of Qualitative Insights and Florencia Tarelli as Director of Strategy. Separately, Head of Brand Strategy Chrissy Blackburn left the company last month. More
Nielsen has reported third quarter revenue of $1.57 bn, a 13.3% increase year-on-year but reduced to 2.5% once the effects of acquiring Harris and Arbitron are removed. Similarly, profits fell nearly 30% - to $91m - but adjusted EBITDA was up 19.8% to $477m. More
Search giant Google has expanded its Consumer Barometer, to provide additional insights into online shopper behaviour and digital media consumption. More
Ipsos has reported third quarter revenue of EUR 412.7m, representing marginal organic growth (0.2%) year-on-year. The decline in reported figures slowed to 1.4%. More
In Australia, Fairfax Media will be publishing political polls again through a partnership with Ipsos, after Nielsen pulled out of its contract with the publisher earlier in the year. More
New York-based SIS International Research has expanded its Asia Pacific team with the appointment of four senior executives, while promoting Mandy Pan to the role of General Manager of the APAC Region and China. More
Kantar Media has agreed to acquire the audio watermarking unit of digital tech firm Civolution, whose products are used by broadcast channels across the world to track their media content and audiences. Financial details were not disclosed. More
US-based digital marketing services firm MediaMath has acquired UK-based social media ad platform Upcast; and has appointed programmatic ad specialist Stuart Bartram as its first Australian Country Manager. More
Following a long tender process, online ad association IAB Australia has chosen Nielsen as sole supplier of digital audience measurement services in the country, for three years from January 1st 2015. More
DIY online research firm SurveyMonkey has announced a new app, allowing users to send and analyze surveys from within the widely used Salesforce platform. More
IBM has opened a New York HQ for its recently-launched Watson Group, housing more than 600 staff of the new self-service analytics division; and unveiled the first five 'Watson Client Experience Centers' for client support and training, in the cities of Dublin, London, Melbourne, Sao Paulo and Singapore. More
Emerging markets panel specialist Borderless Access has become the latest company to appoint current ESOMAR President Dan Foreman as a Non-Executive Director. More
Business information veteran Dun & Bradstreet has announced a partnership with Lattice Engines, a provider of cloud-based predictive marketing and sales applications, promising clients the ability to identify the customer and prospects 'most ready to buy'. More
Majestic MRSS has announced a strategic partnership with foreign direct investment specialist Dezan Shira & Associates. More
In Melbourne, Australia, digital audience specialist Effective Measure has appointed Graham Plant as Chief Executive Officer, replacing Richard Webb who stepped down from the role in March. More
In New Zealand, MR software provider Infotools has promoted Chris Spence for a newly created role, Sales & Marketing Director, in charge of the global sales team and marketing initiatives. The firm has also appointed former Ipsos ASI Director Horst Feldhaeuser. More
Facebook has launched a cross-device user tracking ad product, based on the Atlas software it acquired from Microsoft earlier this year. Meanwhile Ello, a social network which spurns advertising, is reportedly adding as many as 35,000 new users an hour. More
Ipsos has hired Jake Dorn as Senior Vice President - Chief Client Director for Microsoft, based in Seattle, Washington and leading the agency's global initiatives with the software giant. More
Cloud-based data management firm Krux has appointed Yacov Salomon to lead its global data science development, from a base in Sydney, Australia. More
New York-based ad technology firm AppNexus has received $25m in funding from WPP, and in turn, has agreed to acquire the Open AdStream (OAS) ad serving platform from the marcoms giant's audience profiling and targeting division Xaxis. More
Media and digital marcoms giant Dentsu Aegis Network has acquired the standalone search and content marketing agency business of US-based Covario. The business offers local SEO, social media automation, and analytic tools. More
Australian industry body The Readership Works says it has enhanced its 'emma' readership survey with the addition of social media data. More
US-based web analytics and behavioral targeting firm Lotame has opened an office in Sydney, and appointed Ian Curd as Commercial Director of Australia and New Zealand. More
In Australia, Paul Dovas is stepping down as CEO of not-for-profit industry body the AMAA after sixteen years' service in the organisation and its predecessor. The AMAA said he intends to pursue other opportunities in digital media. More
Australian national airline Qantas has spun off a data marketing business, Red Planet, which will analyse data from the company's 10.1m Frequent Flyer loyalty program members and other sources, to offer targeted advertising and research to third party clients. More
Survey and reporting software firm Confirmit has launched the Confirmit Panel App, which it says will allow clients to offer a 'seamless mobile experience' to participants in their research and customer panels. More
The global research industry grew faster than inflation in 2013, with turnover for 'traditionally defined MR' passing the $40bn mark, according to ESOMAR's annual report, just released. More
Nielsen and GfK have made it to the final round of IAB Australia's tender to measure online audiences across the country for the next three years. More
Ipsos has appointed Diane Dickinson as MD of its operations in New Zealand, replacing Ian Mills who leaves for a role as GM with Data Insights Ltd. More
Outsourcing specialist Capgemini has opened a digital innovation lab in Melbourne, Australia, where it will focus on developing innovations in social media, mobile, analytics, and cloud-based (SMAC) technologies. More
Recently formed strategic consultancy Millward Brown Vermeer has launched in Australia, and appointed Caspar Wright as Managing Partner there. More
In Sydney, Australia, former Ipsos execs Peter Fairbrother and Veronica Mayne have launched an insights consultancy called Faster Horses, which will cover both the east and west coasts of Australia, while also reaching clients in the Asia Pacific region. More
US-based online research and analytics firm InsightExpress has been acquired by WPP's brand, media and comms research specialist Millward Brown. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
WPP's data investment management division (DIM) has reported Q2 net sales of £436m and revenue of £611m, the latter up 2.6% in like-for-like terms but well below the overall group growth of 10.2%. More
WPP's healthcare data company All Global has been integrated into the group's online panels specialist Lightspeed Research, allowing combined access to general population panels and physician and payor panels. More
Global marketers' confidence fell in August despite overall conditions improving across the sector, according to Warc's latest Global Marketing Index (GMI). More
Shopper insights specialists Nielsen Catalina Solutions (NCS) is combining its data on what consumers watch and buy, with set-top-box (STB) data from FourthWall Media, in order to extend its single-source panel for CPG marketers. More
Nielsen has promoted Steve Hasker to the role of Global President, overseeing its business across the media sector, in addition to leading its product portfolio across both Watch and Buy segments. More
In Australia, Roy Morgan Research has introduced a new metric to calculate the 'audience dollar value' (ADV) of newspapers, magazines, TV shows, radio stations and web sites across a range of consumer and business expenditure categories. More
GfK has reported a 1.6% organic decline in sales for the first half of 2014, to EUR 697.9m, magnified to 4.2% by currency effects - but says that it is now seeing the positive effects of the 'strategic realignment' plan it has been pursuing. More
A new service from Twitter promises advertisers the chance to choose their own definition of success, measure performance accordingly, and pay only for the specific results they have selected up-front. More
Australian not-for-profit body The Newspaper Works has appointed Brian Rock, formerly of Network Ten, as Research and Insights Manager. More
Perth, Australia-based agricultural information specialist Agworld has secured $6m in a Series C round of financing led by Reed Elsevier Ventures, as it looks to expand into North America. More
US-based information and analytics firm IHS has returned to the acquisition trail with the purchase of merchandise trade data provider Global Trade Information Services (GTI). More
Online analytics provider Webtrends has lost two senior execs, Bruce Kenny and Eric Butler, having recently shuffled and strengthened its team with three VP level hires and two promotions. More
Digital ad solutions firm Rocket Fuel Inc. is to acquire New York-based online audience targeting firm [x+1] for a neat $100m in cash plus 5.4m shares of its own common stock, valuing the deal at around $230m. Rocket Fuel also reported second quarter revenue up 70% year-on-year to $92.6m. More
comScore is to pay an undisclosed sum for MdotLabs, an agency which 'detects non-human traffic' (NHT) - not by watching the skies, but by looking down at some of the murkier practices inflating digital audience figures. The measurement giant, which announced strong growth today, also appointed Mel Wesley as its new CFO. More
IT research and consulting firm Gartner has reported second quarter revenue of $519.8m, up 17% year on year, or 16% excluding currency effects. Profits jumped likewise: normalized EBITDA also rose 17%, to $105.0m. More
Two announcements from Ipsos: the Loyalty division has a new syndicated study providing benchmark data on consumers' views across 23 sectors in 30 countries; while Canada's Ipsos Reid will work with the country's Sporting Goods Association (CSGA) to track trends in equipment, clothing and participation. More
Australian television audience measurement body OzTAM has appointed Padraig O'Donovan in the newly created role of Digital Strategy Director, overseeing the extension of its service to cover viewing on other screens. He was previously Head of Digital Technology at Network Ten. More
German-based consulting firm Simon-Kucher & Partners has reported first half revenue growth of 14 percent to EUR 82.5m, and says it made 80 new hires, raising its headcount to 720. More
US-based digital marketing services firm MediaMath has announced two senior hires in North America - Ross McNab as MD and Jake Engwerda as VP Sales - and the opening of a new office in Sydney, Australia where staff from ad technology company Kinected will join it. More
US technology research and consulting firm Forrester Research has reported second quarter revenue of $82.9m, up 5% from $79.0m 12 months previously. Revenue for the Research division rose more slowly, up 2% to $52.3m. More
Emerging markets specialist Borderless Access has launched new panels in Nigeria, Colombia and New Zealand - the last reflecting a new policy of adding panels giving access to 'niche segments within developed countries'. More
In Australia, industry body The Readership Works and agency partner Ipsos MediaCT have added geo-targeting capabilities to the emma cross-media newspaper and magazine readership survey, to help users with hyper-local marketing and media planning. More
In New Zealand, MR tools and software provider Infotools has appointed co-founder Ant Franklin as its first ever Chief Executive Officer, with a remit to grow the company internationally. More
Nielsen has reported a 15% increase in second quarter 2014 revenue to $1.59bn - excluding acquisitions the figure was still a very respectable 4.4%. Q2 profit fell to $76m from $426m due to fees for re-financing long-term debt, but Adjusted EBITDA was up 16.2% to $460m. More
Ipsos' MediaCT division has launched an approach it calls PLSme!, to help media and content clients better understand audience behaviour, engagement and monetisation opportunities. More
Pharma research giant IMS Health has reported a 6.1% increase in second quarter revenue to $662m. However, due to a number of one-off charges and expenses the firm suffered a Q2 net loss of $200m, compared with net income of $8m in the prior year period. More
Professional services firm Ernst & Young (EY) is to acquire Australian full service agency Sweeney Research. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
Ipsos has reported a 5.9% drop in first half revenue to EUR 756m, with currency effects responsible for most of the fall (5.1%). In organic terms, second quarter decline all but wiped out the modest gains of the first quarter, giving overall H1 organic growth of 0.1%. More
Online MR software company Confirmit has launched a new solution called 'Confirmit Genius' for text and social media analytics. More
Yahoo! has acquired US app measurement and advertising platform Flurry, in line with its declared intention to build and support 'useful, inspiring, and beautiful' mobile apps and monetization solutions. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
Nielsen is integrating RDA Research's geoTribes segmentation tool into its Consumer and Media Insights (CMI) service, to provide a 360 degree view of the New Zealand consumer. More
Australian-based insights consultancy Fiftyfive5 has appointed former Clear MD Alan King for a newly created Director role. More
In Australia, the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) has shortlisted three agencies to challenge incumbent Nielsen for its three-year online audience measurement contract. More
The High Court in Delhi has once again adjourned Kantar Media Research's appeal against new government guidelines imposed on its TAM TV audience measurement service. The case will now be heard on 26th August. More
Brighton, UK-based global insight consultancy Space Doctors has appointed former Added Value semiotics specialist Cato Hunt to lead its London office. The firm has also announced plans to establish teams in Asia Pacific and the Americas. More
Ogilvy Public Relations Australia has launched a proprietary measurement system called Impact4, which combines predictive analytics, statistical outcome modelling, and integrated search optimisation. More
ITWP, the parent company of online community and survey technology provider Toluna, has acquired Harris Interactive's European arm from Nielsen. As part of the deal, Nielsen will take a minority share in ITWP. More
TNS has launched an 'express' screening tool, to enable businesses to determine in less than 24 hours whether a new product idea will drive business growth. More
In Sydney, Australia, ethnography and qual specialist Charlie Cochrane has set up a new research consultancy called Jump the Fence, which he says will 'challenge the notion' that consumer psychology determines brand and buying motivation. More
Global marcoms network Publicis Groupe has set up a new digital agency called ROAR, offering a full range of user experience, strategy, creative, media and analytics services. More
North of England-based online panel firm ResearchBods has opened its first overseas office near Melbourne, Australia; and appointed David Gibbs to lead it. More
Consumer goods giant Procter & Gamble is to restructure its marketing function under the name 'brand management', with marketing directors worldwide becoming 'brand directors' with 'single-point responsibility for the strategies, plans and results for the brands'. More
Sampling and data collection firm SSI has appointed Mark Lepine as Managing Director for the Asia Pacific region, with responsibility for all sales and operations across Australia, New Zealand, China, India, Japan, Korea and Southeast Asia. More
Australian agency I-view has appointed John Leahy as Commercial Director, responsible for the implementation of its commercial strategy. More
Customer and employee research specialist ORC International has opened an office in Sevres, south west of Paris, where it has appointed former Ipsos exec Anne Lavielle to head up the new operation. More
UK-based retail and consumer goods consultancy Retail Insight has expanded to Australia, where it has relocated Peter Goggin to head up its new initiative in Sydney. More
Kantar Health has launched PINNAKLE, billed as an integrated, holistic brand marketing solution helping pharma companies maximise the success of their brands and tap into 'unrealized brand opportunity'. More
Australian industry body The Readership Works has enhanced its 'emma' readership survey with the addition of a new engagement metric, designed to demonstrate a reader's unique relationship with specific printed newspapers - including regional dailies - and magazines. More
WPP-owned firm The Data Alliance has partnered with location analytics specialist Factual, giving WPP group companies access to data that maps the known location of mobile phones to physical places, including more than 65 million businesses in 50 countries. More
In Sydney, Australia, BBC Worldwide Australia & New Zealand (ANZ) has appointed former Nunwood/TLE researcher Joe Lynch as Head of Research and Consumer Insights, starting in August. More
Millward Brown has acquired global marketing strategy consultancy EffectiveBrands, and will merge it with its Optimor brand strategy division to form a new business called Millward Brown Vermeer. More
Facebook has announced that it will begin tracking users' behaviour on other web sites as well as its own, in order to target advertising more effectively. An opt-out will be available, in addition to the option to see why an ad has been served, and to edit one's own advertising profile. More
In Australia, marketing and sales services company Crossmark has launched Shopper Republic, a specialist shopper marketing division focused on global insights and 'deep retailer collaboration'. More
GfK has launched a tool called MarketBuilder, which it says puts actual consumer behavior - as opposed to stated intentions - at the center of measuring innovation performance. More
Former TNS exec James Fergusson has launched a mobile and digital insights agency, Mobile Digital Indaba (MDI), based in Melbourne, Australia and already with offices in Singapore and Cape Town, South Africa. More
Multi-screen audience measurement specialist Rentrak has reported a 40% rise in Q4 revenue to $21.6m, mainly driven by its TV Everywhere measurement segment, where revenue nearly doubled to $10m. For the full year 2014, revenue was up 33% to $75.6m. More
comScore is putting up $14m to settle claims that the firm collects personal and confidential information - such as credit card numbers, passwords and Social Security numbers - from consumers' computers without their knowledge. More
Nielsen has announced it will stop its political polling in Australia at the end of July, specifically the monthly Fairfax Nielsen Poll, which has been running for the past nineteen years. More
Social media and text analytics specialist Texifter has entered a strategic partnership with DIY research firm SurveyMonkey, helping the latter's users get to grips with verbatim-heavy survey responses. More
Following weeks of speculation, Apple has paid $3 billion to acquire audio specialist Beats Electronics, and its subscription-based online music streaming service Beats Music, which combines algorithm-based personalization with expert music suggestions. More
Nielsen has announced three appointments for senior communications roles, including Ben Billingsley and Flavie Lemarchand-Wood to leadership positions in its Global Watch division, and Kristie Stegen in an expanded role as Global Head of Internal Communications. More
Don Elgie, the founder and former Group CEO of UK-based insight and communications group Creston, has joined social media management agency Emoderation as Non-Executive Chair. More
Machine data analytics specialist Sumo Logic has raised $30m in a funding round, and will use it for geographic expansion into the EMEA and Asia Pacific regions. More
US-based web site tag management specialist Ensighten - whose system simplifies third-party services for web analytics, advertising and content targeting - has opened an office in Sydney, Australia. More
Optimism among marketing execs remains high, according to the May wave of the Warc Global Marketing Index (GMI), with respondents generally upping their forecasts for marketing budgets and positive about trading conditions. More
DIY research specialist SurveyMonkey is opening an office in Sydney, Australia - its first in the Asia Pacific region - and says it will hire around 25 people there over the next few years. More
In Australia, media intelligence group iSentia - formerly known as Media Monitors - is headed for a June IPO which it hopes will raise $AUD 283.5m. Funds will help consolidate market positions and continue growth in Australia and New Zealand, and in South East and East Asia. More
Strategic insight and innovation specialist The Futures Company has strengthened its Asia Pacific team, based in Singapore, moving Radha Patel from the London office to the role of Director of Consulting, and hiring Tara Hirebet as Senior Consultant. More
Cello-owned consumer specialist 2CV has relocated to new premises in Singapore, double the size of its previous office. More
GfK has announced results for the first quarter, with an organic decline of 0.7% in sales, reported as EUR 334.9m, a decline of 3.5% due to currency effects. However the Group said it achieved 'a significant increase in all profit indicators', and has confirmed its forecast for the year. More
Asian market research consultancy ABN Impact is launching an office in Shanghai, China, and has appointed Stephane Courqueux as its Managing Director. The company says it aims to set up offices 'throughout Asia in the near future'. More
Enterprise data and analytics company Acxiom has agreed to acquire privately held customer data 'onboarding' specialist LiveRamp for around $310m in cash. It has also announced flat fiscal year 2014 revenue, at c.$1.1bn, and forecasts a 5% drop in fiscal 2015 as it exits its analog paper survey business in Europe. More
A ruling this week from the Court of Justice of the European Union (ECJ) places requirements on search engines with offices in the EU to consider requests from individuals for the removal of links to certain information about them. More
Digital audience measurement specialist comScore has announced that its Chief Financial Officer, Kenneth Tarpey, will retire in August this year. The firm is currently seeking a successor. More
The Omnicom-Publicis merger has been called off. Unforeseen complexities had slowed the progress of the $35bn deal (£20.65bn) to the point where the two parties apparently felt it was distracting and unsettling their businesses. Publicis CEO Maurice Lévy has also suggested it was becoming an Omnicom takeover. More
Research and advisory firm Information Services Group (ISG) has announced results for the quarter ended March 31st. Revenues slid 5% to $48.2m (reported and constant currency), with a sharp rise in Europe (up 15% to $19.8m) more than counterbalanced by falls of 14-15% in the Americas and Asia Pacific. More
In the US, former Ford Motor Co. Market Research Analyst Mark Fields is to become the company's ninth President and Chief Executive Officer, when Alan Mulally retires in July. More
Tech sector researcher and analyst Gartner has reported a 12% increase in its first quarter Research revenue to $348.1m, compared with Q1 2013. More
Consumer specialist The NPD Group has promoted Jim Kelley to the role of President of its newly combined Sports and Leisure Trends business. More
US technology specialist Forrester Research has reported a 1% rise in research division revenues to $50.79m in the first quarter 2014. More
Digital measurement specialist comScore has reported a 14% increase in first quarter revenue to $76.9m, from $68.9m a year previously, while the firm's net loss fell to $782k from $2.0m. More
Three years on from a decision to look into definitions for web users' Do Not Track requests, Internet standards group W3C has put up a draft for public scrutiny; and separately, in Australia, the IAB has announced the formation of a body to combat online ad fraud, the Brand Safety Council (BSC). More
WPP's Data Investment Management (DIM) division saw revenues fall 3.8% to £566m in the first quarter of 2014, while net sales dropped 4.5% to £406m. More
Nielsen has reported a 12.9% rise in first quarter 2014 revenues to $1.49 billion, driven by 28% growth in its media research business following the acquisition of Arbitron. More
Global marketing budgets continued to rise in the second quarter of 2014, partly driven by planned mobile and digital spend - according to the latest data from Warc's Global Marketing Index. More
Ipsos has reported a 4.5% drop in revenue to EUR 343.3m in the first quarter of 2014, compared with EUR 359.6m a year previously. However organic growth - at constant scope and exchange rates - was 1.5%, in line with the performances recorded in the third and fourth quarters of 2013. More
In Melbourne, Australia, former GfK Blue Moon exec Mark George has set up a new insights consultancy called Quirk. More
Nielsen is in the 'final stages' of testing for the expansion of its Online Campaign Ratings product to mobile. The new service is scheduled for launch in the summer. More
WPP's shopper data and analytics consultancy Kantar Retail has acquired sales automation software company XTEL, in Italy. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
In Singapore three senior execs, Jasal Shah, Shogo Nakazato and Masaaki Nomiya have this week announced the official launch of Union Panels, an alliance of online research panel providers. More
In the US, WPP's Kantar Media has launched an initiative which uses its subscription-only media planning platform, SRDS.com, to help advertisers find and buy suitable digital media slots for their campaigns. More
Online community and survey technology provider Toluna is integrating BrainJuicer's proprietary emotion measure FaceTrace into its global survey platform. The upgrade will allow clients to gauge emotional reactions to stimuli such as products, web sites, packaging and ads. More
Online panel specialist Research Now has appointed BlueKai co-founder Michael Bigby as Chief Technology Officer (CTO) and a member of its Executive Leadership team. More
WPP's Data Alliance practice has partnered with publisher eMarketer, to provide all WPP operating companies with access to the latter's global database of digital marketing research data. More
Marcoms giant WPP has launched a global Government & Public Sector Practice to drive 'excellence' in government communications. The new initiative is led by Dr Michelle Harrison, who is also CEO of the group's TNS BMRB agency. More
UK-based online shopping cart recovery software provider Ve Interactive has opened an office in Hong Kong, to support is AsiaPac client base. More
Nielsen has announced the completion of a Proof Of Concept study in partnership with CBS, on the 'power of combining media buys for major advertising campaigns'; and separately the integration by media technology company Syncbak of its Software Development Kit (SDK). More
European online specialist InSites Consulting is extending its moderator network in Asia Pacific and has agreed a long-term strategic partnership with Sydney-based boutique agency Direction First. More
Australian media giant Nine Entertainment is launching a new data services firm called Tipstone, to be launched in July through Nine's digital media agency Mi9. More
Kantar's online specialist Lightspeed GMI has launched a service called Survey Cycle, which combines its research design and project management skills with Google Consumer Surveys, to deliver 'micro surveys' comprising ten questions or fewer. More
Digital measurement specialist comScore has launched a multi-platform audience metric for use across desktop computers, smartphones and tablets. More
Kantar and Twitter have strengthened their global partnership with a five-year agreement under the program name 'Data of Now', and will collaborate on new research products. In addition, the firms' 'social TV' ratings and analytics will be extended to new regions in Asia, Africa and Europe. More
Enterprise analytic data management firm Cloudera has announced another $740m in financing, this time from chipmaker Intel, which becomes an 18 percent shareholder in the booming firm. More
US-based social media solutions firm Lithium Technologies has acquired social media analytics firm Klout for a reported $200m - double the price first mooted in February. More
In the US, online research community builder Communispace has launched a new business unit dedicated to healthcare clients; and has named VP Corey Schwartz as its Managing Director. The firm says more such 'sub-brand' launches may be in the pipeline. More
London-based social media community management and moderation firm Emoderation has launched a regional headquarters in Sydney, from where it will provide services to clients across Australia and the Asia Pacific region. More
TNS has hired client side researcher Yong Joo Park for the newly created role of Chief Research Officer for the Asia Pacific region. He will join on 1st April. More
uSamp co-founders Matt Dusig and Gregg Lavin have launched a new firm called Innovate, which they say will 'pinpoint' global panelists on demand and deliver sample via connected APIs. More
Nielsen has announced that it will launch its Twitter TV solutions in Australia in the second half of this year, capturing and analysing chat on the social network as it relates to specific television programmes. More
US firm IHS, the new owner of automotive researcher R.L. Polk, has reported results for the quarter ended February 28th 2014, with revenue up 37 percent to $524m, including organic revenue growth of around 5 percent. More
Australian research body AMSRO has launched a 'Trustmark', guaranteeing its members' adherence to ethical standards including data protection and respect for privacy. More
US-based big data specialist Cloudera has raised another huge round of funding, adding another $160m to its coffers and more than doubling the total raised to date. More
Online sampling specialist uSamp is launching a system called 'Adaptive Profiling', which involves asking questions to panellists based on their correlated attributes. The firm claims this will reduce the total number of profile questions asked by half, while doubling completion rates. More
Described by MRS CEO Jane Frost as a 'brand in his own right', WPP leader Sir Martin Sorrell opened this year's conference with an overview of how his group is moving towards a more 'digital' future. Mel Crowther reports. More
London-based media evaluation specialist Salience Insight has agreed to acquire the US operations of media content analysis pioneer CARMA International. More
Ipsos Healthcare has extended its Molecular Diagnostics (MDx) portfolio to Japan and Australia, where it will initially focus on oncology, with other therapy areas to be rolled out in the coming months. More
WPP Chief Exec Sir Martin Sorrell has received 1.78m shares, worth around £22.7m, under the company's now-discontinued long-term incentive plan, LEAP. More
Australian outdoor media company Adshel has launched a Strategic Integration (SI) Division and recruited media strategist Charlotte Vente to lead it. More
Millward Brown has appointed Nichola Rastrick as its new MD of Southeast Asia, succeeding the recently promoted Gonzalo Fuentes. Rastrick's current role as MD Singapore is filled by Priti Mehra who steps up from the role of Chief Client Officer, Southeast Asia. More
Research and advisory firm Information Services Group (ISG) has reported an 8% increase in fourth quarter revenues to $53.4m, and a 10% rise in full-year revenues to $211.0m. More
Nielsen has announced that a group of its shareholders is planning to sell 30 million shares of common stock, with a possible value of around $1.4bn. More
Millward Brown has promoted Mark Henning to Head of Media and Digital, Africa, Middle East & Asia Pacific (AMAP), responsible for driving the practice across the region. More
ORC International has re-located its Singapore office to bigger premises in preparation for the launch of its new Strategy Research practice, which will focus on helping businesses drive organizational growth across the Asia Pacific region. More
WPP's Data Investment Management Division (DIM) has reported a 3.6% increase in annual revenue for 2013. More
Ipsos has reported a 4.3% decline in annual revenue to EUR 1.71bn, from EUR 1.79bn in 2012. The company blames the fall on exchange rates, its partial withdrawal from Eurozone countries like Greece and Portugal, and the sale of its Los Angeles-based film testing arm. Organic growth was 0.8%. More
Software giant Oracle has agreed to acquire BlueKai, the cloud-based big data audience targeting platform, in a deal reportedly worth between $400m and $450m. More
Millward Brown is releasing a DIY version of eStatic, its copy-testing solution for print and outdoor advertising, available via market research 'app store' ZappiStore. More
Digital measurement giant comScore has announced a partnership with enterprise data firm Acxiom, aimed at enhancing and accelerating their respective audience reporting and multi-channel marketing offers. More
Nielsen has promoted CFO Brian West to Chief Operating Officer, replacing Mitchell Habib; and has appointed Jamere Jackson, who joins from General Electric, to fill the vacant finance role. More
GfK has extended CEO Matthias Hartmann's contract by a further five years, to 30th November 2019. More
GfK has launched an approach it calls 'FutureScape', which identifies and sizes a range of opportunities within a market, prioritizes those with most potential, and then use segmentation to pinpoint the highest-value consumers to target. More
Online analytics pioneer Webtrends has named former Coremetrics CEO Joe Davis as its latest Chief Executive, just five months after appointing David Mitchell to the role. More
Czech Republic-based social media monitoring firm Socialbakers has completed a $26m Series C financing round, and says it will invest in new product development initiatives, while strengthening client support, sales and marketing in the US and other markets around the world. More
In Australia, Ipsos MediaCT has integrated RDA Research's geoTribes and geoSmart customer segmentation tools into emma, the industry-backed cross-media newspaper and magazine readership survey. More
TNS Australia has appointed former Colmar Brunton Joint MD Alistair Leathwood as Executive Director in charge of its Sydney team. He replaces Jonathan Sinton, who has transferred to TNS in New York to become Digital Director of Global Accounts. More
Australia and New Zealand-focused analytics company Veda Group, looking to develop its Inivio marketing services division, has announced the acquisition of a controlling stake in data and analytics agency Datalicious. More
Nielsen has reported a 5.5% increase in annual revenue to $5.7 billion. Media measurement arm 'Watch', enlarged by the Arbitron buy, saw revenue rise 11.2%, compared with 1.9% growth in the consumer research 'Buy' division. More
US-based social media solutions firm Lithium Technologies is to acquire social media analytics firm Klout, in a deal which is reported to be worth at least $100m. More
Technology specialist Forrester Research has reported a 3% rise in Q4 revenue to $77.5m, despite a 1% revenue drop in its biggest division, Research, to $51.4m. The latter was driven by an 'expected' contraction in the firm's syndicated data business. More
In New York, digital measurement specialist comScore has hired former Arbitron EVP, New Product Innovation Manish Bhatia for its newly created role of Chief Revenue Officer, overseeing the sales, servicing, sales operations and business operations teams on a global basis. More
Brand and communications research specialist Hall & Partners has relocated its Chicago-based team to larger offices, to support the growth of the business and to provide more collaborative workspaces for client meetings and workshops. More
Marketing services giant Omnicom has merged its advanced analytics and predictive modelling agency The Modellers into its ad and brand research specialist Hall & Partners. More
Nielsen has today announced today that it has completed its tender offer to acquire all outstanding shares of common stock of Harris Interactive, and that the acquisition should close today. More
WPP has announced that Xaxis, its audience profiling and targeting division, has agreed to acquire Netherlands-based media trading firm Bannerconnect, whose offer includes real-time campaign optimisation platform Bright. More
UK-based Facts International has appointed former Opinion Leader and Diagnostics exec Sarah Carter as a Research Director. More
GfK's sales have dipped back below the EUR 1.5 billion mark, not helped by a strengthening of the currency: the 2013 figure fell by 1.3%, from EUR 1.514bn in 2012 to EUR 1.495bn in 2013 despite modest organic growth of 0.8%. Adjusted operating income crept up by 1.5% to EUR 190m. More
Millward Brown has signed a multi-year deal with emotion measurement specialist Affectiva to integrate the latter's Affdex automated facial coding as a standard feature in all MB's 'Link' ad copy testing services. More
Ipsos MediaCT has launched a real-time content monitor called MediaMoments, allowing clients to understand how, when and where their content is consumed, and how experience of consumption differs according to platform. More
Angus Reid, the Executive Chairman of research community and survey tech firm Vision Critical, sold $10.5m worth of company shares last month, in a move which one analyst is claiming 'clears the deck' for a potential IPO. More
Data collection and sampling solutions provider SSI has added a further three countries - Brazil, South Korea and New Zealand - to its QuickThoughts mobile data collection platform; and has launched a new business sample source for researchers, SSI B2B inSSItes. More
Global information services company Experian has selected CEO Don Robert to become its new Chairman, following the resignation of co-founder Sir John Peace, who will step down from his role by the 2014 AGM. CFO Brian Cassin will succeed Robert as CEO. More
Research community and survey technology specialist Vision Critical has secured a $3.5m share investment from Difference Capital Financial. The firm has also appointed former OMERS Ventures MD Derek Smyth as its first ever Chief Revenue Officer (CRO). More
In Sydney, Australia, 'data intelligence' specialist Potentiate has appointed Tim Pickard as Director of Visualization and Analytics. More
The team at MrWeb / Daily Research News would like to wish all our readers and friends around the world a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. More
GfK has reported that a EUR 112.5m adjustment to goodwill on acquisitions is likely to result in a 'significant impact' on its consolidated income. More
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has expressed its concern that the sale of the Australian Associated Press (AAP) media monitoring business to media intelligence group iSentia would create a monopoly in the market. More
The business outlook for marketers around the world remains positive, according to Warc's latest Global Marketing Index (GMI), which takes into account marketers' expectations for trading conditions, marketing and staffing levels. More
Four new regional radio survey providers have been accredited by Commercial Radio Australia (CRA) to join its panel of suppliers, and to undertake audience measurement research from 2014. More
WPP-owned Kantar is to combine the resources of Kantar Retail with its TNS Retailer & Shopper practice, to form a new organisation offering a single source of retail and shopper expertise. More
Ipsos has confirmed that former TNS Regional CEO Judith Passingham will join its online data collection arm Ipsos Interactive Services (IIS) as Global CEO on 2nd January 2014. IIS was formerly part of Global Operations, led by Stewart Jones, and will now operate as a separate business. More
Digital audience profiling and analysis specialist Effective Measure has launched a new solution called SHOP for the digital retail sector, providing demographic profiles of online audiences at each stage of the transactional process. More
David Pemsel, Guardian News and Media's former Chief Commercial Officer, has been promoted to Deputy CEO, tasked with expanding UK services including marketing and audience insight, advertising and sales. More
Australian publisher Fairfax Media has acquired property data and mapping provider, Property Data Solutions for around $AUD 30m in cash - and will combine it with its existing property data business, Australian Property Monitors (APM). More
WPP research and ad agencies Millward Brown and Ogilvy & Mather have partnered to launch a syndicated tool called The Brand Cross-Cultural Index (BCCI), designed to help understand a brand's value across racial or ethnic segments. More
Online MR software company Confirmit has added a 'backchecking' feature to its survey on-demand application (SODA), to enable researchers to verify data collected in the field via mobile devices using a desktop or mobile device, an app, or a browser. More
Brand and media specialist Millward Brown has moved Sam Almutair into the newly created position of Head of Client Services, Australia, responsible for leading both the Sydney and Melbourne teams. More
WPP has merged audience profiling and targeting division Xaxis with its digital marketing tech specialist 24/7 Media, to form what it says is the world's largest programmatic media and technology platform. The merged firm will keep the Xaxis name. More
Online community and survey technology provider Toluna has introduced a service called TolunaTracking, combining reporting, analysis and visualisation with statistical matching methodologies, to enable researchers to extract insight from tracking studies in real-time. More
In Australia, the IAB (Interactive Advertising Bureau) has joined forces with seven publishers to launch a measurement pilot for a 'Mobile Audience Panel', which will be jointly funded and delivered by Nielsen. More
Hard to believe, but on Friday 29th November, DRNO's publisher MrWeb is celebrating 15 years in business. More
In Australia, Roy Morgan Research has partnered with property and lifestyle publisher REA Media, to combine the latter's online property search data with information from its own Single Source face-to-face survey of over 50,000 consumers. More
Confirmit has announced strong results for the third quarter of 2013, with 'solid double digit revenue growth' and particularly impressive growth in multi-year contracts, up 130 percent for the year as a whole. More
Nielsen is to buy Harris Interactive for around $116.6m, or $2 a share. The deal was unanimously approved on Monday by the Board of Directors of Harris, which has recently improved profits despite a continuing slide in its revenues. More
Ipsos Australia has appointed Luca Vittaloni as Head of Insights & Strategy - Western Australia, based in its Perth office which is moving to new premises within the city. More
Marketers around the world are growing in confidence, according to Warc's latest Global Marketing Index (GMI). The overall index hit a two year high - climbing three points to 57.8 from 54.8 in October, on a scale where values above 50 indicate a positive trend. More
Online DIY survey specialist SurveyMonkey has launched Enterprise, an enhanced version of its survey product promising organisations the ability to bring individual users into a centrally managed system. More
Digital marketing agency XM Asia Pacific, a part of WPP, has announced the launch of a Behavioural Sciences practice, building on the expertise in the Consumer Experience Lab it established last year. More
GfK has reported a 4% drop in sales to EUR 361.4m during the third quarter 2013, from EUR 376.7m in Q3 2012, driven by what the firm describes as the 'considerable impact' of negative currency exchange effects. Like-for-like, sales were down by around 1.5%. More
Google is testing a system which will track a user's location on the high street, in order to serve them targeted ads relating to the shops they have visited. More
TNS is moving Jacqui von Hirschberg from her current role as Executive Director of Strategy & Capability in Australia, into a pan-Asia Pacific role as Regional Director, Clients. Separately, Mandy Tam will join the firm in the New Year as Regional Director, Business Development. More
Ipsos MediaCT has appointed Adam Hodgson as Research and Operations Director for its contract with The Readership Works' newspaper and magazine readership survey, emma. More
UK-based insight and innovation consultancy The Futures Company has opened an office in Singapore, which will act as a hub for clients across Asia Pacific. More
Adobe has added a mobile module to its analytics suite the Adobe Marketing Cloud, offering clients better understanding of how users engage with mobile apps. More
Google is working with a number of its advertising clients on the use of Nielsen's Online Campaign Ratings (OCR) in the assessment of YouTube campaigns. The search giant, which already partners with comScore's vCE, said it was offering clients 'objective, credentialed, third-party measurement options'. More
Pharma and CPG giant Johnson & Johnson is moving to a more global approach to market research for some of its major brands. More
Research and advisory group ISG (Information Services Group) has announced third quarter revenues up 11% to $51.4m, fuelled by 19% growth in Europe. More
Global research consultancy The Behavioural Architects (TBA) has hired five new members of staff at its offices in London, Shanghai and Sydney. More
Technology research and analysis specialist Gartner has reported an 11% Q3 revenue rise in its Research arm - to $316.5m. For the group as a whole, revenue increased 10% year-on-year to $410.7m. More
comScore and viewability measurement firm Moat have voluntarily agreed to withdraw the claims each firm made during a patent infringement lawsuit brought by comScore last year. More
Nielsen is to promote Mitch Barns to the role of Chief Executive Officer from January 1st 2014, replacing David Calhoun who takes on the role of Executive Chairman. More
The US government will not be challenging the ad world's mega-merger, between global groups Omnicom and Publicis, following the expiry of a deadline this week. More
TNS has appointed Vishy Rajagopal S. as Regional Director, Operations for Asia Pacific. He was VP, Operations for TNS India for five years until 2009, and re-joins from Nielsen where he has served as regional Head of Data Acquisition for the Middle East, Africa & Pakistan, and South Asia. More
US-based customer and employee research specialist ORC International has appointed Matthew Au as Managing Director, China at its office in Singapore, where it has also hired Jane Guo as Senior Qualitative Research Manager. More
Gurgaon, India-based MR agency Orchidea Research has re-opened with new owners and with the launch of online panels in the US, Canada, UK, India, China, Japan, Korea, Brazil, Spain, France, and Germany. More
News provider Australian Associated Press (AAP) is planning to sell its media monitoring business to media intelligence group iSentia (formerly known as Media Monitors). Terms of the deal have not been disclosed. More
Millward Brown Digital has introduced a suite of behavior-based mobile intelligence solutions, to provide new insights on how people use their mobile devices while shopping. More
WPP has reported third quarter revenue growth of 3.2% in its 'Data Investment Management' (DIM) businesses, to £617m, and growth of 2.6% to £1.8 billion for the first nine months of the year. More
Technology specialist Forrester Research has met its revenue guidance for Q3, with revenue up 1.6% year-on-year to $69.6m. However, revenues from its majority Research division fell 1% to $49.8m. More
Ipsos has announced a 5% drop in third quarter revenues to EUR 418m (Q2 2012: EUR 440m) - the result of a 6.8% negative currency effect. The decline was partly offset by 1.8% organic growth during the period. More
Nielsen has reported a 2.7% increase in third quarter revenue to $1.39 billion, the result of a 2.2% rise in the 'Buy' consumer research arm to $871m, and a 3.4% rise in the 'Watch' media research arm to $516m. More
Digital audience profiling and measurement provider Effective Measure is expanding into the Hong Kong market. More
Australian audience body the AMAA has today announced the launch of its new audited web site measurement service, which will use comScore's Digital Analytix platform to provide a range of metrics for ad buyers and sellers. More
In the US, the judge who threw out TRA's patent infringement lawsuit against Kantar has now ordered that decision to be withdrawn from the record. More
TNS has launched an 'express' version of its flagship ConversionModel brand equity tool, which it says will enable businesses to identify growth opportunities and build brand equity in a matter of hours. More
Research Now has released a new version of its Mobile platform, featuring its newly developed 'Relevant Movement' geo-location technology and integration of its Mobile Access Panel. More
Data visualization company Infotools has promoted Ian Murray to the role of Managing Director for Europe, based in London. More
Facebook has agreed to acquire Israeli mobile data company Onavo, whose software helps app users and developers optimise their use of data, and whose Onavo Insights division is billed as 'the first mobile market intelligence service based on real engagement data'. Terms were not disclosed. More
GfK has revealed details of its new measurement system for Commercial Radio Australia, to be known as AudienScope, which it says will introduce quarterly assessments of listeners' response to ads, emotional bonds with stations and motivations for listening. More
Australia-based custom research firm The Leading Edge (TLE) has appointed Nigel Marsh as Chairman, following the departure of Global CEO Andy Bateman, who is joining telecoms giant Telstra in the newly created position of Director of Segment Marketing. More
Millward Brown Digital has launched Conversion Tracker, which it says allows marketers to see competitors' onsite activity 'like never before', as well as learning from top performers and isolating key issues affecting their own performance. More
Australia will have no official web visitor metrics for the month of October, with Nielsen stats ceasing as of this week and the replacement service resulting from the AMAA's tender not yet ready. More
Nielsen has announced that Vice Chair Susan D. Whiting has decided to retire at the end of 2013, after thirty-five years with the company. More
Nielsen has announced the successful completion of its acquisition of Arbitron, which was finally cleared by the FTC a week ago. Arbitron becomes Nielsen Audio and will be integrated into Nielsen's US Watch business segment. More
New Zealand-based Infotools, which helps clients build MR findings into a 'Knowledge Bank' with services including data harmonisation and visualization solutions, is moving its Buenos Aires, Argentina offices to larger offices to service increased business in neighbouring Brazil. More
Data intelligence and technology company Potentiate Australia has opened an office in Malaysia, and appointed Nielsen veteran Barry Ooi as its Managing Director. More
ISP-level ad targeting pioneer Phorm has announced 'strong sustained growth in revenue and other KPIs', based on its Turkish operations. More
Lachlane Brahe, currently Commercial Director of Digital at MCM Media, is to take over from Amy Weinberger as leader of the Australian and NZ operations of online measurement giant comScore, reports suggest. More
TNS has made a further substantial investment in automotive customer experience specialist Enprecis Inc., which will now become the key technology provider underpinning its own automotive data management. More
GfK has announced a strategic investment in Genius Digital, giving its clients access to the firm's technology for collecting and acting upon customer data from IP-enabled video devices. More
Kantar Media is rolling out an app version of its InfoSys+ TV audience analysis service, allowing broadcast audience data to be viewed on mobile devices. More
AIP Corporation, headquartered in Tokyo, has added Australia to its twice monthly Asia Omnibus Online product, which currently runs across 12 Asian countries. More
The FTC has announced it has reached an agreement with Nielsen, allowing the latter's acquisition of Arbitron to go through, with a condition safeguarding Arbitron's September 2012 cross-platform project with comScore and broadcaster ESPN. More
Leading edge UK-based agency BrainJuicer has announced Interim Results for the six months ended 30th June, with revenue up 4% to £10.8m, and operating profit up 81% to £1.3m. More
Speculation in the papers suggests that Nielsen's $1.3bn merger with Arbitron could finally get approval today from the FTC, perhaps with an agreement to license technology to comScore. However, at time of going to press, nothing further has been announced. More
Google is looking at a system which would replace 'cookies' with a system of anonymous identifiers for individual consumers, according to an official of the company. More
Ipsos Healthcare has launched a range of 'syndicated patient journey studies', giving a holistic view of the end-to-end patient experience including the whole buying process. The first to launch is 'OncoJourney'. More
Facebook has launched a tool to help telecoms carriers and operators to measure the success of their advertising on the social network. The product links sales, including those in stores, with ad impressions served. More
Online analytics pioneer Webtrends has named David Mitchell as Chief Executive Officer, replacing Alex Yoder who has left the company for reasons as yet unclear. More
Online panel community and survey technology provider Toluna has launched a DIY sampling platform called SampleXpress, which it says enables clients to select their own survey respondents, assess price, and launch and manage projects from their office or their home. More
Global MR industry turnover grew by 3.2% to $39.1 billion in 2012, according to ESOMAR's latest Global Market Research Report. During the year, strong performance was seen in Asia Pacific, Africa and Latin America, countering 'sluggish' performances elsewhere. More
Kantar Media has teamed up with audience targeting specialist I-Behavior to develop a service called Ad-Vantage, allowing advertisers to reach specifically defined consumer groups online. More
Customer experience management consultancy Nunwood has appointed twelve new members of staff at its London and Sydney offices, on the back of several new business wins from clients including British Airways and the Post Office in the UK and Suncorp Bank & Insurance in Australia. More
Custom research firm TLE (formerly The Leading Edge) has transferred Client Director Derek McInnes from its Sydney office to its operations in London. More
Australian firm QSR International has combined its flagship qual research software NVivo with SurveyMonkey's DIY research tool, which it says will make it easier for individuals to collect, organize, understand and report on open-ended survey responses. More
Panel firm Research Now has appointed Elizabeth May as Vice President of Client Development in its Sydney office, where she will be responsible for leading client development teams across both Australia and New Zealand. More
US sampling and data collection provider Critical Mix has acquired SurveyMonkey's ZoomPanel community, and will combine it with its own online panel sample in the US, UK, France, Canada and Australia. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
US-based web analytics and behavioral targeting firm Lotame has opened an office in Singapore and appointed Mathew Ward as MD of the Asia Pacific region. More
Marcoms group STW has acquired a majority stake in Colmar Brunton Australia, the country's largest independently owned market research agency. The amount of the investment was not disclosed. More
In Australia, audience measurement firm Roy Morgan Research has hit out at industry body The Newspaper Works' plans to offer its new emma newspaper and magazine readership survey free for the next 12 months, describing the move as 'predatory pricing'. More
Retail data giant Information Resources, Inc. (IRI) has acquired Aegis-owned retail information and scan-data business Aztec for an undisclosed sum. More
Nielsen has once agreed to extend the period for regulatory review of the Arbitron transaction, into September - but continues to stress that it is 'confident in the ultimate outcome'. More
PR group Edelman has launched its Edelman Berland research and analytics subsidiary in Greater China, and has relocated Fergus Clarke from its Abu Dhabi office to Hong Kong to lead it as Head of Research for Edelman Berland Greater China. More
Vincent Bollore, Chairman of marketing services holding group Havas, has resigned and passed the reins to his son Yannick. More
Nielsen has struck a last-minute deal with the Audited Media Association of Australia to ensure publishers and advertisers do not face a month without audited circulation statistics, according to reports. More
Marcoms giant WPP has reported a 2.1% increase in second quarter revenue in its 'Data Investment Management' (DIM) arm, previously known as the Consumer Insight division. The total figure of £651m reflects growth in all regions except the UK and Western Europe. More
Digital measurement specialist comScore has introduced an enhanced service to track US mobile commerce (m-commerce) sales - whether via smartphones or tablets - and analyse by product category and leading individual retailer. More
Pulse Group's big data unit Pulsate has partnered with technology giants Dell and Intel and statistical software specialist Revolution Analytics, to set up a Big Data Solutions Centre, which will pool big data expertise from the four companies. More
Millward Brown has launched a mobile tracker, through which to deliver insights to marketers in the Africa, Middle East and Asia-Pacific (AMAP) region, as part of what the firm describes as an 'aggressive regional mobile research strategy'. More
Former Mindshare Australia CEO Chris Walton has sold his shares in customer data analytics firm Quantium for an undisclosed sum, and stepped down from his role as Principal with the business. More
In Australia, MR and public opinion polling firm Roy Morgan Research has appointed industry specialist Tim Martin for the newly created role of Digital Director, Client Services. More
Revenue at Sydney-based research and marcoms group Enero plunged in the last financial year, with the total figure dropping from $AUD 225.2m to $AUD 127.3m. Revenue from continuing operations was down from $AUD 174m last year; and the group's reported loss was $AUD 83m. More
In Australia, media intelligence group iSentia (formerly known as Media Monitors) has acquired social media agency Two Social. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
Amy Weinberger, the head of online measurement specialist comScore in Australia and New Zealand, is stepping down from her role, and will be replaced by a 'local hire'. More
emma, Australia's new industry-backed newspaper and magazine readership survey, has published its first figures, which show substantially larger audiences - for most publications - than the metrics produced by Roy Morgan. More
Apple has introduced a new set of rules to ensure that developers no longer use behavioral ad targeting techniques aimed at those aged under 13. Developers must also ensure that children's apps include a privacy policy and a system for seeking parental permission for in-app purchases. More
Australian market and opinion researcher Roy Morgan has added a suite of research products to its Single Source survey, which it claims will change the way media, ad agencies and marketers view and analyse media performance and potential. More
Australian industry body The Readership Works has announced that its new 'emma' newspaper and magazine readership survey will roll out monthly from November. More
GfK has announced organic revenue growth of 1.7% in the first half of 2013, with sales totalling EUR 728.6m, and a 'particularly profitable' Q2, with adjusted operating income up 15.7 percent. More
WPP is to accelerate its move towards digital sources and fast-growth markets, raising longstanding targets for the proportion of business from each, according to a LinkedIn post by CEO Sir Martin Sorrell. He also appears to be phasing out the words 'research' and 'insight' in favour of a catchy new expression... More
Ipsos Healthcare has announced the global launch of a new research framework, EquityVision, which builds on its BrandVision product to 'link the major sources of commercial equity in the multi-channel healthcare marketing environment.' More
WPP-owned brand and media specialist Millward Brown has bought a 'majority stake' in Brazilian consultancy BrandAnalytics. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
The world's 25 largest research firms reported a 'better than expected' 2012, thanks in large part to syndicated services and global acquisitions, according to industry authority Jack Honomichl. More
Bob Carrigan, the CEO of media, events and research group IDG Communications Worldwide, is stepping down from his position at the end of September, when he will be replaced by company veterans Michael Friedenberg and David Hill. More
Research software company Survey Analytics has appointed Prashant Hari as 'Oceania Representative', to lead the roll-out of its tools and services across New Zealand and Australia. More
In Melbourne, Australia, digital audience specialist Effective Measure has hired Nielsen's former CTO John Griffin as Global Chief Technology Officer, responsible for leading the firm's software engineering, data application and infrastructure technology teams. More
Technology specialist Gartner has reported a 12% rise in second quarter revenue for its Research division, which brought in $311.2m. More
TLE has restructured its Sydney office, with the promotion of Lee Naylor to Managing Director, as Tim Riches moves to a new role in the design sector. The firm has also expanded Chrissy Blackburn's position to include leadership of the Qual team. More
In Australia, big data analytics company Contexti has appointed Ernst & Young's former Director of Predictive Business Intelligence Dr Eugene Dubossarsky as Chief Data Scientist, to lead and grow the firm's capabilities. More
The private-equity backers of e-Rewards - owner of Research Now and Peanut Labs - are said to be in discussions to find a buyer, according to sources quoted on Bloomberg, with a price tag of 'at least $600m' according to one contact. More
US-based Survey Analytics is rolling out its research software tools across New Zealand and Australia. More
Nielsen has reported a 3% rise in second quarter revenue to $1.38 billion, driven by a 2% increase in its Buy retail measurement division and 5% in its Watch media analytics arm. More
Publicis and Omnicom are to merge to form the world's largest marcoms network, with a combined staff of 130,000 and a market value of $35.1 billion. The move pushes WPP to second place in the ranking. More
Digital measurement specialist comScore has reported its highest quarterly revenue to date, up 21% on the prior year period to $69.9m. More
Following a 2.7% fall in first quarter revenue, Ipsos has reported a 0.4% rise in its second quarter figures. However, negative currency effects meant that total first half 2013 revenues fell by 4% to EUR 803.7m. More
MR software and services firm MarketTools has acquired mobile research specialist RawData, which provides a service to passively track consumer behavior across multiple media platforms. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
Forrester Research CEO George Colony has described the firm's recovery as a 'work in progress', while reporting a fall in second quarter revenue to $78.2m, from $79.1m a year previously. More
Ipsos Australia has appointed Hamish Munro as its new CEO, based in Sydney and replacing Hugh Amoyal. More
New Zealand-based full service quant and qual agency Cinta Research is looking for a buyer, as founder and MD Fiona Hudson looks to focus her attention on her daughter's career as New Zealand's top alpine skier. More
Melbourne, Australia-based software firm Research Reporter has released a customized version of its insight management platform focused on the MR needs of media companies - including broadcast and cable networks, film and video distributors. More
Ipsos has filed a lawsuit in London's High Court against Aegis, claiming that the marcoms giant failed to disclose tax and fraud probes at Synovate, before it sold the company for £525m ($792m). As a result, Ipsos is seeking up to £65.8m ($100m) in compensation from Aegis. More
Ipsos Retail Performance has launched a new Shopper Insights suite which it says will enable managers and other store staff to understand and interpret both their traffic and transactional data. More
Kadence International has reported a 35% year-on-year increase in net revenues to $27m for the year ending 30th June 2013. Business in Indonesia, the US and Singapore was particularly brisk. More
Online sampling and technology company uSamp has closed $15m in a Series D round of funding, with development of its instant.ly survey product one of the priorities for investment. More
Toluna has launched an app, TolunaMobile Diary, which gathers feedback on consumer activities in real-time. More
Ipsos Marketing's qual arm Ipsos UU has appointed industry veteran Natalie Hennekam as Account Director in its Melbourne office. More
Research and marcoms group Enero has transferred Alex Siewert from its ad agency BMF to its research and strategy consultancy TLE in Sydney, where he takes up the role of Strategy Director. More
Australian industry body The Readership Works is to work with Nielsen to merge the latter's Online Ratings data with its forthcoming cross platform audience insights survey 'emma'. More
Two Asia Pac panel providers, Sydney-based MyOpinions and Tokyo-based AIP, have struck a deal to off their clients combined sample and related research services across Asia. More
Watermelon Research, the specialist digital company within Chime's CIE division, has announced the opening of an office in Sydney, its first in the Asia Pacific region. Company MD Mark Squires will oversee the setup and management of the new office. More
In Australia, Ipsos MediaCT has appointed former Horizon Media CEO Jane Nicholls for its new role as Commercial Director, in charge of the commercialization and roll out of the new 'emma' newspaper and magazine readership survey, launched last week by The Readership Works. More
In Singapore, TNS has promoted Nitin Nishandar to the position of Regional Managing Director for the Brand & Communication practice in Asia Pacific, responsible for a team of practitioners based across the region. More
In Australia, industry body The Readership Works has finally got round to naming its new newspaper and magazine readership survey, three years after Ipsos MediaCT was selected to run the programme. It's to be known as 'emma' - Enhanced Media Metrics Australia. More
GfK has introduced a communications tracker to measure the social and emotional reaction of consumers to the various 'touch points' for a particular brand, and identify those the individual finds most memorable. More
Panel and research technology provider Toluna has opened an office in Singapore, where Julie dePontbriand takes up the role of Director, ASEAN. Meanwhile, the firm's Hong Kong office will shortly be relocating from Sheung Wan to Central. More
Not-for-profit bodies NatCen Social Research and RTI International have signed a three-year agreement through which they will aim to share knowledge and expertise and build their research capacity and capabilities. More
comScore has promoted Serge Matta to President, after twelve years at the company, most recently as President of Commercial Solutions and leader of the global sales organization. More
Pharma brand and communications specialist Hall & Partners Health has launched a 'patient experience framework', PatientPulse, looking at what people 'feel', 'think' and 'do' before, during and after treatment. More
US information and analytics firm IHS is to acquire PFC Energy, which provides information, insight, and analytical products and services to the oil and gas sector. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
UK-based consumer specialist Incite has opened full service offices in New York and Singapore, strengthening its service for global clients. More
Ipsos has launched a social media research and communities division called Ipsos SMX (Social Media Exchange), to provide clients with new approaches to market research into consumer engagement and interaction. More
The founders of photo sharing site TweetPhoto have set up a DIY mobile survey platform called SlimSurveys, in a bid to take on companies like Survey Monkey which they claim provide a 'terrible experience' for survey takers. More
Research outsourcing and panels company Pulse Group has inked a deal with Chicago-based 'Over the Shoulder', to bring the latter's smartphone-based consumer insight tool to the Asia Pacific region. More
Yahoo! Asia Pacific and Millward Brown have announced a partnership using the latter's AdIndex solution to help clients evaluate the brand impact of digital advertising, both in general and on Yahoo! properties. More
Ad giant Ogilvy has launched a data and analytics practice called data[at]Ogilvy in Australia, which will focus on areas including digital analytics, customer engagement and data planning. More
GfK has acquired Sensemetric Web & Social Media Mining, as part of its plans to centralize its existing social media services in a global Intelligence Center. Terms of the buy were not disclosed. More
Australian consultancy InfoReady has launched a Marketing Intelligence practice, specialising in multi-channel marketing and analytics, and appointed James Forbes to establish and lead it. More
US information and analytics firm IHS Inc is to acquire automotive research specialist R.L. Polk & Co. for $1.4bn. The deal will be funded 10% by equity and the remainder in cash. More
Pharma data giant IMS Health has acquired SaaS firm Incential Software, as it looks to extend its performance management capabilities for life sciences organizations worldwide. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
Marcoms giant WPP has agreed a global partnership with Twitter and will use its data to give clients 'more effective campaigns, enhanced targeting, and more real-time insight'. More
Digital audience measurement pioneer comScore has announced the launch of the 'next generation' Multi-Platform version of its Digital Analytix product, offering clients a broader view of customers' behavior. More
Millward Brown has appointed Adrian Gonzalez as CEO of its Africa, Middle East and Asia Pacific (AMAP) region, effective July 15th. He succeeds Travyn Rhall, recently promoted to Global CEO. More
IBM has announced new workforce-related big data software and services, which it says will help organizations build and maintain their global workforce by analysing data shared by employees and finding trends. More
Research software specialist Confirmit has launched Version 12.2 of its CustomerSat solution, which it says brings 'key metrics from multiple survey programmes together in a single dashboard to track performance against corporate goals'. More
Toluna has announced a number of enhancements to its TolunaAnalytics web-based analysis, reporting and visualisation tool. They include the ability to analyse survey data from tracking studies. More
Ipsos MarketQuest has unveiled the 'next generation' of its suite of brand growth solutions, Censydiam, which it says helps users to identify and prioritise category and cross category opportunities for growth, analyse brand choice and measure brand equity. More
uSamp has announced the newest version of its iPoll mobile app, which it says offers improved performance and a faster, more intuitive in-app user experience. More
Brand and communications researcher Hall & Partners has appointed Jim Forrest as Global Partner, Digital Innovations, based in New York, with a remit to drive digital strategy and the creation, global roll-out and integration of digital capabilities across the company. More
Pharma specialist Double Helix Consulting has appointed former Deloitte exec Callum Bir to lead its Asia Pacific consulting business, based in its Singapore office. More
Tokyo-based Research Panel Asia (RPA) has chosen Singapore for the location of its sixth office, which it says will act as a hub for marketing research across the APAC region. More
Millward Brown has appointed Travyn Rhall as Global CEO, succeeding Eileen Campbell who is stepping down in mid-July for personal reasons. More
Nielsen has opted not to participate in a tender put out by the Audited Media Association of Australia (AAMA), for a new range of metrics to be included in its Web Audit Service. The measurement giant says the ad industry has made clear its preference for a single metric. More
Healthcare consultancy Double Helix has put together an APAC market research team, which will be led by former IMS Health exec Diana Tan and will work out of its Singapore offices. More
GfK has issued an ad hoc statement on preliminary figures for the first quarter, showing organic sales growth of only 0.6 percent, and adjusted operating income and margin down on Q1 2012. However the global group says order levels are good and it should meet annual forecasts of 3-4 percent sales growth. More
GfK has announced the acquisition of Australia-based agricultural insights firm Paterson Consulting, and the opening of new offices in Sydney and Melbourne for its Animal and Crop Health team. More
Research Now has joined online community specialist Vision Critical's Global Partner Program, in order to offer the latter's insight community technologies to its own clients and prospects around the world. More
Radio ratings giant Arbitron has reported a 5.1% increase in Q1 revenue to $111.8m, compared with $106.4m in the prior year period. Earnings are slightly down - Q1 EBITDA was to $34.7m vs $36.6m a year earlier - due the firm says to the costs associated with the planned Nielsen merger. More
Mobile marketing firm Brandtone has signed a one-year partnership with TNS, which will give the research company exclusive access to its database of engaged consumers in developing and emerging markets. The initial partnership will cover South Africa, Turkey, Russia and Brazil. More
Bart Michels, UK MD of WPP's brand development and insight consultancy Added Value, will take on the role of Global Chief Executive Officer from 1st July, replacing Janine Hawkins who is leaving the company. More
Sampling, data collection and analytics specialist SSI has updated its QuickTake DIY solution to include geographic selection options in European markets including Germany, the UK and France. Latin American and Asia Pacific countries will follow. More
The Audited Media Association of Australia (AMAA) has put out to tender a contract to measure a new range of metrics to be included in its Web Audit Service. The organisation's existing service has been audited by Nielsen for the past four years. More
Digital measurement specialist comScore has reported 'record revenues', with first quarter figures up 11% to $68.8m compared with $62.3m a year ago, driven by its Audience Analytics business and mobile and multi-platform products. More
In Australia, supermarket giant Woolworths has taken a 50% non-controlling stake in customer data analytics firm Quantium, which in return will gain access to Woolworth's customer data and provide insights to the retailer's packaged goods suppliers. More
Technology research specialist Gartner has reported a 10% increase in first quarter total group revenue to $406.8m - with the Research division posting an impressive 13% increase to $310.3m. More
In Australia, Sarah Keith has left Fairfax Media after just nine months, to re-join her former employer TV broadcaster Channel Ten as Head of Research, Analytics and Inventory Management. More
Alan Gould, the co-founder of IAG Research, has joined online sampling and technology company uSamp as Chief Executive Officer, while the firm's founders Matt Dusig and Gregg Lavin will continue to operate the firm's core sampling business. More
Nielsen is piloting a new solution, 'Nielsen Digital Program Ratings', designed to measure audiences who view TV content online. More
WPP's Consumer Insight division has reported a 3.2% increase in revenue from £569m to £588m for the first quarter. Like-for-like - allowing for currency changes and the effect of acquisitions - the rise was only 1%. More
Nielsen has reported a 3% increase in Q1 revenues to $1.38 billion, despite performance in Europe which CFO Brian West said in a conference call continues to be a 'pretty big drag' on the company. More
TLE (formerly The Leading Edge) has launched a new methodology called 'TLE Social', designed to help organisations measure how their brand is impacted by their reputation in areas such as sustainability, community fabric, climate change, child labour and animal welfare. More
Ipsos has reported a 5.3% drop in first quarter revenues to EUR 359.6m, which equates to a 2.7% drop at constant scope and exchange rates. The firm says these figures reflect a decrease in commercial activity in the final quarter of 2012. More
New York-based SIS International Research has appointed Thomas Fuller as Managing Director of the Asia Pacific region, based in the firm's Shanghai offices. More
CEO Tony Hale has left Australian newspaper industry body The Newspaper Works and is replaced from today by Mark Hollands, who previously led PANPA, the Pacific Area association which merged into it. More
IAB Australia has extended its national online audience measurement contract with Nielsen, without going out to tender. More
Reports in the UK press suggest that Andrew Cooper, co-founder of polling firm Populus, is leaving his position as an advisor to PM David Cameron, possibly as a result of differences with Australian election specialist Lynton Crosby. More
MESH Planning Partner Stephen Phillips has launched a new online DIY market research platform called ZappiStore, initially available in the UK, US and Australia. More
Research Now Mobile has added multilingual capabilities to its research platform, allowing for surveys to be authored in more than 50 languages. A launch scheduler, a quota management system and improved location-based targeting also feature in the new upgrade. More
Australian-based insights consultancy Fiftyfive5 has added (yes) five new consultants to its team in response to what it calls 'a continued increase in demand' for its strategic consulting services. More
Digital audience specialist comScore has suffered a legal setback in Illinois, where a federal judge has ruled it could be open to a class action suit over claims of privacy violations. More
Sydney, Aus-based Q Research Software is to open an office in New York later this month, and has appointed former Illuminas SRE Steven Kawalek to lead it. More
Nielsen has rolled out its ad measurement service Online Campaign Ratings to four new markets - Germany, Italy, Australia and Canada. More
Management consultancy Accenture has acquired Australian change management analytics specialist ChangeTrack Research, as it looks to improve its measurement and progress monitoring for clients' change programs. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
GfK has fully integrated its custom research division GfK Blue Moon into its global structure, and renamed it GfK Australia, Consumer Experiences. More
Custom research firm TLE (formerly The Leading Edge) has appointed shopper research specialist Karen Sandrault as Director of Strategy at its Sao Paolo office. More
Down Under, the Audit Bureau of Circulations (ABC) and Circulations Audit Board (CAB) have merged into a unified legal entity known as the Audited Media Association of Australia. More
Digital audience measurement giant comScore has officially launched its MMX Multi-Platform service in the USA, combining and deduping audience across PCs, smartphones and tablets. More
Enero Group has launched a Data Sciences Unit, in response to growing client demand for data driven marketing solutions. The unit will initially be launched in Australia and the UK, and will then be rolled out to Brazil and the US 'over the coming year'. More
Australia and UK-based digital consumer insights specialist Watch Me Think has expanded to the US, where it has appointed Kevin Gould as President. More
UK-based telephone research specialist Facts International has expanded into the APAC region, with the opening of an office in Sydney, Australia. More
Australian market and opinion researcher Roy Morgan has acquired the ABIX business news service from intelligence provider Lexis Nexis, and will offer clients financial information services. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
Panel firm Research Now has announced an international deal with Experian Marketing Services, the data giant's insight and targeting wing, combining online behavioural data with the ability to survey the same individuals. More
Insights consultancy Greenberg Brand Strategy has hired former Penn Schoen Berland (PSB) Asia leader Tatt Chen as Global Head of Client and Market Development. More
Australian marcoms group STW has acquired a minority stake in the Australian arm of UK-based behavioural insights firm Beyond Analysis. Terms of the investment were not disclosed. More
Panel and research software firm GMI has launched a consultative service called Re-Track, to enable clients to determine areas for improvement in the structure and design of their tracking surveys. More
Ipsos has set up a new Employee Relationship Management (ERM) practice in APAC, helping clients with talent attraction, employer branding, leadership development and staff retention strategies. More
GfK has confirmed a 10.2% increase in 2012 sales to EUR 1.5 billion, exceeding its target of 9%. 'Strong' organic growth of 3.1% is cited as a key reason for beating the target. More
TNS has appointed former Ernst & Young Partner Richard Ingleton as its new Global Chief Executive Officer, replacing Eric Salama who previously combined the role with his leadership of Kantar. More
Research and advisory group ISG has reported an 11% increase in fourth quarter revenues to $49.5m, while operating income was $1.7m, compared to an operating loss of $59.9m in Q4 2011. For the full year, gains in the Americas more than cancelled out a decline in European business. More
In Australia, former GfK Blue Moon execs Claire Duffy and Craig Smith have set up a new qualitative market and social research agency called Snapcracker Research + Strategy, in Willoughby, north of Sydney. More
Experian Marketing Services has announced the launch of Hitwise Mobile, which will provide clients with 'comprehensive data and insights' about mobile consumer behaviour. More
Emerging market digital audience analyst Effective Measure has appointed John Davis in the new role of Global Measurement Scientist, based in its Australian office in Melbourne. More
WPP has announced preliminary results for 2012. Group revenues rose 3.5% to around £10.4bn, and headline EBITDA rose 7% to £1.76bn; but in the Consumer Insight division, like-for-like revenues rose just 0.8%, with gross margin down 1.1%. More
...as bad as you fear, or as good as you hope *. Wise words, or at least a good starting point for a feature on threats and opportunities for the research profession, overwhelmed as we sometimes are by hype and alarmism. This is the last of our seven features celebrating job ad no.100,000. More
Ipsos has reported 2012 revenues of EUR 1.8bn, up from EUR 1.4bn in 2011, but disappointing given the addition of Synovate. Accustomed to rapid growth, the group blamed the stall on politicians, the integration process and competitor poaching of senior staff. Profits however remained solid. More
Customer experience management (CEM) specialist Nunwood has extended its presence in Australia with the opening of satellite offices in Brisbane and Melbourne, to support its existing Asia Pacific HQ in Sydney. The firm has doubled the size of its Australian team in the process. More
GfK has integrated its 'EMO Scan' facial expression measure into its existing ad testing system, to help clients understand consumers' spontaneous emotional response to advertising. More
The outlook for marketers has continued to improve, according to the latest wave of Warc's Global Marketing Index, which shows a third successive month of improvement. More
Aside from paying the kind of huge sums management consultancies pay, how do we entice bright graduates into the profession? It's a tough question - but we're used to answering tough questions, and surely we know some of the answers already, says Nick Thomas, continuing our features to celebrate job ad no.100,000. More
The Leading Edge (TLE) has expanded in Asia with a number of new hires, including Justin Garrett as Managing Director in its Singapore office. The firm has also opened a new office in New Delhi, India. More
Chris Paxton has left the Sydney office of Australian custom researcher The Leading Edge, to return to his native UK as Managing Director of the London office. More
After 66 years delivering Australia's radio ratings, Nielsen Media has lost the contract to GfK, to whom national industry body Commercial Radio Australia (CRA) has awarded a three-year deal starting next January. More
Not too little, not too much, with three vital ingredients and a splash of flavouring... Continuing our celebrations of job ad no.100,000, Nick Thomas gives a simple but effective recipe for a good job ad. More
In Australia, Nielsen says it will retire its monthly Unique Browser (UB) metrics at the end of this month, following recent announcements from advertising bodies in the country that the figure is no longer meaningful. More
Australian-based MR software firm Numbers has released the latest version of its Q analysis software product, boasting online dashboards, new analyses including TURF, 3-D and 4-D tables and new mapping algorithms. More
comScore has reported record fourth quarter revenue of $68.4m, up 9% over the prior year period. This was driven by growth across its Media Metrix suite of audience measurement tools, which offset declines in its copy testing business. More
US-based technology specialist Forrester Research has reported annual revenue up six percent to $202.9m for its Research arm (from $191.5m in 2011). However, its Advisory services business declined two percent to $89.9m, and the firm is planning to make 30 staff redundant. More
Millward Brown has developed a model which it claims 'cracks the code' for how brands drive financial growth for their organisations. More
According to reports in the press, Facebook is in talks with Microsoft to buy the latter's Atlas Solutions media measurement platform, for something under $100m. More
Is it possible to talk about the mass of new skills and techniques bombarding the profession without feeling depressed about the traditional skills of the market researcher? Most definitely, says MrWeb co-founder Nick Thomas, continuing our celebration of 100,000 MR job ads. More
Nielsen has reported a 1% rise in revenue to $5.6 billion for the full year 2012, compared with the 8% increase it posted the previous year. Revenue in the firm's Buy retail measurement division was flat while the Watch media analytics arm saw a 3% increase. More
Today we reach the milestone of 100,000 job ads on MrWeb. It's taken just over fourteen years and 1,806 different advertisers, and in that time we've seen many changes in the way researchers are recruited, and the skills in demand. Co-founder Nick Thomas starts an in-depth review today. More
UK-based BDRC Group has added a China office to its existing overseas locations in Singapore and Sydney. Based in Beijing, the new office will be led by former B2B International China Deputy GM Siew Wong. More
Japanese advertising giant Dentsu has postponed the target completion date for its acquisition of Aegis, by one month to 28th March, following an agreement with the Chinese Ministry of Commerce, the only body yet to give its clearance for the deal to go through. More
Technology specialist Gartner saw revenues in its Research division rise 14% to $300.2m in the three months ended December 31, 2012, while for the full year, they climbed 12% to $1.13 billion. More
GfK has named four senior leaders for its operations in the CEE-META (Central and Eastern Europe Middle East, Turkey and Africa) and APAC (Asia and the Pacific) regions. More
Reports from the US say Twitter has acquired Bluefin Labs - which tracks social media conversations about TV programs - in a deal worth between $50m and $100m. More
Nielsen and Arbitron have voluntarily agreed to provide the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) with additional time to review Nielsen's proposed takeover of the radio ratings giant. More
Video advertising platform Adap.tv has introduced a tool to verify the 'viewability' of video ads in real-time, allowing ad measurement to discount those impressions that do not appear to the user. More
Preliminary results indicate that GfK's full-year revenue rose 10.2% in 2012, to approximately EUR 1.5bn, with organic growth of 3.1%. More
Worldwide marketing budgets have risen for the first time in more than eight months, according to Warc's latest Global Marketing Index (GMI). More
Panel and research technology specialist Vision Critical has acquired text analytics specialist DiscoverText. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
Database giant Experian has acquired Melbourne-based analytics business Pacific Micromarketing from publishing group PMP for $AUD 6.2 million (US $6.5m). More
GfK has established 'consistent standards' for global implementation of its new social media analysis (SMA) offer, which combines automated systems with interpretation by human coders. More
Millward Brown has announced a major expansion of its Link and Facial Coding technology, and says two of its biggest clients, Unilever and The Coca-Cola Company, will use the technique for all their ad testing in 2013. More
Full service agency Market Strategies International (MSI) has opened an office in Singapore, led by David Ying Hon Ho, currently the company's Research Director and International Research Specialist. More
Steve Garton, the former MD of Ipsos MediaCT Asia Pacific, has left to set up his own consultancy. The new firm will base its services around 'holistic communication' and ROI measures, supported by technology 'not previously available in Asia'. More
In London, healthcare research specialist The P\S\L Group has appointed sector veteran Bob Douglas as Chief Strategy Officer. More
Australia's government spent a record amount on market research last year - some $AUD 35.25m (US $36.7m or £22.8m). Allowing for inflation there was a slight dip in real-terms spending, but nothing like that for other areas of expenditure. More
Tokyo-based companies Dentsu and Digital Garage (DG) have agreed a strategic alliance. As of January 11th, Dentsu will acquire 7% of the outstanding common shares of DG for just over 2.6bn Yen (c.$31m). More
According to research conducted by Conversion Voodoo, Americans prefer the term 'Merry Christmas' to 'Happy Holidays' by two to one (64% v 31%). More
WPP-owned marcoms network Wunderman has acquired a majority stake in Bienalto, a digital marketing agency based in Sydney, Australia, which specialises in online analytics, user experience and 'customer dialogue' programmes. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
Nielsen has announced it is to acquire Arbitron for around $1.26 bn, or $48 per share of common stock. The transaction has been approved by both Boards and is subject to customary closing conditions. More
Thomson Reuters has announced the sale of its corporate management arm, which includes custom media analysis and measurement, to Nasdaq OMX Group, the company which runs the US tech stock exchange of the same name, as well as eight exchanges in Europe. More
Research consultancy and STW Group subsidiary AMR Australia has promoted Oliver Freedman to the role of Managing Director, following the departure of Gary Wilkinson, who has left to set up his own agency, Bliss Point Research. More
Paul Fisher has resigned from his role as CEO of IAB Australia, and in March will become Managing Director for Nielsen Media across the Asia Pacific, Middle East, and Africa (APMEA) regions. More
Online analytics pioneer Webtrends has launched a digital intelligence solution called 'Webtrends Streams', through which users can gather real-time visitor data across all their digital properties. More
Global wine and spirit brand Pernod Ricard has launched an internal social network called Chatter, through which employees will be encouraged to generate and share new ideas for the business. More
Social media monitoring firm Socialbakers has announced the beta launch of a new app called 'Fake Followers', to help marketers identify how many Twitter followers are real, fake or inactive. More
A new crowdsourcing firm called HunchBuzz has been launched in New Zealand, to enable clients to generate new ideas from their internal and external communities. More
US-based social media sampling firm Peanut Labs has launched a new DIY sampling and project management tool called Samplify, which it says simplifies the process of conducting online research. More
In Australia, marketing and ad network DDB Group Melbourne has integrated its boutique comms agency CrawfordBrown Plus with its below-the-line specialist RAPP Melbourne, and re-launched the merged business as a data and analytics firm with a focus on customer insight. More
Online ad association IAB Australia has announced it will retire the 'Monthly Unique Browser' metric (UB) in the country as of February 1st next year, replacing it with the people-based Unique Audience (UA) metric. Nielsen will stop reporting UB within its Market Intelligence product. More
In Australia, digital advertising business REA Group has appointed former Microsoft exec Lisa Hickson as General Manager of Brand, Communications & Insights, and part of its Executive Leadership Team. More
UK-based researcher Neil Cary has launched a new business, Asia Opinions Ltd, offering research services to British and Asian companies, including access to consumer panels, and its own online survey tool, Surveygoo.com. More
Digital audience measurement giant comScore has announced the US Beta release of its new tool, MMX Multi-Platform, which promises unduplicated accounting of audience size and demographics across multiple devices. More
Multi-screen media measurement specialist Rentrak has extended its International Box Office Essentials service to Malaysia and Singapore, collecting daily theater level attendance and ticket sales information. More
IDC has appointed former Microsoft exec Shayum Rahim as its senior analyst and lead for software research across Australia and New Zealand, based in Sydney. More
comScore has launched Brand Survey Lift Pulse (BSL Pulse), a product for measuring the breakthrough and impact of campaigns in real-time. The tool is part of the AdEffx suite and debuts in 23 markets worldwide. More
TNS has appointed former Ipsos MORI CEO Mike Everett as Global Head of Stakeholder Management, based in London. More
Facial recognition in a retail environment, previously conducted by digital signage and kiosks, has just received a slightly scary makeover courtesy of Italian company Almax, whose EyeSee mannequin videos shoppers and categorises them for marketing purposes. More
Joel and Robyn Kaufman, the founders and former owners of South African-based strategic research company KLA, have announced a joint venture with Sydney-based data intelligence company Potentiate. More
New Zealand-based natural language processing and text analytics app developer Syl Semantics is looking to raise up to $1m in angel investor funding, which it will use to expand its sales and marketing efforts and further develop its platform. More
Marketers are growing more pessimistic following cuts to their budgets across Asia Pacific and Europe and stagnant figures in the US, according to Warc's latest Global Marketing Index (GMI) report. More
Nielsen has extended its partnership with Informate Mobile Intelligence to provide marketers with data on mobile device usage and content consumption across Asia Pacific, the Middle East and Africa (APMEA). More
GfK has reported 'a significant sales increase' of 9.8% to EUR 1,096.8m in the first nine months of 2012, with much of the rise however due to currency effects and acquisitions. Q3 revenue was up 11.3% to EUR 376.7m. EBITDA fell 18.5% to EUR 50.6m. More
Ipsos innovation and forecasting division InnoQuest has unveiled a new Framework, centred around 'nine drivers critical to innovation success'. More
GfK has announced the formation of a new global Market Opportunities and Innovations practice, which will promise marketing professionals 'the critical foresight needed to successfully tap into future markets'. Marilyn Raymond will lead the new division. More
Nielsen and its McKinsey joint venture NM Incite have announced the acquisition of SocialGuide, which provides analysis of social media conversations about TV programs. Terms were not disclosed. More
New Zealand company Key Research is to create fifty jobs in a new call centre, opened this week in its home city of Tauranga. More
Netherlands-based international body the Neuromarketing Science & Business Association (NMSBA) has launched a code of ethics, as part of a drive towards the adoption of international standards. More
Third quarter revenue at US-based Information Services Group (ISG) has fallen to $46.5m, down 2% in constant currency terms. A good performance in the US was more than off-set by a 15% fall in Europe and 17% in Asia Pacific. More
Australian agency Roy Morgan Research has enhanced its machine-based web audience data measurement system with the integration of Effective Measure's analytics and research platform 'Insight'. More
In Australia, former Added Value Managing Director Mel Carey has joined insights consultancy Fiftyfive5 as a Director, and will combine an active role in the strategic development of the business with work on a number of key accounts. More
Industry association ESOMAR has elected Dan Foreman, currently Head of Business Development at Lumi Mobile, as President for the two-year period beginning January 2013. More
Digital measurement specialist comScore has reported a 9% rise in third quarter revenue to $64.3m, a figure it says was held back by declines in its ad copy testing business, which is slated for a possible sale. Net loss was reduced to just over $3m. More
Gartner has reported third quarter 2012 revenues of $284.0m in its Research division - up 11% year-on-year, or 14% excluding currency effects. The Consulting division grew much slower, with revenues up just 1% (4% at constant currencies) to $71.7m. More
In Australia, digital audience specialist Effective Measure has appointed IMR Worldwide / Red Sheriff co-founder Tony Eustace in the newly created global role of Group Director - Data Insights. More
WPP has reported third quarter consumer insight revenue of £591m, down from £593m in the prior year period and up just a fraction ( 0.8%) on a like-for-like basis. More
US technology specialist Forrester Research has reported a 2% rise in revenue in its Research arm to $50.3m from $49.2m in the prior year period. However, the firm's total revenues dropped to $68.5m from $69.8m as a result of an 11% decline in its Advisory Services division. More
Ipsos has reported 9-month revenues of just under EUR 1.28bn, up 45.1% on a constant currency basis since gobbling up Synovate a year ago. The firm says now that the integration is complete, it will 'resume its focus on growth' and on meeting its service quality and profitability targets. More
Aegis-owned digital creative agency Visual Jazz Isobar (VJI) has extended its NowLab innovation unit network to Melbourne. The lab will help the firm to identify, research and prototype new technologies and platforms for clients across Australia. More
Nielsen has announced third quarter revenue up 5% year-on-year, on a constant currency basis, to $1.423bn, with its Buy (4%) and Watch (5%) segments both contributing. Adjusted EBITDA rose 7% on the same basis to $424m. More
Innovation and forecasting unit Ipsos InnoQuest has unveiled the Archetype IQ System, which classifies CPG innovations into twelve 'Archetype profiles' to help clients gauge the potential for their latest ideas. More
Two countries have new centres devoted to business analytics this week: partners Deakin University and IBM have launched Australia's first while in Singapore, Accenture and the island state's government are opening an Innovation Center. More
Nielsen has rolled out its Online Brand Effect solution in Australia, offering clients there the ability to measure and optimize the effectiveness of their online advertising efforts in real-time. More
In Australia, digital and direct marketing agency MercerBell has launched a standalone data planning and analytics firm called Ngage, which will be run by its former Strategy Director Carl Oldham. More
The US and Switzerland are the two most expensive countries in which to conduct market research, while Pakistan remains the cheapest, according to the results of the latest ESOMAR Global Prices study. More
US-based video targeting firm Alphabird has acquired Australian digital media and ad tech services company Ventures in Digital Media (ViDM). Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
Digital audience specialist Effective Measure has appointed former Yahoo! sales leader Ben Sharp as Managing Director of its Australia and New Zealand operations, replacing Michael Robertson who has been promoted to the post of Global Director of Products. More
Digital media specialist Gai Le Roy has returned to IAB Australia to take up the newly created role of Director of Research, with a remit to ensure that the body maintains its position as a 'thought leader' in consumer behaviour, technology, multi-channel marketing, measurement and analytics. More
UK-based Behavioural Economics specialist The Behavioural Architects (TBA) is opening an office in Sydney, Australia, adding to existing bases in Shanghai, London and Oxford. Ad planner Mike Daniels is appointed to run the new business. More
San Francisco-based business intelligence analytics provider GoodData has expanded in Asia Pacific region through a partnership with its regional MD Chris Gartlan. More
Research outsourcing and panels company Pulse Group says it can no longer justify the costs associated with listing the company on the loss making PLUS-quoted Market (part of the PLUS Stock Exchange), and is therefore planning to delist its ordinary shares. More
GfK has appointed seven leaders in China, Korea, Malaysia and Japan, as part of a strategy to expand its global research solutions across the Asia Pacific region. More
Commercial Radio Australia has issued an invitation for agencies to tender for the supply of radio audience measurement services, and says it is open to recommendations for supplementary data collection methods, such as online diaries and the use of mobiles and tablets to record radio listening. More
In South Africa, investment group Kagiso Media has acquired a majority stake in brand analytics and market research consultancy KLA from husband and wife team Joel Kaufman and Robyn Levin. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
AsiaPac marketing analytics consultancy Analytic Partners has opened a new office in Sydney, Australia, where it has appointed former Mediabrands Analytics MD Clare Fernando to establish the firm's presence. More
US-based Sands Research Inc. (SRI) has appointed Dr Shane Moon as President, to help the firm evolve from its foundation as a neuromarketing/consumer neuroscience specialist, to a full service market research agency. More
Online specialist BrainJuicer has opened a 'client-facing' practice in India, where it has appointed Pooja Haldea as Managing Director – India, based in New Delhi, and Sarah Cowell-Thomas as Head of Juice Generation – India, based in Mumbai. More
OzTAM - Australia's official source of television audience measurement – has extended its contract with Nielsen for the supply of services in the five Australian metropolitan markets, while committing to the development of multi-screen measurement. More
In Australia, digital media expert Gavin Heaton has joined Constellation Research as Vice President and Principal Analyst, to lead the firm's 'Digital Marketing Transformation' business. More
Michael Berland has left WPP-owned MR and political polling specialist Penn Schoen Berland (PSB) to join PR giant Edelman as CEO of a newly-named research and analytics business, Edelman Berland, into which the group's existing research firm StrategyOne will be integrated. More
According to reports in the UK press, WPP is planning to 'refresh' its Board of Directors, after shareholders voted against a proposed 60% increase in CEO Sir Martin Sorrell's pay package back in June. More
Kantar Health has promoted Graeme Jacombs to the position of Managing Director of Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa (APMEA), responsible for regional strategy, local business planning and client support. More
Survey software firm Voxco has partnered with panel access provider Cint, whose OpinionHUB insight platform will give Voxco clients access to more than seven million individuals worldwide. More
Twitter has introduced interest-based ad targeting for its Promoted Tweets and Promoted Accounts campaigns, while Facebook is to allow brands to use their consumer data to reach users through the site. More
WPP has reported revenue up just 1.2% to £1.19bn in its consumer insight division in the first half of the year, while headline operating profit fell slightly to £84m. The group has also confirmed that following tax changes, it plans to move its HQ back to the UK from Ireland. More
Digital research agency MobileMeasure Consultancy has expanded to Singapore through a partnership with Anila Shrivastava, the founder of eye tracking and semiotics specialist idStats. More
David Gaines, the former CEO of media agency Maxus, has joined Australian consumer insights specialist Edentify as Managing Partner, tasked with helping the firm evolve from a focus on research and data solutions to a 'more comprehensive' data-led planning approach. More
Marketing spend is in decline, not just in Europe, but also in the previously buoyant Asia Pacific region, according to a report from advertising research site Warc. However other indicators, such as general business confidence, were more positive. More
Asia Pacific media intelligence firm Sentia Media has acquired Australian online media monitoring platform BuzzNumbers from founder Nick Holmes à Court (pictured). Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
Omnibus and syndicated data specialist Roy Morgan Research has launched a new service called the 'Digital Universe', to provide a view of Australians' daily lives, including media consumption, shopping habits, socialisation and expectations. More
US-based statistical software specialist Revolution Analytics has opened an office in Singapore, through which it plans to offer big data analytics to clients across the Asia Pacific region. More
Aegis shareholders have accepted the offer made by Japanese ad giant Dentsu to buy the company - including the Aztec retail information and scan-data business - for a total price of £3.16 billion. More
Digital agency XM Asia Pacific has opened a Consumer Experience Lab in Singapore. The facility will use Tobii eye-tracking technology, heuristic techniques and usability metrics to examine how Asian consumers absorb the information they see in digital ads and traditional media. More
GfK has reported a 9.1% increase in sales to EUR 720.1m for the first half of 2012, most of which comes from currency effects and acquisitions. Organic growth of just 1.7% results from a healthy 4.2% rise in the Consumer Choices business combined with flat performance from Consumer Experiences. More
Full-service MR agency and panels and online tech specialist Toluna have agreed a deal which will give online community and panel solutions to CMI's clients worldwide. More
Ipsos Healthcare has appointed Richard Clarke as Global Business Development Director for Syndicated Services, based in Kuala Lumpur. More
In the US, the ongoing Apple vs. Samsung patent lawsuit is throwing some interesting light on the business style of the iPhone and iPad giant - including the fact that it's not so averse to market research as it has sometimes claimed. More
comScore has announced financial results for the second quarter of 2012, including a much-slowed growth in revenue - up just 4% to $60.3m. Adjusted EBITDA remained relatively robust at $9.6m (16% of revenue), compared to $11.1m in Q2 2011. More
Technology specialist Gartner has reported second quarter revenues up 9% to $397.5m - equivalent to growth of 12% at constant currencies. A very good quarter for the group's Research division was only slightly dented by a flat performance from the smaller Consulting wing. More
GfK has combined two recent acquisitions, KN Dimestore and nurago, to create a new global practice, Digital Market Intelligence (DMI), which promises clients a complete picture of their digital marketing and advertising ROI. More
Google has bought US-based online marketing service Wildfire, reportedly for around $250m (£159m). More
In Australia, Emelia Millward has left public broadcaster SBS after eight years to take on the same title - Head of Research and Insights - at Seven. More
Swedish eye tracking solutions firm EyeTrackShop has partnered with Asian research agency Majestic MRSS, to distribute its services across Asia and the Middle East. More
Indian broadcaster NDTV is suing Nielsen and Kantar Media Research over claims that staff at the firms' joint venture TAM took bribes in exchange for overstating ratings. According to the suit, this practice has damaged NDTV's business to the tune of around $810m in the past eight years. More
Specialist innovation and forecasting business Ipsos InnoQuest has rolled out a new market potential analysis tool called Vantis*Optimize, designed specifically for clients planning to launch non-FMCG products or services. More
Online advertising data analytics specialist AdMaster has raised an undisclosed amount of funding in a Series B round led by WI Harper and followed on by GSR Ventures. More
Nielsen has partnered with Israeli-based venture capital fund Partam Hightech to launch a subsidiary called Nielsen Innovate, which will help develop and fund business ideas and bring them to market for its clients globally. More
In the US, technology specialist Forrester Research has reported a 7% increase in second quarter revenues to $79.1m from $73.5m a year previously. More
Ipsos has reported a 53.4% increase in first half revenues to EUR 837.0m, reflecting the integration of Synovate into its financial statements. More
Nielsen has reported a 1% fall in second quarter revenue to $1.39 billion as a result of weak foreign currency exchange rates - but on a constant currency basis, revenue was up 4%. More
Full service agency Market Strategies International (MSI) has launched a qualitative insights boutique, led by former Synovate director Steve Wolf. More
In Australia, trade association the IAB (Interactive Advertising Bureau) has elected Mark Britt, Group CEO of Mi9, as its new Chairman. More
EMI Music is to release parts of its 'EMI Million Interview Dataset' to around 150 data scientists from non-profit organisation Data Science London, who will study what EMI describes as the 'most extensive collection of data on music consumers ever shared'. More
GfK has acquired the remaining 40% of user experience firm SirValUse Consulting and usability research specialist nurago. More
MR association ESOMAR has launched a guide to help researchers comply with the recently introduced EU cookie law relating to the capture of online visitor information. More
Nielsen has announced the New Zealand launch of its Online Ratings service, which provides Internet use metrics across all sources and devices. More
Japanese ad giant Dentsu has made an offer to acquire UK-based media buying and marcoms group Aegis in a £3.16 billion deal, which includes the latter's Aztec retail information and scan-data business. The acquisition is subject to Aegis shareholder approval. More
US member advisory company The Corporate Executive Board (CEB) is to acquire London-based staff assessment and benchmarking specialist SHL from its owners HgCapital and VSS, for $660m in cash. More
US-based Fiksu, which offers an ad targeting platform for mobile devices, has secured $10m in Series B funding. The money will be used to accelerate growth across the European and Asia-Pac regions, develop its optimization platform, and drive partnerships with agencies and brands. More
Shareholders in Australian research and marcoms group Photon - which owns MR agencies The Leading Edge (TLE) and Jigsaw Research - have voted in favour of renaming the troubled company Enero, the Spanish word for 'January'. More
Behavioural ad targeting company Phorm has reported another large operating loss, with revenues for 2011 not taking off as expected, but says it believes that 'it will become increasingly clear to investors that the long wait for revenues will have been worthwhile.' More
Ipsos Loyalty has followed up last year's WAR with the launch of a research solution called WAO!, to help clients understand 'share of wallet' in their target sectors. More
The Trust Alliance, the recently formed standards and guidelines partnership for online healthcare data collection has greatly expanded its membership with the signing up of three new firms, Medimix, Toluna and UniversalSurvey (SurveyHealthCare). More
Database and information services giant Experian has hired Ben Elliott as MD of its Decision Analytics division in Asia Pacific. He was previously Network Director for Retail Banking at Lloyds Banking Group. More
Kantar Media TGI has launched a new service called 'TGI Clickstream', allowing marketers, communications agencies and media owners to gain a picture of web sites and sections visited by specific, 'complex' target groups of consumers. More
US-based social networking solutions firm Lithium Technologies has opened AsiaPac regional headquarters in Singapore, as well as an additional office in Sydney focused on the Australia-New Zealand market. More
In Australia, data-focused marketing technology provider Potentiate has appointed former Ipsos Australia director Horst Feldhaeuser as Head of Client Services. More
WPP's global media network Mindshare has launched a data-driven marketing intelligence platform called CORE, which combines its own media data and consumer insight capabilities with sources including Visible Measures, Nielsen, Acxiom and Adobe. More
In Shanghai, Ipsos Healthcare has appointed IMS Health veteran David Twinberrow as Head of Syndicated Services, Asia Pacific, charged with leading the planned expansion and development of the firm's Therapy Monitor portfolio across the region. More
In the UK, media group Future Publishing has recruited former T-Mobile insights leader Simon Wainwright for the newly created role of Market Research Director, with responsibility for driving its consumer insight strategy. More
The fifty largest research firms reported a 5.1% increase in US-based aggregated revenues to $9.2 billion in 2011, according to the 39th annual report by industry authority Jack Honomichl. More
WPP shareholders have voted against a proposed 60% increase in CEO Sir Martin Sorrell's pay package. Separately, WPP says its Consumer Insight arm has been 'stable' in the first four months of 2012, with a 3.3% revenue rise adding to the group's £3.2 billion turnover. More
Nielsen has revised its full year 2012 revenue guidance downwards, following what it describes as 'changes to operating conditions' in its Buy consumer purchase behavior division outside the US. The company is now expecting constant current revenue growth of 5% to 6% for the full year. More
Researcher Mark McCrindle has resigned from the AMSRS (Australian Market & Social Research Society), following an investigation into claims that his company McCrindle Research overstated sample sizes in surveys the agency conducted for its own PR purposes. More
Mumbai-based online ad network and audience measurement provider Komli Media has raised $39m, which it will invest in its core technology platforms and use to expand its presence across the APAC region. More
Thomson Reuters has completed the $1.25 billion sale of its healthcare data, analytics and performance benchmarking arm to private equity firm Veritas Capital, which has renamed the business Truven Health Analytics. More
MrWeb's offices are now closed for the Queen's Diamond Jubilee celebrations taking place across the UK, and will reopen on Wednesday 6 June. God Bless Her! More
Nunwood has re-launched its UK, US, Australian and New Zealand businesses with a new model which focuses on 'insight-powered customer experience management' (CEM). More
US-based Federated Sample has appointed former Greenfield Online MD Andy Ellis as Senior Vice President for Corporate Development. More
Janet Harkness, Director of the Gallup Research Center and a leading figure in the development of cross-cultural research methods, died on Monday in Germany at the age of 63. More
Digital audience specialist Effective Measure is launching a service in the MENA region (Middle East North Africa), combining online polls and data from tagged web sites to provide insights on mobile consumption and purchase activities. More
European predictive analytics software provider Quiterian has signed a global deal with Indian IT giant Wipro, whose clients will be offered Quiterian's solutions. More
India-based digital advertising and technology firm Komli Media is promoting former ViziSense boss Andrew Reid to Managing Director of its Australian business, replacing ad man Andrew Lockwood who is taking 'an extended break' but may return later in an advisory capacity. More
GfK is integrating elements of its brand, communication, satisfaction and loyalty research into a new global practice, Brand and Customer Experience, and has appointed Helen Zeitoun to head it up. More
GRBN, the recently launched international community of research federations, has apportioned its activities for 2012-13 between member regions, following meetings in London and Miami attended by representatives of national associations in 17 countries. More
Twitter has announced its support for the US FTC's Do Not Track initiative, which restricts how third parties collect and store data about browsing behavior. More
Kees de Jong, the CEO of data collection and sampling solutions specialist SSI, has moved to the role of Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors. He has been replaced by Chris Fanning, who joined the firm in February as President and COO. More
In Australia, marketer Jonah Cacioppe and software engineer Mike Kruger have launched a DIY survey app called Floq, which enables users to gather feedback from web-based surveys and benchmark results against companies in similar sectors. More
GfK has reported an 11.3% increase in sales to EUR 345.1m for the first three months of 2012, with organic growth of 4.9%. Adjusted operating income rose 10.2% to EUR 33.5m. The firm says its new 'Own the Future' corporate strategy has contributed to the healthy figures. More
UK-based insight agency Nunwood has announced the acquisition of California-based training and change management consultancy Retention Specialists Inc. Nunwood already has US offices in Los Angeles and New York. More
In Australia, Roy Morgan Research has announced a partnership with local trade body the Australian Retailers Association (ARA) with an eye to using their complementary experience to provide clients with insight on the retail process. More
New Zealand's research and media communities have begun discussions over the way election polls are conducted and the influence they exert over voting, with a public forum held at the country's Parliament this evening. More
Online research software provider Confirmit has reported a buoyant first quarter for the year with more than $15m in revenues, and strong growth in mobile solutions following its acquisition of Techneos. More
Research Now owner e-Rewards, Inc. has reached an agreement to acquire mobile research specialist iPinion, LLC, which will be rebranded as 'Research Now Mobile'. More
Unilever-owned ice cream manufacturer Streets has launched what it claims is Australia's first facial recognition billboard, which it is using to promote its Magnum Infinity product. More
Customer intelligence technology supplier iJento has announced a global partnership with web analytics consultancy Semphonic, which will help clients track and understand both digital and multichannel customer behaviour. More
WPP has reported first quarter revenues up 7.4% at constant currencies, to £2.39 bn. Organic revenue growth was 4.0%. However the consumer insight division once again lagged behind with revenues up 3.3% on a constant currency basis, or 1.3% excluding acquisitions. More
Ipsos has announced a number of senior qual appointments in Asia Pacific, including that of Gordon Milne as leader of its Ipsos UU qual business across the region. More
Ipsos has reported a 46% increase in first quarter revenues to EUR 379.9m, reflecting the addition of Synovate's business. However, it admits the need to integrate the two businesses has slowed expansion: volume of sales was down slightly on Q1 2011, and organic growth of just 2% is expected this year. More
Nielsen has reported a 3% rise in revenue to $1.3 billion for the first quarter ended March 31. Growth was fairly even in its Buy consumer purchase behavior segment (up 2.7% to $800m)and its Watch media research division (up 2.6% to $480m). More
In the US, IMS Health has acquired San Francisco-based software firm DecisionView, which helps life sciences organizations plan and track patient enrollment for clinical trials around the world. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
Gartner Australasia has agreed to acquire IDEAS International, a firm which provides enterprise IT research, insight, analysis and tools to technology vendors and global IT users. The cash deal is valued at approximately $AUD 20m. More
In Australia, Photon-owned insights and strategy consultancy The Leading Edge (TLE) has appointed Chrissy Blackburn as Global Strategy Partner, Head of Brand Strategy. She will be based in the firm's Sydney office, while also working with its Asian, European and US operations. More
Kantar Health has announced two senior promotions in its Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa region (APMEA). Graeme Jacombs becomes Deputy MD for the region while Dr. Vince Grillo is promoted to General Manager, Singapore and Malaysia. More
Online panel and survey technology provider Toluna has unveiled a new web site with an upgraded social media voting community. The firm aims to improve community engagement and further promote participation in its surveys. More
Panel and research technology specialist Vision Critical has appointed former Synovate North America CEO Scott Miller as President and COO of International Business. More
Google has launched a product combining DIY surveys with access to targeted respondents. Google Consumer Surveys will cost users a fixed fee per response from selected persons accessing premium content pages in Google's publisher network. More
New Jersey-based Bowker, which provides information for the publishing industry, has merged its US-based PubTrack Consumer and UK-based Book Marketing Limited (BML) under a new global brand, named Bowker Market Research. More
Market research recruitment specialist Resources Group has promoted Rowan Haylett to the position of Managing Director - Australia and APAC, with responsibility for the firm's business across Australia, New Zealand and Asia. More
Panel and research technology specialist Vision Critical has opened an office in Hong Kong, which will form its Asian headquarters. The new office - the firm's eleventh in all worldwide - will be led by Bruce Wells, who joined earlier in the month from Synovate. More
Adobe has announced a raft of new software and solutions within its Digital Marketing Suite, aimed at simplifying the process of analysing and optimising clients' use of online media. More
Panel and research technology specialist Vision Critical has appointed former Synovate exec Bruce Wells as Managing Director and President of its operations in Asia, based in Hong Kong. More
WPP's GroupM is working with Nielsen to develop a new cross-platform measurement service, integrating media planning and measurement across television and the Internet. More
Ipsos has announced the appointment of Synovate veteran Jenny Broughton as a Global Talent Management Partner, and separately has given more details of the structure of its new InnoQuest Practice. More
Online audience specialist comScore has launched its Ad Metrix service in Australia, citing the impressive growth of display advertising in the country. More
Panel and research technology specialist Vision Critical has announced revenue growth of 17% to $CAN 72m in 2011. More
Ipsos, continuing its integration of Synovate, has reorganised its largest global business line, Ipsos Marketing - which accounted for nearly half the group's revenues in 2011 - forming four distinct practices. More
comScore's Chief Operating Officer Greg Dale has moved across to the position of Executive Vice President, International, following last year's departure of Wolf Allisat. Cameron Meierhoefer now becomes COO, while Serge Matta is promoted and Tom Karrat hired for divisional President roles. More
Haralambos (Harry) Pappafloratos, the CEO of Colmar Brunton New Zealand, died on the 19th of February at the age of 55, after being diagnosed with cancer three years ago. More
In Holland, a group of practitioners has formed a professional body called The Neuromarketing Science & Business Association (NMSBA), to promote the collective interests of neuromarketing professionals around the world. More
Former Truth director Richard Hall has relocated from London to New Zealand to join the new Auckland-based office of boutique consumer insights agency Fiftyfive5. The firm has also appointed former AMR Interactive exec Tom Nagy as an Account Manager in Sydney. More
Omnicom Media Group (OMG) has brought together all its search and optimization agencies under its Resolution Media brand, to offer integrated services across areas including SEO, digital behavior analysis, behavioral targeting, social media and mobile. More
Nielsen Media Australia MD Peter Cornelius has left the company, following a restructure which has resulted in the firm integrating its Watch (media) and Buy (consumer purchase behavior) divisions under the leadership of former MD, Pacific, Chris Percy. More
Quadrant Private Equity has renamed its Asia Pacific-based media intelligence company Media Monitors Group as Sentia Media. Media Monitors remains the name of one of Sentia's companies, which also include 360m, China Clipping and Brandtology. More
The co-founder and President of Asian agency Majestic MRSS Raj Sharma has partnered with former Nielsen MD Sarang Panchal to launch a new full service agency called MRSS India. More
Nielsen has reported good growth and profit with full year 2011 revenues up 8% (6% at constant currencies) to $5.53bn and adjusted EBITDA up 10% (8%) to $1.546 bn. More
In New Zealand, online specialist Horizon Research has acquired the ShapeNZ public polling service from the Sustainable Business Council (SBC). Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
GfK has announced revenue up 6.2% to EUR 1.374 billion in 2011, in preliminary figures released today. Almost all (5.8%) was organic growth. Operating income grew relatively little due to specific items including write-downs and recruitment of a new CEO. More
In Australia, Clarity Strategic Research has launched a qual business omnibus called Business Clarity, giving subscribers access to owners and managers of small businesses across the country. More
Murray Hardie has re-joined brand and comms research specialist Hall & Partners as US Chief Executive Officer, after a 10-year break spent working in comms planning positions. He assumes overall responsibility for US operations from Global CEO Vanella Jackson. More
In the US, online sampling and data collection company Research Now has made changes to its senior team with three promotions: Craig Stevens to CRO for the Americas; Martin Filz to MD for EMEA and APAC; and Konstanze Just to SVP of Global Marketing. More
WPP-owned marcoms group Ogilvy has acquired a 33.3% stake in Australian digital marketing firm DTDigital, which offers a range of services from social media management to data analytics. Terms of the investment were not disclosed. More
Colin Yee, Research International's Managing Director in New Zealand, is leaving at the end of January after sixteen years with the firm. More
Panel and research technology provider Toluna has introduced a new version of its iPad and iPhone app, to enable panellists to participate in its DIY QuickSurveys directly through their mobile devices. More
Australian research and marcoms group Photon - which owns MR agencies The Leading Edge (TLE) and Jigsaw Research - has promoted Matthew Melhuish to the position of Chief Executive Officer, replacing Jeremy Philips who left in December. More
Market intelligence company Mintel has today announced the opening of three offices in the Asia Pacific region. Already open for business, the three are located in Mumbai, Singapore and Kuala Lumpur. More
Every month Daily Research News publishes over 150 stories from the market research industry and 2011's grand total of items was 1,886. So which of them grabbed you? Features Editor Teresa Lynch looks at the most read stories. More
GfK has promoted three of its senior Asia Pacific execs - Frans Janssen to Executive Managing Director for the region; Stanley Kee to MD, Southeast Asia; and Benny Villanueva to General Manager for GfK Philippines. More
Market research sample providers Epocrates and M3 Inc have partnered to create what they describe as 'the world's largest physician and healthcare provider panel' comprising 1.7 million panellists. Separately, M3 owned network Doctors.net.uk has promoted Dr Tim Ringrose to the post of CEO. More
The team at MrWeb would like to wish all our readers and friends around the world a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. More
In the US, Nielsen and comScore have settled patent infringement lawsuits relating to both firms' online measurement copyrights, and as part of the deal, Nielsen has acquired $19m of comScore common stock. More
Company acquisitions in the online survey software market will continue apace, according to a new report produced by industry analysis publisher IBISWorld. More
TNS Global Chairman Jamie Hall is to retire next week, after nearly 30 years in the market research industry. More
In the US, Nielsen has announced the appointment of Rick Kash as Vice Chair and Mitchell Habib as Chief Operating Officer. Both appointments are effective from January 1st 2012. More
OgilvyOne Worldwide's digital agency DTDigital is opening in Sydney, Australia in January. The firm will offer local clients a range of services including user experience testing, data and analytics, and design and consulting. More
DIY survey technology firm SurveyMonkey has partnered with equity investment firm TPG Growth to acquire research software and services firm MarketTools. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed, but sources say that it values SurveyMonkey at roughly $1 billion. More
Asia Pacific-based Media Monitors Group has acquired China Clipping, a firm which offers print, broadcast and Internet monitoring, as well as quant analysis, in China, Hong Kong and Taiwan. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
Jeremy Philips has resigned as CEO of the Photon Group, the parent company of insight firms The Leading Edge and Jigsaw Research. Philips was brought in to save the debt-laden group 18 months ago, and 'though challenges remain, leaves with a sense of 'mission accomplished'. More
Nielsen has postponed the launch of its radio ratings service in Tasmania, Australia - reportedly less than 24 hours before results were due - citing problems with sample. More
In Sydney, Australia, retail and shopper specialist Peter Wilson has joined Jigsaw Strategic Research as Director of Shopper and Channel. More
Following its acquisition of Synovate, Ipsos has promoted Grant Bertoli to the position of CEO for South East Asia (SEA), and confirmed the appointment of Synovate's Singapore MD Miranda Cheung as MD of Ipsos in Singapore and SEA. Senior European and US roles have also been finalised. More
IBM veteran Matthias Hartmann has officially taken up the post of Chief Executive Officer of GfK, replacing Professor Dr. Klaus L. Wübbenhorst who has stepped down. More
Research outsourcing and panels company Pulse Group has hired former Gartner executive Carmen Endrina to lead its client development offering in the US, with a particular focus on the firm's West Coast technology clients. More
UK-based digital research and analytics firm Trufflenet has expanded to Australia though a partnership with PR agency Professional Public Relations (PPR). More
Six former employees of Harris Interactive in Hong Kong have set up Anovation Asia, a new full service agency which is majority owned by data specialist Anovation. More
London-based BDRC Group has expanded its presence in Asia Pacific by acquiring a stake in Sydney-based Jones Donald Strategy Partners (JDSP), which focuses on financial, retail and telecoms research and consulting. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
Online auction giant eBay has announced the acquisition of the team and technology of Hunch, which uses data mining and predictive modelling to create customised recommendations for site visitors. More
Synovate CEO Robert Philpott has left his job as part of a management restructure, following Ipsos' recent acquisition of the firm. It is not yet known what his next career move will be. More
In Australia, online panel firms Quality Online Research (QOR) and Researchpanel have merged their operations to create what they describe as Western Australia's 'largest and most robust' consumer panel, with around 60,000 online members. More
WPP-owned brand activation network G2 has rolled out its shopper marketing tool Pathfinder in Australia, offering insight into what influences shoppers' path-to-purchase. More
GfK has reported a good performance for the third quarter and first nine months of 2011. Q3 organic sales growth was 5.2% and the adjusted margin was up slightly on Q3 the previous year to 15.7%. Sales in the first 9 months of the year totalled EUR 999m - up 7.1% (7.0% organic). More
In Australia, the government of Prime Minister Julia Gillard has increased its spend on MR, with £33m laid out in 2010/11. More
In Australia, global healthcare group Cegedim Strategic Data (CSD) has launched a Nurse Practitioner online omnibus called NPReach. More
US software giant Adobe - which owns web analytics firm Omniture and online audience behavior specialist Demdex - has announced plans to restructure its Digital Media and Digital Marketing teams, cutting around 750 staff in North America and Europe. More
In Australia, online media analytics firm BuzzNumbers has launched an intranet solution, ShareTheBuzz, to help large corporations share their social media strategies across the entire organisation. More
Following its recent acquisition of Synovate and in line with plans to withdraw the Synovate brand in January, Ipsos has restructured its team in China. Five 'Combined Country Managers' will ready the businesses for integration while ensuring they run separately until the end of the year. More
Australian research and marcoms group Photon - which owns MR agencies The Leading Edge and Jigsaw Research - has cleared its debts through the sale of its field marketing and retail agencies to equity firm Navis Capital Partners for the sum of $AUD 146.5m. More
Online measurement firm comScore has reported third quarter revenue up an impressive 29% to $58.8m, although expenses also grew very rapidly leaving profits little changed. More
UK-based market intelligence specialist LMC Automotive has acquired JD Power and Associates' automotive forecasting division. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
In the US, Gartner's research division has reported record contract value - up 14% to $1,036m in Q3 2011. Revenue rose 17% to $345.8m compared with last year's Q3, while net income climbed 52% to $30.5m. More
WPP has reported third quarter revenue of £2.46bn, representing like-for-like growth of 4.7%, but says its insight division grew much slower than any other, revenues rising less than 1%. More
Enforcement bodies from twelve countries have announced the launch of an International Do Not Call Network, meeting annually to discuss best practices and 'encourage the development of robust telemarketing laws' worldwide. More
Nielsen has announced good results for the quarter ended September 30th, including revenues up 10% (6% at constant currencies) to $1,413m, and adjusted EBITDA up 7% in real terms, at $408m. More
Google has cut off one source of information for web analytics systems, citing concern for its users' privacy. As of October 18th, 'organic search' queries carried out by end users logged into products like YouTube, Gmail and Google+ will no longer be available to its own or others' systems. More
Technology specialist Forrester Research has announced third quarter results, with a substantial rise in revenues to $69.8m from $59.8m in Q3 2010. More
Ipsos - now the world's third largest market research company - has reported organic growth of 6.0% for the first nine months of the year, with revenue rising to EUR 845.8m. Growth slowed slightly in the third quarter and the firm is hunkering down for tough economic times ahead. More
The Australian Market & Social Research Society (AMSRS) is conducting an investigation into the methods and claims of member company McCrindle Research after a critical report on last Monday night's Media Watch television programme. More
In the US, software provider Adobe has introduced the Adobe AudienceResearch solution, a tool giving publishers and digital marketers metrics on the size and engagement of audiences for web sites, mobile apps and digital magazines. More
TNS has today announced the appointment of Kristin Sharp as global COO of its qualitative business, starting immediately. She joins from Ipsos' US qual division Understanding UnLtd, of which she was CEO and President. More
The Australian wing of the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) has today announced the establishment of a Mobile Advertising Council (MAC), its fourth working group. More
UK-based media and marketing analytics firm Ebiquity has acquired Australian media analytics consultancy Falkner Media Management (FMM) for an initial consideration of $AUD 4m (£2.5m). An additional $AUD 1.9m will be paid if the firm meets certain performance criteria by 2014. More
US-based retail store analysis specialist ShopperTrak has established a presence in Europe through the purchase of RCT Analytics, which develops a range of solutions to count consumers at shopping centres and retailers across the UK. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
UK book market specialist BML Bowker has launched a new service to track the purchasing habits of e-book consumers in Europe, Asia, Australia, and North and South America. More
Ipsos has completed its acquisition of Synovate for £528.8m - up £3.8m from the previously agreed figure of £525m - to form the third largest market research company in the world. More
In Australia, market research and business information provider Metrix Consulting has appointed former Synovate Australia MD Julie Beeck as Executive Director, responsible for growth and development of the team. More
In Australia, the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) has officially launched its online audience measurement methodology and service, after what it describes as 'an exhaustive process and review'. September data will be available next week. More
Fast-growing UK-based consultancy Truth and its start-up investor The College Group have announced a 'major new investment' - thought to be between £20m and £25m - from venture capital fund Vitruvian Partners LLP. More
In Australia, The Circulations Audit Board (CAB) has appointed Harley Slatter, of marcoms agency Slatter and Partners, as President, replacing Rob Yeomans who is leaving CAB after 20 years on the Board. More
Customer feedback platform provider Opinionmeter International has updated its research survey app for the iOS, to simplify the process of capturing respondent location data. More
WPP is launching its social and traditional media listening arm Kantar Media Cymfony in Europe, with the opening of a new office in London servicing clients this side of The Pond. More
London-based BDRC Group - which in the UK includes BDRC Continental and Perspective Research Services - has opened an office in Singapore, headed by former employee Piers Lee who recently left his role as MD of Kadence Asia Pacific. More
TNS has appointed Research International veteran Mark Kingsbury as Global Head of Marketing Sciences, based in the UK and responsible for building the firm's existing technical capabilities and developing new solutions. More
Research outsourcing and panels company Pulse Group has reported a drop in operating profit from $271k to just $50k for the financial year ended 31 May 2011, on a reduced revenue of $1.6m (down from $1.7m). More
Gaming software giant Electronic Arts and partner firm nPario have announced the launch of an insights platform, EA Legend, which will give marketers data on their campaigns and audiences across mobile, social, online and console games reaching over 300 million people worldwide. More
Google has launched a premium version of its web site traffic and marketing tool Google Analytics. The new service will be available for $150,000 per annum and be available in the US, Canada and the UK. More
Harris Interactive's results for the fourth quarter and full year fiscal 2011 show a further decline in revenues in real terms, and a significant rise in operating loss. Recently appointed Interim CEO Al Angrisani says there is 'not going to be a quick or easy fix' for the company's problems. More
Ipsos has successfully completed the EUR 200 million rights issue it announced three weeks ago, reporting strong demand for the shares. The money will be used to part-fund the company's acquisition of Synovate, alongside existing cash and credit, and a EUR 250m loan. More
In the US, ORC International has enhanced its suite of CARAVAN omnibus surveys with the addition of a youth service targeting teens and younger adults, and a parent omnibus. The firm has also expanded its Online CARAVAN International service into 12 new countries. More
P\S\L Group company Instar has rolled out its online pharma quant research service Instar OnDemand in Europe and Asia, and appointed former Synovate Healthcare exec Jean-Olivier Marty to spearhead the launch. More
David Ashton has left his position as Research Lead at public opinion specialist BritainThinks after just eight months in the role, to join the Hong Kong office of Brunswick Research, the opinion research practice of PR firm Brunswick Group. More
US-based customer intelligence firm Market Force Information has raised $15m, which it plans to use to grow both organically and through acquisitions. This follows last week's acquisition of UK-based mystery shopping specialist Retail Eyes. More
In the US, Kurt Knapton has returned to e-Rewards as President and CEO, following the recent resignation of Chris Havemann. More
Family, friends and colleagues have paid tribute to former Millward Brown MD Tony Copeland, who died recently aged 66 after a short illness. Copeland is credited with leading the development of the agency's international network of offices in the late 1980s and 1990s. More
WPP's salary body is to consider a fifty percent rise in the basic salary of CEO Sir Martin Sorrell, who in November 2008 rejected a scheduled review as 'inappropriate' for the economic climate. Sorrell's £1m basic, unchanged since January 2007, is a smallish part of his total income from the firm. More
TNS has taken its TRI*M Reputation Manager product into the digital sphere, to help clients analyse online media and take appropriate action. More
WPP firm Added Value has restructured its Australian management, creating the new role of Client Development Director for current MD Melissa Carey and moving Deputy MD James Pike into her MD role. The firm's Sydney staff are also relocating across the city. More
Full service agency InsightAsia has launched in Europe as Insight International, and appointed former ActiveGroup European MD Dan Foreman as Chief Executive Officer, based in London. More
In Australia, STW Group's research consultancy AMR has opened a new office in Brisbane, and expanded its teams in Sydney and Melbourne with a number of new appointments. More
The market research industry has returned to growth following two 'very challenging years', according to ESOMAR's Global Market Research 2011 report. Global turnover rose to US $31.2 billion in 2010, representing a total year-on-year growth of 5.2%, or 2.8% allowing for inflation. More
Tokyo-based firms AIP Corporation and M3, Inc. have announced an alliance - including a share transfer - to deliver global healthcare research centred in rapidly growing Southeast Asian countries. More
Australian-based agency The Leading Edge has moved Andrew Povolny, formerly MD of its Sydney-based Digital Edge division, to New York in the role of Managing Partner. He will also serve as the firm's first 'Global Client Partner' for a key client, in this case KFC-owner Yum! Restaurants. More
US-based technology research firm Yankee Group has added new capabilities to its online data visualization platform, including the ability to browse through popular metrics in an index format. More
Ipsos is planning to issue around EUR 200m worth of new shares, to part-fund its acquisition of Synovate. More
Panel and research technology firm Vision Critical has partnered with panel provider Nine Rewards, gaining access to more than a million new panellists in Australia and New Zealand. More
Online survey and reporting software company Confirmit has acquired mobile survey technology provider Techneos Systems, and will add its solutions to the Horizons reporting tool. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
Kantar has acquired research technology and panels firm GMI (Global Market Insite), which it will combine with own online panel specialist Lightspeed Research. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
Indian sources are suggesting that the long-awaited merger of the country's two key print readership surveys, the National Readership Survey (NRS) and the Indian Readership Survey (IRS), could be about to happen. More
Privately-owned MR agency Kadence International has reported a 37% year-on-year increase in its global revenues to $US 17.5 million for the year ending June 2011, from $12.8m in 2010. More
Ipsos today announced the appointment of Bernice Klaassen as its Asia Pacific Regional Director for Digital. He was previously Global Director for Digital at TNS. More
Pursuing her 'passion for innovation research', former TNS Regional Head Lee Ryan has moved from Singapore to join Melbourne-based Raspberry Innovation Research + Strategy. More
Technology analyst IDC has promoted Matt Oostveen to the role of Chief of Research for Australia. He replaces Tim Dillon who takes an expanded Asia Pacific role. More
Synovate has reported an 8.4% rise in revenue to £269.7m for the first half of the year, ahead of its forthcoming sale to Ipsos for an agreed £525m. Organic gross revenue growth was 6.6% and operating profit rose 14.9% to £5.4m despite a ten percent rise in headcount. More
Jan Hofmeyr, formerly Synovate's International Director of Innovation, has joined TNS in a 'global thought leadership role', responsible for building the firm's approach to behaviour change and embedding this across the group. More
WPP's Consumer Insight division has reported a meagre 2.3% rise in like-for-like revenue (1.3% actual) for the first half of the year, following slower growth in the US, the UK and Japan in the second quarter. However, pre-tax profits rose 37% to £334.3m. More
Online physician community specialist M3 USA, the parent company of medical panel specialist MDLinx, has acquired UK-based medical professionals' network Doctors.net.uk. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
The world's 25 largest research firms had revenues of $18.8 billion in 2010, up 4.9% on the previous 'dismal' year - a 'very healthy turnaround' according to industry authority Jack Honomichl. However, 'real' revenues were not quite back to their 2008 levels, and some companies continued to shrink. More
GfK has reported sales of EUR 660.1m in sales for the first half of 2011, reflecting 8.0% organic growth year-on-year. Adjusted operating income rose 16.8% (organic 18.0%) to EUR 83.9m. The Group has also announced the acquisition of a 25% stake in US firm MBI. More
Embattled Photon Group - which owns MR agencies The Leading Edge and Jigsaw Research - has received a vote of confidence of a kind, investment fund Intelligent Investor buying five percent of its depressed shares. More
In Australia, customer analytics and data strategy consultancy Quantium has hired former eBay MD Simon Smith to launch Quantium Online, focusing on online shopping and eCommerce consulting. More
Aegis Media has launched its specialist econometric and research consultancy ævolve in the APAC region, following its growth in the UK over the past ten years. The new arm will be led by former Nielsen exec Adam Hodgson. More
Nielsen is planning to launch a service which uses gross ratings points (GRP) for ad campaigns on Facebook and other online platforms, allowing comparison with measures of audience reach for television, print and outdoor advertising. More
Synovate has merged its global analytics consulting practice SMA with its Marketing Management Analytics (MMA) division, to provide clients with 'more accurate data and insights' about the behavior and attitudes of consumers. More
US technology researcher Gartner has reported a 16% revenue increase to $365.5m for the second quarter of 2011, while net income has leapt 60% to $32.2m, compared with Q2 2010. More
A US judge has ordered media measurement firm TRA and WPP to settle their differences through mediation, following their row over alleged patent infringement. More
Norwegian online survey technology firm QuestBack has acquired and will merge with German panel and survey software firm Globalpark. Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but it is expected that the joint company will exceed turnover of EUR 40 million within its first year of operation. More
Indian MR technology and operations company Annik is opening a new office in London, led by former Globalpark manager Alex Happe, and an office in Sydney, Australia headed by former employee Meena Kumari. More
Consumer and retail tracking provider The NPD Group has promoted Tim Bush to the post of Group President for the Asia Pacific region, working out of its offices in Hong Kong. More
GfK has named a successor for Professor Dr. Klaus L. Wübbenhorst, who announced his decision to step down as CEO earlier in the year. Matthias Hartmann, 45, is currently Global Head of Strategy and Industries in the consulting division of IBM Global Business Services. More
US technology specialist Forrester Research has reported a 13.6% increase in second quarter revenue to $73.5m, compared with $64.7m in the prior year period. However, net income dropped 20% to $5.5m from $6.9m in Q2 2010. More
In Australia, word-of-mouth (WoM) marketing specialist Contagious Agency has launched a consumer advocate platform, featuring a proprietary Facebook tracking tool. More
Nielsen has reported a 10% rise in revenue to $1.4 billion for the second quarter, the result of a 14% increase in its Buy consumer purchase behavior segment and a 4% increase in its Watch media research arm. More
Fresh from announcing its deal to buy Synovate, Ipsos has achieved organic growth of 6.3% in the first half of the year, reporting a 5.6% increase in revenues to EUR 558.2m. More
FreshMinds Research MD Alistair Leathwood has confirmed he is moving to Australian market research agency Colmar Brunton as Joint Managing Director. More
Chris Havemann, President and CEO of e-Rewards, is leaving the business to 'pursue new opportunities', but will remain in his current role until a replacement is selected. It is not yet known what his next career move will be. More
Consumer research and trends agency Iconoculture has appointed former Planet Retail researcher Greg Hodge as Director, Marketing Strategist, Global Retail in the UK; and consumer trends specialist Michael McCune as Director, Marketing Strategist, Asia-Pacific, based in the US. More
Ipsos has agreed to acquire Synovate for £525m (EUR 595m), creating the world's third largest market research company. The deal is to be funded with cash, new debt financing, and a rights offering to Ipsos shareholders. More
According to reports in the UK press, Publicis and WPP are both planning to make bids for the remainder of marcoms group Aegis, once it has completed the sale of its market research arm Synovate. More
In the UK, FreshMinds Research has announced that current MD Alistair Leathwood is leaving the business to re-locate to Australia. It is not known what his next career move will be. More
MR associations CASRO and ESOMAR are to join forces to develop and implement a standard promoting consistency and transparency in the online sampling process. More
Insights agency Nunwood has reported a 13.4% like-for-like sales increase in the first half of 2011, compared with the same period last year. Revenues for the period were more than £5.9m. More
In London, Synovate has brought together a team of methodologists to investigate the value of non-verbal response techniques, and apply their findings to custom research projects. More
Google has partnered with Kantar to establish a 3,000-strong opt-in panel which will measure TV and online media consumption in the UK. More
In the UK, it has been revealed that Doughty Hanson - which owns the Vue cinema chain - is the mystery company interested in buying Aegis' market research arm Synovate. More
Kantar Health has promoted Werner Guminski to the position of CEO, Commercial Strategy, a role including responsibility for innovation. He most recently served as the firm's CEO, Global Practices. More
Survey Sampling International (SSI) and Opinionology have received regulatory approval to merge under the SSI brand. The firm will be led by SSI's Kees de Jong, who will continue his role as CEO, while Opinionology's CEO David Haynes will serve as President and COO. More
Research Now, which owns the Valued Opinions panel, has rolled out its 'Valued Opinions Mobile' app in Australia, which it claims is the first smartphone app with full survey functionality. More
Database giant Infogroup has sold off its global market research arm ORC International to a group of the firm's senior managers, backed by Chicago-based private equity firm Lake Capital Management. Terms were not disclosed. More
Online audience measurement specialist comScore has signed a $50m 'revolving credit' deal with the Bank of America, which it plans to use for working capital and general corporate purposes. More
Aegis may be offered up to £600m for Synovate by an as-yet unidentified bidder, according to reports: considerably more than the rumoured value of the current 'exclusive' Ipsos bid, c.£520m. More
TNS has hired Martin Lambie-Nairn as Creative Director, a new position with a remit to improve the look and feel of the company's deliverables and work with local and global management to develop their creative capabilities. More
European physician community Networks in Health has announced an alliance with Australian counterpart e-healthspace.com.au , expanding its medical research resource by 9,000 doctors. More
GfK is to restructure its business following a major review, and from next January will operate through two new divisions, 'Consumer Choices' and 'Customer Experiences', under the new tagline: 'Own the Future'. More
In Melbourne, Australia, insight strategist BrandHook and full service online agency Melon Research have joined forces and will now trade under the BrandHook name. More
The Board of Aegis Group has confirmed that its talks with Ipsos about the possible sale of Synovate are 'exclusive', following a report in the UK press that it had received an expression of interest from private equity group Cinven. More
Kantar is to roll out MarketTools' TrueSample quality solution across its network, following the breakdown of the Promedius Group, the not-for-profit quality consortium it launched with GfK and Ipsos less than a year ago. More
In the US, Millward Brown has appointed Susan Steele as Global Chief Human Resources Officer, responsible for leading the firm's human resources and talent strategy worldwide. More
Language Connect - a specialist in market research language services - and online qual platform provider VisionsLive have partnered to provide a simultaneous interpreting and moderating service for international online qual groups. More
WPP has entered the ad targeting fray with the launch of Xaxis, a new firm which links the group's ad-buying technologies with a proprietary database containing what it describes as the 'world's largest pool of audience profiles'. More
Online measurement specialist comScore has introduced a new service called 'Device Essential', for measuring digital traffic from 'all devices' - including computers, mobile phones, tables, music players, e-readers and gaming devices. More
Marketing services network McCann Worldgroup has hired Marc Schwartz as Global Director of Performance Analytics and moved Laura Simpson from London to become Global IQ Director, heading up a new NYC-based Marketing Sciences practice. More
Information giant Thomson Reuters is planning to sell its Healthcare business, which provides data, analytics and performance benchmarking services to companies, government agencies and healthcare professionals. More
US-based online market specialist Lyris has acquired a majority stake in Sydney, Australia-based Cogent Online, which offers e-mail direct marketing, cost-per-response advertising, market research and behavioural analysis, and marketing technologies. Terms were not disclosed. More
ZenithOptimedia has opened an Australian office for its global marketing effectiveness agency Ninah Consulting, and recruited former Synovate Aztec director Bryan Hall to lead the business. More
WPP Chief Exec Sir Martin Sorrell has suggested that the group may double the amount available for acquisitions this year, as it looks to invest in new media and emerging markets and take advantage of better conditions in the ad industry. More
French-based ad group Publicis has dismissed speculation that it might be considering a bid for Synovate, and reports suggest that WPP is also an unlikely rival for front-runner Ipsos. More
Synovate has hired Nielsen veteran Gary Martin as Managing Director of its Australian operations, based in Sydney. More
In the UK, employee research specialist ORC International has launched a new product called 'engage', which provides small and mid-sized organizations with access to a range of customisable tools for employee engagement studies, including surveys of leavers and joiners. More
Physician-patient feedback firm InfoMedics has expanded with the opening of an office in Paris and appointments to boost its European, Latin America and Asia Pacific regions. More
In Australia Auspoll, the social research company which is part of The Photon Group, has promoted David Stolper and Darry Nelson to Senior Research Partners, on the back of a series of new business wins. More
Lightspeed Research has unveiled a new custom panels and communities offering, Lightspeed Engage, which promises to give clients 'access to relevant consumer insights wherever, whenever and however they need them.' More
The Board of Aegis Group has confirmed that it is in talks with Ipsos about the possible sale of its market research arm Synovate. Analysts suggest a price of around £500m and the combination would create the world's fourth largest research agency. More
Survey Sampling International (SSI) and US-based data collection specialist Opinionology are to merge to create a new company which will operate under the SSI brand. More
ruby cha cha - the Sydney-based research-based planning agency which was founded in 2008 by three former directors of The Leading Edge (TLE) - has opened an office in London from which to service UK and global clients. More
Synovate has announced the global launch of mobile research capabilities including SMS / text and mobile online surveys, as well as app development. Thomas Edwards has been promoted to lead the initiative. More
GfK has partnered with its part-owned usability research specialist nurago to launch 'Connected Life.dx', a tool tying in browsing and consumer purchasing behaviour across fixed and mobile platforms. More
Nielsen has won IAB Australia's contract to supply the country's online audience measurement currency, following an eight-month tender process. More
Australian-based qual software developer QSR International has hired leaders for its operations in the Americas and Europe. Rob Calcagni becomes General Manager, Americas and Chris Astle General Manager, EMEA. More
Ipsos has announced a restructure of its ASI advertising division in the Asia Pacific region. Kym Penhall is promoted to MD of the region, while Great China MD Javier Calvar adds new responsibilities, and Peter Fairbrother and Keith Spencer also take up new roles. More
Online sampling and panels specialist Research Now has introduced a new smartphone app, billed as the first in a series of mobile data collection capabilities to be launched this year. More
Eye tracking specialist Tobii Technology has launched a new testing solution, which it claims is the first to be specifically designed for usability studies on mobile devices and mobile applications. More
GfK has reported a strong first quarter in its 2011 financial year, with consolidated sales up 10.4% to EUR 310.2 million and organic growth of 8.0%. More
Kantar has today announced a partnership with online facilities company ActiveGroup Ventures, giving the research giant worldwide access to facility based research via video streaming. More
US-based technology consultancy Forrester Research has acquired Asia Pacific-focused IT analyst and advisory services provider Springboard Research. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
Synovate has reported 'strong growth' in North America and other regions during quarter one, but says 'difficult market conditions' continue to impact the businesses in Southern Europe while the UK market remains 'challenging'. More
Australian research and marcoms group Photon - which owns agencies The Leading Edge and Jigsaw Strategic Research - has reported a 6% decline in revenue to $AUD 289.4m for the 10 months to April 2011, compared with last year's 4% drop. More
Asia Pacific-based marketing and brand research consultancy Cimigo has opened an office in Shanghai, where it has appointed former Synovate executives Daisy Sam as General Manager and Marcos Leung as Director. More
Kantar Chairman and CEO Eric Salama has taken on the additional role of CEO of TNS from Pedro Ros, who now becomes TNS non-executive Chairman. Ros replaces Jamie Hall, who will leave the business 'as planned' at some point in 2011. More
In Australia, Researchwise founder Julie Houston has launched Nitty Gritty, a consultancy focused on 'social marketing' - campaigns which effect behaviour and attitude change in society. The firm will help clients develop their ideas and approach using research, evaluation and training. More
In Australia, Photon-owned insights and strategy consultancy The Leading Edge (TLE) has created three new senior roles as part of the expansion of its global network; moved Tim Riches to the role of MD of its Sydney office; and announced three further senior hires. More
Apple is the world's number 1 brand by a distance, adding 84% to last year's valuation to leapfrog mobile o/s rival Google, according to Millward Brown's Brandz index, just published. More
US technology researcher Gartner has reported an 11% increase in first quarter revenue to $329.6m, with a 50% rise in net income to $29.2m, compared with $19.4m in Q1 2010. The company has now seen net income rise in the last four quarters. More
Mark Stevens, formerly Research Director at Australian agency SensoMetrics, has set up his own sensory research agency, Sensory Insights, based in New South Wales. More
Australian knowledge management company Intelligence Bank has opened an office in New York City, where it has appointed former Experian Hitwise exec Keith Pepper as General Manager. More
FocusVision - which provides online video transmission and analysis for qual market research - has appointed former Research Now Client Development Manager Baxter Tan to spearhead its growing Asia Pacific business. More
Consumer insight revenues at WPP have risen 3.4% on a constant currency basis, to £552.8m in the first quarter of 2011, compared with £542.5m in the prior year period. More
Nielsen has seen an 8.9% increase in revenue to $1.3bn for the first quarter of 2011. Net income rose from $16m to $64m but the firm reported a $181m loss in Q1 due to $206m costs relating to its recent initial public offering (IPO). More
In Australia, Survey Sampling International (SSI) has appointed former Research Now MD Jason Buchanan as Managing Director of its Asia-Pacific (APAC) region. He replaces Rene Bos who has decided to return to Europe. More
Ipsos has reported first quarter 2011 revenues up 9.8% to EUR 260.1m, from EUR 236.9m in the prior year period - equivalent to 6.2% organic growth. More
The World Federation of Advertisers (WFA) is building an online hub to encourage direct feedback from consumers about their perception of online advertising; an approach it suggests will provide more effective insight by cutting out the middle man, traditional market research. More
Unilever has sold its remaining 13.5% stake in online research specialist BrainJuicer, offloading c.1.68m BrainJuicer shares for £2.35 each, and raising around £3.9m in the process. More
Australian market research and polling company Roy Morgan Research is to open an operation in India, following the roll out of its Single Source survey across the country. More
In the US, private equity firm Symphony Technology Group (STG) - the parent of retail market intelligence giant SymphonyIRI - has acquired a majority interest in physician panel provider ImpactRx. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed. More
Full service agency Market Probe has promoted Saji Kumar to the position of Managing Director for Asia Pacific, to consolidate the firm's presence in the region, replacing Roger Thomas who has left the company. More
In Australia, Experian Hitwise's former Asia Pacific Research Director Alan Long has joined Online 1984 - the social media measurement division of The Online Circle - as General Manager. More
Panels and research technology firm Vision Critical has appointed former Research Now director Brad Wilson as its Business Development Director for Australia and New Zealand. More
Panel and survey technology provider Toluna has launched an iPhone app to facilitate survey response from its four million panellists. More
UK-based pollster and online MR firm YouGov plc has agreed to acquire Portland, Oregon-based Definitive Insights (DI), for an initial consideration of $1m and further performance-related payments adding to an anticipated $4.8m. YouGov also announced half-year revenue up 26.8% with an improved profit margin of 8.1%. More
For the financial year 2010, GfK has reported an 11.1% rise in income to a record EUR 1.29 billion. Adjusted operating income climbed from EUR 147.2m to EUR 185.0m with operating margin also at a historical high, 14.3%. More
Australian media analysis specialist Cubit Media Research and news aggregator Moreover Technologies have partnered to roll out a global online news and social media monitoring platform across the Asia Pacific region. More
Millward Brown has appointed Daren Poole as Global Brand Director for Link, its ad optimization solution. This is the fourth of five such newly created roles planned across the company. More
French financier Vincent Bolloré has indicated that he may be willing to sell his 26.5% stake in Synovate's parent firm Aegis, according to a report in the UK's Guardian newspaper. More
Global online sampling and data collection firm Research Now has moved Martin Filz from Sydney, Australia to the position of Managing Director in the UK. He is replaced in his previous role as Managing Director for Asia Pacific by James Burge. More
In the US, the ARF (Advertising Research Foundation) has unveiled the first results from its review of current neuromarketing methods. The study finds it to be 'a valuable tool' but gives many reasons for caution. More
CBS Interactive (CBSi) Australia has appointed Matthew Tibbles, formerly insight exec at News Digital Media, as Research and Insights Manager. More
Australian consumer insights specialist Edentify has opened a new office in Auckland, New Zealand to work with existing clients based in the country. More
Australian app developer Julian Dunham has launched PollMate: a free quant research tool which promises anyone with a question the chance to obtain answers, opinion, or feedback from iPhone users. More
Aegis has reported a return to full year growth in its research arm Synovate, where takings rose 9.8% to £572.6m and operating profit (at constant currencies) increased 19.4% to £45.6m. More
Australian newspaper publisher News Ltd has appointed Darren Stein as Director of Consumer Insights and Business Intelligence, responsible for creating a new team which will analyse feedback from both readers and advertisers. More
Web site publishers are inflating their audience figures and misleading media buyers by double counting page views, counting pages before they load, and counting pop-ups, according to a new report released by the Audit Bureaux of Australia (ABA). More
UK-based digital user experience (Ux) consultancy HeathWallace has established a new team in Melbourne, with the aim of expanding across Australia. More
comScore has today announced the launch of Digital Analytix, an 'agile and flexible' package of data analysis tools for in-depth research into site-level activity. The new software is powered by the firm's proprietary Atomix technology which uses un-aggregated data to deliver reports. More
In Australia, The Newspaper Works, the print media industry body, has appointed Greg Hywood of Fairfax Media as Chairman. He replaces Brendan Hopkins, former CEO of APN News & Media who retired last year. More
In the US, marketing services group Omnicom has partnered with AOL, Microsoft and Yahoo! in order to gain access to their consumer data and provide highly targeted online ads based on information such as users' gender, location and age. More
Newspaper publishers in Australia have agreed to start reporting daily circulation data through industry body The Newspaper Works. Daily figures have previously only been released for Saturday and Sunday editions. More
In Singapore, Yahoo! and Nielsen have partnered to launch Brand Impact, a study aimed at quantifying the branding effectiveness of online ad campaigns across Asia. More
Online panel firm Toluna has reported 2010 group revenues of £73.6m, up from £49.5m in 2009 - but on a pro forma basis allowing for the Greenfield ISS acquisition, the rise was just 2%. Profit after tax, however, jumped to £6.6m from £1.6m in 2009. More
US-based Omnicom has integrated its Whybin TBWA Tequila ad agency into its shopper marketing agency brand Integer, which it has launched in Australia with branches in both Sydney and Melbourne. More
Marcoms giant WPP has recorded a 4.4% increase in 2010 revenues to £2.43 billion in its Consumer Insight division. Meanwhile operating margins improved by 1.1 points to 9.7%. More
In the US, Nielsen has promoted Mary Liz Finn to the position of Chief Human Resources Officer, to lead the firm's human capital strategy, and oversee leadership development programs, compensation and benefits packages. More
According to reports, the MRUC (Media Research Users Council) - which conducts the Indian Readership Survey (IRS) - has terminated its agreement with Australian firm Roy Morgan Research to launch a single source survey in India. More
Nielsen has reported 2010 revenue of $5.13 billion, a 6.1% increase on a constant currency basis. Net income of $132m for the year compares well with a loss of $489m in 2009. More
In Malaysia Kym Wong, former Pulse Group COO, has set up Raydar Research, a new company offering data collection through mobile and online platforms. More
Social media engagement firm SAY Media has introduced the SAY 100, a group of influential 'online voices' who have been recruited to create content, drive conversations and shape opinion. More
In the US, media advisor BIA/Kelsey has launched a new service dedicated to analyzing the growing social media 'ecosystem', and recommending the best opportunities for driving revenues with social platforms. More
OzTAM - Australia's official source of television audience measurement - has appointed media veteran Michael Anderson as independent Chairman, following a complaint last year from broadcaster Network Ten about the way ratings were being measured for one of its digital channels. More
Online measurement specialist comScore has recorded 'record quarterly revenue' - up 52% on the previous year to $51.2m - while reporting a net loss of $494k compared with net income of $1.6m, resulting from acquisition and severance costs. More
Asia Pacific consultancy Media Monitors has acquired a majority stake in online and social media analysis firm Brandtology. Terms were not disclosed. More
Online research and panels specialist Research Now has relocated its office in Auckland, New Zealand to a bigger facility, to support anticipated growth in the Asia Pacific region. More
GfK Custom Research has promoted Debi Basu to the post of Regional Director for Asia Pacific and the Middle East, and Jean-Christophe Salles to Regional Director for Latin America. More
Online panel and research technology firm Toluna is to be taken private, in a deal valuing the company at £161m ($259m). Toluna's third-largest shareholder, family-owned Belgian company Verlinvest will fund the acquisition from its own assets and has formed a company called ITWP to complete it. More
Market Probe has announced a major push into key developing countries with the launch of strategic partnerships around the globe; a new office in Hong Kong; senior hires for brand equity and customer research; and development of a new customer advocacy model. More
In Australia, non-profit body The Readership Works has appointed media specialist Mal Dale for the newly created position of General Manager, responsible for developing, launching, and managing the country's new print readership metric. More
Out-of-home specialist 1-2-1VIEW has launched the InterFace audience measurement tool, which houses a web camera to detect viewers of digital signage displays, and count footfall at each point-of-display. More
Millward Brown has announced the appointment of Ronald D. Markham as Chief Information Officer; and the setting up of a Client Advisory Board to keep the company truly customer-focused. More
In Sydney, the Interactive Advertising Bureau of Australia (IAB) have whittled down the original twenty-one companies bidding for their online audience measurement contract to a shortlist of five. More
Nielsen has priced its forthcoming initial public offering (IPO) at around $1.64bn or $23.00 per share. The shares will trade from today on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol 'NLSN'. More
In New York, Millward Brown has appointed Rob Hernandez for the newly created post of Global Brand Director of its qual research network Firefly - the first of five such roles planned across the company. More
German product, pricing and marketing strategy specialist Simon-Kucher has reported a 19% rise in 2010 revenue to EUR 105.4m - passing the EUR 100m milestone for the first time in its 25-year history. More
UK-based insight consultancy Truth has promoted Senior Partners Neil Coburn to the position of Head of Global and Leanne Tomasevic to Head of UK, in advance of further overseas expansion planned for later in the year. More
Ahead of the official release of its financial results for calendar year 2010, Nielsen has reported an expected revenue increase of between 6.3% and 6.7% to between $5,110m and $5,130m (2009 = $4,808m), equivalent to 5.8% to 6.2% on a constant currency basis. More
Ipsos has appointed David Richardson as Managing Director of Asia Pacific, to help lead businesses across the India, Southeast Asia, Australia, Japan, Korea and Greater China regions. More
GfK Retail & Technology has launched the 'Network Intelligence Solution' (NIS), a new tool using data from operators' IP traffic to produce insights into daily mobile Internet usage. More
UK-based agency Nunwood has recorded double digit growth in 2010, with a 10% rise in revenues to more than £11m ($17.6m). The firm has also announced two senior management changes. More
TNS has kicked off the new year with a new 'global positioning' known as DISCOVER, which it says reflects its commitment to 'leading the way in research into new frontiers and making discoveries that help clients to develop opportunities'. More
Nielsen's Chief Human Resources Officer Roberto (Bob) Llamas is to leave the firm at the end of the first quarter 2011. The firm plans to name a successor during the transition period. More
The MRUC (Media Research Users Council) has partnered with Australian market research firm Roy Morgan Research to launch a single source survey in India. More
Last week's 'Festival of NewMR' broke new ground in various ways. DRNO Features Editor and virtual conference-goer Teresa Lynch looks back at 24 hours of leading edge thought and trailing edge fashion... More
GfK has appointed Joe Staton as Director and General Manager for its Roper Consulting business, responsible for the day-to-day running of the London office, and for innovation in its global consumer trends and insight offer. More
TNS has restructured its operations in Asia Pacific (APAC) to reflect the differing needs of the region's diverse markets, and named its Singapore office as its new APAC regional headquarters. More
A cross-industry group comprising six of Australia's leading online, marketing and ad industry bodies has been formed to develop industry guidelines and standards on online behavioural advertising (OBA) in the country. More
In Australia, shopper activation agencies Evocatif and iCRE8 have joined forces to expand parent firm STW Group's retail capabilities. More
Marcoms group Photon has added to the remit of Matthew Melhuish, its Head of Australian agencies, who will now oversee its portfolio of field marketing companies including a number of data collection and analytics firms. More
In Australia, market research firm DBM Consultants has launched the Business Financial Services Monitor (BFSM), a syndicated survey providing market and performance monitoring of the country's financial institutions. More
Embattled marketing group Photon has continued its efforts to simplify its management and company structure, closing digital provider Found Agency and moving its staff to its sister company Returnity. More
Online customer behaviour analysis firm Site Intelligence has received an unknown amount of equity funding from Oxford Capital Partners, while appointing Peter Ryan as Chief Executive Officer. More
OzTAM - Australia's official source of television audience measurement - has appointed Doug Peiffer as its new CEO, succeeding Kate Inglis-Clark who leaves after seven years in post. At this point, the details of Inglis-Clark's next career move are unknown. More
In Australia, Photon Group CEO Jeremy Philips has criticized the company's former management team and company culture, in a statement delivered at the marcoms giant's AGM. More
In Australia, the Outdoor Media Association (OMA) has added a new 'Plan by Format' functionality to its MOVE audience measurement system; enabling users to view and cross-analyse the reach and frequency of different out-of-home (OoH) formats. More
Marketing content and comms services specialist STW Group has strengthened its insights division with the launch of a specialist market research data collection agency called Touchpoint Research Australia. More
IT analyst IDC is boosting its Australian presence with an office in Melbourne, in order to provide more locally based analyst expertise and support. The firm will also add to its Sydney headcount. More
Global PR firm Weber Shandwick has launched a social media crisis simulator, FireBell, which offers those clients who dare 'an authentic, real-time experience of being under attack on social media channels'. More
Nunwood has promoted Andy Moore to the position of Global Managing Director, with responsibility for the firm's operations across the European, US and APAC regions. He takes over from Phil Rushfirth, who is moving to Los Angeles to drive the US business. More
US-based chip manufacturing giant Intel has acquired Canadian out-of-home (OoH) audience measurement technology developer CognoVision for an undisclosed amount. More
Kadence International has reported a 59% increase in global revenues to $4.2m for the first quarter of its new financial year - the period between July and September of 2010 - compared with the same period in 2009. More
In Australia, global brand and communications research agency Hall & Partners | Open Mind has appointed former TNS exec Adrianto Reksodipoetro as Associate Director, focusing on developing the agency's ethnography and online qual research capabilities. More
In Australia, Clarity Strategic Research has appointed qual-quant specialist Sam Blaxland as a Director, focusing on the B2B, telecoms, fmcg, finance and retail sectors. More
WPP is merging its business advisory and public opinion research firm Public Strategies with its international communications agency Hill and Knowlton (H&K), to offer joint capabilities in public affairs, research, digital and financial services. More
In the UK, TNS has moved James Fergusson to the post of Global Technology Head, responsible for leading the sector team and strengthening its presence across all markets. More
Lightspeed Research has moved its global headquarters from Basking Ridge to Warren, also in New Jersey. More
Restructuring Australian-based marketing services group Photon has issued a trading update showing earnings 'in line with last year'. It also confirmed that market research firm Auspoll has been merged with The Leading Edge (TLE). More
GfK has announced third quarter organic sales growth of 9.2%, up from an already strong 8.0% in the second quarter and 5.3% in the first quarter; and adjusted operating income up 27% to EUR 48.5m. More
Synovate parent Aegis Group has reported organic revenue growth of 9.7% in the third quarter, and 5.2% for the nine month period, but has warned of slower growth in the fourth quarter. Synovate outperformed the media division with revenue up 11.5% for the quarter and 5.7% over 9 months. More
Australian-based custom research firm The Leading Edge has opened its first in North American office, in New York, and hired former Interbrand and McCann exec Daniel Binns as CEO and Founding Partner. More
comScore has appointed Amy Weinberger as Vice President based in Sydney, heading up its operations in Australia and New Zealand. More
Asian-focused panels and MR outsourcing company Pulse Group is said to be looking for M&A opportunities. More
Synovate has launched a global analytics consulting practice, Synovate Management Analytics (SMA), promising clients the ability to make holistic, strategic decisions by integrating research, analytics and data sources for each project. More
Ahead of its official financial report which will be published on 15th November, GfK has announced a 10.8% revenue increase to EUR 931m for the first nine months of 2010 (prior year: EUR 840.2m), of which 7.4% is attributable to organic sales growth. More
Global research association ESOMAR has appointed Dieter Korczak as President and Mike Cooke as Vice President for the 2011/2012 period, following a recent vote among its 4,800 members in 120 countries. More
Nielsen's online division has added mobile Internet audience measurement to its New Zealand market intelligence service, with the roll out of its Mobile Market Intelligence (MMI) in the country. More
In Australia, customer experience research firm Strativity has opened an office in Sydney, from which it will offer its services to clients in both Australia and New Zealand. More
Australian marcoms group Mitchell Communications has received the thumbs up from its shareholders for its $363m takeover by UK-based Synovate parent, Aegis. More
Australian-based qual analysis software provider QSR International has upgraded its flagship qual research software NVivo, to enable users to work with all their unstructured data in one application, and collaborate with colleagues on the same project at the same time. More
In Australia, marketing firm STW Communications has taken a 40% stake in 'voice of the customer' (VoC) specialist Feedback ASAP, as part of its joint venture agreement with field marketing agency Smollan. Financial terms were not disclosed. More
In Australia, online measurement specialist comScore has appointed audience research veteran Jonathan Jephcott as a consultant to lead its bid to become the IAB Australia's sole supplier for the planning, buying and reporting of online audience measurement. More
In the US, Cadient - which provides digital marketing services and technology to the healthcare industry - has launched REVEAL: a platform which combines competitor analysis, web analytics, social monitoring, and customer insights. More
In the UK, consumer analysis and market information firm CACI has launched Vital Statistics - an online interactive demographic service, to help marketers understand the characteristics of people living in particular areas of the country. More
In Australia, in-store ad provider TorchMedia has partnered with Nielsen to design a solution which provides information from different shopper segments across a wide range of demographics, combined with purchasing behaviour data at product category level. More
Millward Brown is to offer Australian clients the neuroscience research services it launched in the UK in March, extending the offering of its existing advertising and brand research unit. More
Panel provider and research outsourcing firm Pulse Group has made a profit for the first time, for the year ending May 31 2010. More
Three Australian research and technology businesses have pooled their skills to launch a new company, Potentiate, with offices in Australia and Japan. The three are software firm Infotools Australia, panel management and survey deployment specialist Plenari and online sample firm Sampleworx. More
In Australia, Newspoll founder Sol Lebovic is back in business as an independent consultant, advising clients on the design, conduct and analysis of opinion polls and market research surveys. More
A total of 21 companies have registered an interest in bidding for the Australian IAB's recently announced online audience measurement tender. More
Clothing retailer Gap has initiated a crowdsourcing project following a backlash from customers posting on social media sites, about its newly re-designed logo. More
Research Panel Asia (RPA) has opened its first office in the US in Los Angeles, to support clients based in North America. More
Nunwood has opened an office in Sydney, Australia, headed by former BBC researcher Anna Thomas who joins the company as Joint Managing Director, APAC. Meanwhile Ann Thompson is promoted to Joint MD based in Auckland, NZ. More
TNS has re-organised its operations in Asia Pacific, the Middle East and Africa (APMEA) into two separate regions - TNS Africa and Middle East (AME) led by Kim Macilwaine and TNS Asia Pacific (APAC) headed by Chris Riquier. More
TNS has formed a new central division called Corporate Development, incorporating a number of current areas of marketing and strategy expertise. Matthew Froggatt, until now Technology Sector Head, has been appointed to lead the new unit as Chief Development Officer. More
Kantar Media has introduced DirectHEAT, a new subscription service delivering custommised multimedia ad intelligence to media sellers. More
UK-based Virtual Surveys has appointed former eBay user experience specialist James Lang as Web Research Director. More
GfK is restructuring its healthcare management team under a single brand with the appointment of Stephen Hearn to the newly created post of Global Head of GfK HealthCare, and the transition of Richard Vanderveer from CEO of the division to a consulting role. More
e-Rewards, the parent company of online panel specialist Research Now is to acquire US-based social media sample provider Peanut Labs in a deal expected to complete next month. Terms were not disclosed. More
Internet ad body IAB Australia is inviting online audience measurement (OAM) vendors to submit their services for tender evaluation, with the aim of selecting one as the sole and exclusive preferred supplier for the planning, buying and reporting of OAM in the country for a three-year term. More
Panel firm e-Rewards, Inc. has announced that it is adopting the name of its recent acquisition, Research Now, on a worldwide basis with immediate effect; and is introducing a new corporate identity. More
UK-based supermarket Tesco is Thailand's biggest grocery chain and is now one of four companies bidding for the Thai assets of Carrefour, after the French giant took the tough decision to pull out of a number of Asian markets. In part, Tesco's success is a victory for market research. More
Nick Palmer is moving from Hall & Partners London to lead the firm's new Sydney, Australia-based brand and comms research joint venture with Open Mind. More
Ipsos MediaCT has been chosen by Australian non-profit body The Newspaper Works to develop and run a new readership measurement system for the country's newspapers and magazines. More
Shareholders of Australian-based Photon Group have approved the firm's $102.5m recapitalisation plan at a Sydney EGM on Friday. Two mergers of Photon agencies have already been announced and more are said to be imminent. More
Online panel and technology firm Toluna has reported a 164% increase in revenues to £36.2m for the six months ended 30 June 2010, which it says reflects the successful integration of Greenfield Online ISS into the group. More
In Australia, 'people related' data specialist BinaryPlex has launched a tool to identify the value contained in Twitter conversations. More
US online measurement giant comScore has appointed Wolf Allisat as Executive Vice President, responsible for overseeing international expansion strategy in Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia Pacific. More
In Australia, TV ratings body OzTAM has agreed to appoint an independent chairman, following a complaint last year from broadcaster Network Ten about the way ratings were being measured for one of its digital sports channels. More
WPP-owned Millward Brown has brought all its global qualitative agencies together under a single brand, Firefly Millward Brown. More
Three former TNS execs - Evette Cordy, Penny Darbyshire and James Redden - have teamed up to launch a new firm based in Melbourne, Australia and rejoicing in the name of Raspberry Innovation Research + Strategy. More
Retail analytics solutions provider Manthan Systems has opened a new office in Melbourne, which will support demand for the firm's ARC Retail Business Intelligence products in Australia and New Zealand. More
Market research software provider Confirmit has signed a reseller agreement for a further three years, with Australia-based Information Research Management (IRM), which will continue to sell and support the Confirmit product suite in the Australian and New Zealand markets. More
UK-based specialist recruiter Resources Group has hired Rowan Haylett to lead and expand its Market Research & Insight offering in Australia and Asia, working from new offices in George Street, Sydney. More
ESOMAR has released its annual report on the global market research industry, painting a sobering picture of the first decline in MR turnover since it began measuring in 1988, but also striking a positive note. More
The world's Top 25 research organizations had a 'dismal' year for revenue in 2009, according to market research industry authority Jack Honomichl. During the year, total revenues for the 25 firms who made this year's list were down by 3.1% to $17.4bn. More
Credit and purchasing information giant D&B has acquired Dun & Bradstreet Australia Holdings for $205m in cash, from investment firm Lazard Carnegie Wylie Private Equity. More
Online sampling and data collection firm Research Now has moved to new larger premises in Sydney, Australia, to accommodate its recently expanded team and in anticipation of future growth. More
Aegis Group plc has announced a significant improvement in its 2010 interim results. Total revenue rose 4.2% to £663.3m, representing organic growth of 3.2%. The upturn in large part reflects a rebound at MR arm Synovate. More
UK-based transaction data specialist Beyond Analysis has appointed former Experian executive Lisa Didsbury as Director of Decision Sciences, responsible for leading the data analytics team and supporting the firm's growth plans over the next three years. More
Revenue and profits in WPP's Consumer Insight division rose in the first six months of 2010: the former slowly, up 2.4% on a like-for-like basis from a low comparative, but the latter more rapidly with headline profit before interest and tax (PBIT) up 22% to £83.7m. More
Fast food giant McDonald's has promoted UK President and CEO Steve Easterbrook to the newly-created position of Executive Vice President and Global Chief Brand Officer, responsible for marketing, menu innovation, consumer insights and other global brand assets. More
Australian marcoms and research group Photon has posted a 10% fall in revenue to $AUD 587.3m, and an $AUD 87.5m loss for the year ending 30 June 2010. Earnings in its Strategic Intelligence Division, which includes TLE and Jigsaw, fell 8% to $AUD 11.1m. More
UK-based Verve, specialist in customer advisory panels and online brand communities, has expanded its Sydney-based team with the appointment of Betty Mai as Partner, Australia and New Zealand; and Chantal Brady as Online Community Manager. More
Troubled Australian marcoms and research group Photon has been re-instated on the ASX (Australian Stock Exchange), and has already completed the first stage of its recapitalization plan by raising $AUD 76m through a $AUD 102.5m share placement. More
Nielsen has increased the amount it wants to raise by selling stock to $2.01bn, in its initial public offering (IPO) filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm has also added two new categories for measuring TV viewing. More
Pharma market research giant IMS Health has appointed Ari Bousbib as its new Chief Executive Officer, replacing David Carlucci who will continue to serve in his other role as Chairman for a transition period. More
GfK has raised its 2010 sales and income expectations following a 12.3% rise in second quarter sales to EUR 328.7m, and a 9.4% rise in first half sales to EUR 609.6m. The firm now expects a 6% rise in sales for the year, which is double its original projection. More
Australian market research consultancy Fiftyfive5 has appointed semiotics specialist Dr Rob Engels as a Qualitative Consultant, to help shape the firm's qual offer using semiotics, cultural trends and ethnography. More
Tim Hughes, the founder of Australian marcoms and research group Photon, has left the company as it continues its attempts to recapitalise. More
Online panel and survey technology firm Toluna has rolled out its UPS (Unified Panelist System) globally. Separately, in the US, the firm has hired Jeff Scott as President and promoted Ron Franscella to the post of Chief Revenue Officer. More
Interactive research and technology firm Vision Critical has announced results for the first half of 2010. On a constant currency basis, total revenues rose 43% versus a year earlier and CEO Angus Reid says the company is 'on track to earn approximately $70 million in revenue in 2010'. More
Recent Australian research start-up Fiftyfive5 has appointed former TLE Chief Executive Mark Sundquist as a Partner. He joins his erstwhile colleagues, company founders Karen Phillips and Darren Kemp. More
comScore is planning to open offices in Sydney and Melbourne, according to EVP International Will Hodgman - boosting its influence in Australia in the run-up to the appointment of a preferred web ratings supplier, for which it will tender. More
In Australia Gordon Towell, CEO of the Audit Bureau of Circulations (ABC) and Circulations Audit Board (CAB) is returning to private enterprise after two years in the role. His replacement, from 27th August, will be ABC and CAB's Director of Audit Services, Paul Dovas. More
Australian-based qual analysis software provider QSR has appointed Tim Macdermid in the new role of Vice President, Global Sales, with the aim of expanding into new markets across the Americas, EMEA and Australasia regions. More
Research and Business Intelligence firm Majestic MRSS (MMRSS) has announced the opening of new full service offices in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Singapore. More
Open Mind Research Group has teamed up with Hall & Partners to form a new boutique consultancy, which CEO Dr Vicki Arbes says will 'compete at a different level' in the Australian market. More
Indian-based KPO group Annik Technology Services has announced the opening of a Middle East office located at Abu Dhabi, UAE, and the appointment of key personnel in Japan and North America. More
Nielsen has announced results for the quarter and six months ended June 30. Reported quarterly revenues rose to $1,270m, up 7% year-on-year and reported operating income rose 6% from $172m to $182m - a rise of 10% after adjusting for one-off costs and currency changes. More
comScore has announced record revenues of $42m for the second quarter of 2010, up 34% year-on-year. Adjusted earnings also rose by around 28.5%. More
Australian MR pioneer Roy Morgan Research and South East Asian online audience specialist Effective Measure International have announced a strategic partnership to develop a 'totally new' Internet measurement methodology and system. More
Nielsen has appointed Gai Le Roy to the role of Vice President Research - Audience Measurement, in its Asia Pacific online division. More
Millward Brown qual division Firefly has hired Peter Foster as Senior Account Director, based in Melbourne. More
Two of the research industry's top four firms, Kantar and GfK, have announced an initiative aimed at promoting and assuring online data quality. The firms will seek 'broad industry participation' in their not-for-profit consortium, the Promedius Group. More
Global research group Ipsos has reported a very strong performance for the first six months of 2010, with revenue up 18.1% to EUR 528.8m (organic growth 7.7%) and adjusted net profit up 33.7% to EUR 32.0m. More
MD Andrew Reid has left Australian music and events firm Peer Group Media after two years to head up ViziSense, the web site metrics platform being rolled out in Australia by Indian firm Komli. More
Embattled Australian group Photon has given its first formal market update in almost a month, confirming press reports that it is struggling to refinance. However, CEO Jeremy Philips is said to have succeeded in renegotiating earn-out agreements with execs at most of its key subsidiaries. More
In Australia, Survey Sampling International has relocated its Sydney offices to accommodate its expanding service team, which now includes more than 20 account and project managers. More
In the US, online market research tech firm Crowd Science has appointed technology and e-commerce veteran Corey Leibow as President and Chief Executive Officer. More
Ipsos MORI has restructured its operations team. Rowland Lloyd is promoted to the post of Regional Director, Western Europe and South Africa Operations, while Jane A'Court and Sarah Michell become Joint MDs of Operations in the UK. More
In the UK, professional and financial services research specialist Acritas has reported a 104% increase in sales for the last six months, while revenue doubled. The firm has also announced its plan to become a 'global knowledge hub' for the legal profession. More
WPP's digital investment arm has acquired an interest in Chinese digital ad measurement company Moment Systems, founded in 2006 in Beijing and currently employing 90 people. Reports suggest the marcoms giant is also eyeing the possible sale of Photon companies in Australia. More
ESOMAR has revoked Tom Anderson's status as its US representative, following his public criticisms of the introduction of ISO quality standards to the US. The body is now urging its global representatives to sign a charter agreeing they adhere to its 'mission and values'. More
Australian marcoms and research group Photon is struggling to raise the necessary finance to recapitalise, and faces going out of business if it fails to renegotiate $AUD 176m worth of earn-out payments due to owners of some of its 50 agencies. More
TNS has promoted Margit Huber to the position of Global HR, Talent Manager & Culture Director, with a remit to create an 'inspirational culture' across the group. More
Millward Brown has added five team members to its Neuroscience Research Practice, formed in March to extend the services offered by its existing advertising and brand research unit. More
US-based panel company e-Rewards has issued $6.75m worth of stock options and incentives to a number of its directors and executive officers. More
Online marketing specialist Lyris has opened two offices in Australia, and is making a 'strategic investment' in its partner Cogent to fuel growth in the country. More
US-based data collection agency Universal Survey and its partner Survey Healthcare have established physician and healthcare professional panels across the major European, Asian, and Russian markets, in addition to their existing US and Canadian panels. More
In Australia, online media analytics firm BuzzNumbers has upgraded its Buzz platform, to help businesses track what is being said about their brand and where conversations are taking place. More
In our latest selection from the mass of market research and marketing data generated by the 2010 World Cup, Features Editor Teresa Lynch brings you shoes, shirts, soccer, soft drinks, smartphones, space science and the savoury smell of simmering squid. More
Media Monitors Australia has been acquired by Quadrant Private Equity in a deal reported to be worth up to $AUD 160m. More
Marketing group STW Communications has formed a joint venture with field marketing specialist Smollan Group to conduct mystery shopping and customer auditing activities in Australia and New Zealand. More
In the US, Ipsos has launched the Open Thinking Exchange - a new organization dedicated to 'opening the exchange of ideas and information between marketers and their consumers'. More
Australian-based insights consultancy The Leading Edge has appointed branding specialist Errol Flanagan as Senior Consultant, Branding and Innovation. More
WPP-owned Kantar Media has released 'Connect', a new solution that integrates a publisher's own web site metrics with survey data, to create a single-source database that links online behaviour to the attitudes that drive it. More
Kantar-owner WPP has reported improved results for the first five months of the year. Both Group revenues and those for the Insight division rose around 2% worldwide on a like-for-like basis while growth in May was well over 5%. More
Nielsen has been reappointed as New Zealand's supplier of television audience measurement (TAM) services, winning an eight-year contract from SKY, TVNZ and TVWorks. More
Are mobile surveys more intrusive? Will ICE change the face of online panels? Why don't we entirely trust Neuroscience? And should we now be a bit less worried about Google? From today, join the debate on the big issues in our MRT section. More
Just as you thought the World Cup was 'so last week' here we go again with (among other things) call centre productivity; social media match predictions; and the disturbing prospect of Diego Maradona running round Buenos Aires naked. More
Survey Sampling International (SSI) has hired Jessica Sullivan as Director, Access & Engagement, Asia Pacific. More
US-based business analytics technology provider Anametrix has opened sales and technical operations in London and Amsterdam, while striking deals with resellers in Spain, China, Australia and Israel. More
Synovate has launched a new research system offering clients a better understanding of customer experiences, attitudes and behaviours. More
A modest 38% of England fans will throw World Cup 'sickies' this month, costing the UK c.£1bn in lost work - but not in vain, as it can be scientifically proven that England are going to win. Yes, predictably, we are inundated with stats, and our Features Editor Teresa Lynch will bottle only the finest for you. More
A number of leading panel firms have joined with MR technology firm Imperium, to launch an industry-wide user group focused on driving optimal sample quality. More
Nielsen has filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission to raise up to $1.75bn in an initial public offering (IPO), which it will use to pay down debt and for 'general corporate purposes'. More
Survey Sampling International (SSI) has launched a new online consumer panel in New Zealand. The panel is expected to grow to 50,000 members in its first 6 months. More
In Melbourne, Australia, Millward Brown has re-hired Martin Attwood as Senior Account Director. Most recently, he was Consumer and Shopper Insights Manager for Schweppes Australia. More
Consumer goods giant Procter & Gamble (P&G) has partnered with eye tracking technology firm Tobii Technology to collaborate on product innovations and conduct package and shelf testing on a global basis. More
Custom panels and research technology firm Vision Critical has relocated its Sydney office to accommodate its growing team. The latest recruit is Peta Lemmon, who joins with more than 10 years' consumer goods research experience. More
MR technology firms Insight Marketing Systems (IMS) in Australia and MarketSight in the US have partnered to offer a solution which enables research buyers to securely access and analyse research results online, and share them with internal stakeholders. More
Ipsos has rolled out its Social Research Institute globally, to provide clients with an international understanding of social policy and research methods, while drawing on the firm's extensive knowledge of social research conducted in the 64 countries where it has offices. More
Australian insights consultancy The Leading Edge has made five senior appointments in Sydney, after winning several major new clients. More
Online survey technology and panels firm Toluna has reported revenue of more than £17m during the first three months of 2010 and says both revenues and profits in the quarter were slightly ahead of budget. More
IBM has announced new services and products to help companies analyze what it calls 'Big Data'. Grouped under the brand name of 'BigInsights' and part of the IBM Info Sphere offering, the services use open source technology Apache Hadoop to tackle datasets too large for normal analysis. More
Aegis' research arm Synovate has reported a 1.9% organic decline in first quarter revenue, compared with 10.1% and 5.5% declines respectively in the third and fourth quarters of 2009. Separately, Synovate has launched a 'Digital Centre of Excellence', based in London. More
Custom panels and research technology firm Vision Critical has appointed Bala Rajan to lead the firm's qual business in Australia and New Zealand, and Daniel Alexander-Head as Engagement Strategy Director. Both will be based in the firm's Sydney office. More
TNS has appointed Ian Stewart as Regional Director for Youth for the Asia Pacific Middle East & Africa region (AP MEA), charged with building a specialist youth practice and driving the firm's TRU teens syndicated service across the region. More
GfK claims to be back on track with an increase in both Q1 sales and income. During the first quarter of 2010, the global group reported a 6.1% sales increase to EUR 280.9m from Q1 2009, up 5.2% in organic terms. Income rose 71.2% to EUR 25.3m during the period. More
Ipsos says it is confident in its ability to return to 'significant and profitable growth' in 2010, after reporting a 14% rise in first quarter revenue to EUR 236.9m, compared with EUR 207.3m in the prior year period. More
In Sydney, two former Directors of The Leading Edge have set up Fiftyfive5, a market research consultancy focused on helping clients' to deliver growth from their investment in insights. More
Nielsen has added mobile Internet audience measurement to its Australian market intelligence service, a 'world first' in online audience measurement methodology according to the measurement giant. More
Now that contacting the mobile-only demographic is becoming a core sampling issue (23% of all households in the US and rising) ESOMAR has published guidelines on research via mobile phone. More
Online audience measurement firm comScore has appointed four key executives in the Asia Pacific region, as part of a plan to introduce an 'on-the-ground' presence in Hong Kong, India and Australia. More
WPP CEO Sir Martin Sorrell says the figure reported in the press for Nielsen's possible valuation is 'out of the ballpark' and 'doesn't work in any way, shape or form'. Both companies reported encouraging results today, WPP forecasting growth for the year and Nielsen seeing 4% real revenue growth over Q1 2009. More
Harris Interactive has announced improved results for the third quarter of its fiscal 2010, with bookings well up on 2009 and operating loss cut from $7.3m to $0.9m year-on-year. However, President and CEO Kimberly Till says the company 'still has more work to do' to complete its recovery. More
In Hong Kong, two former TNS Directors have launched Radar Global, a new 'services only' agency which provides multi-country project management and data collection services across Asia Pacific and beyond. More
Nielsen is said to be preparing to trade as a public company, inviting a number of investment banks to underwrite an initial public offering (IPO) which could be worth up to $21bn. More
Panel provider and research outsourcing firm Pulse Group has opened a specialist Healthcare and Automotive practice, providing online panels, CATI and full-service offerings across Asia. More
In Australia, former Interbrand CEO Andy Bateman has joined insights consultancy The Leading Edge (TLE) as Global CEO, to drive international expansion plans which will commence with the opening of an office in New York. More
Brand and communications research agency Hall & Partners has rolled out its Engager tool, which measures how people think and feel - both consciously and unconsciously - about brands, and how they engage with them. More
In Australia, veteran pollster Rod Cameron is closing his market research and polling firm ANOP Research Services, after nearly 40 years in business. More
In Australia, marketing services group Photon - which owns research agencies The Leading Edge and Jigsaw Strategic Research - has appointed former News Corporation executive Jeremy Philips as its new CEO. More
Former Synovate Director Dr Neil Gains has launched a market research consultancy, Tapestry Works, in Singapore, to service organisations across Asia. More
Following street protests in Thailand that left 21 people dead at the weekend, ESOMAR has moved its forthcoming Asia Pacific conference from the InterContinental in Bangkok, to the JW Marriott Hotel in Kuala Lumpur. The event will still go ahead from 25-27 April. More
US technology specialist Yankee Group has raised $10m for the expansion of its research into the impact of global connectivity. The firm is also looking for a new CEO, following promotion of Emily Nagle Green to the post of Chairman. More
Online audience specialist comScore has launched its online video measurement service in Australia, China, Hong Kong, Japan, Malaysia and Singapore. More
Joan Koh has been promoted to the position of Managing Director of Nielsen in Singapore, after more than a decade with the firm. She replaces Paul Richmond, who has taken on the role of regional Managing Director of Retail Services and Product Leadership. More
Online panels and software firm Toluna has announced final results for the year ended 31 December 2009. Underlying profit before tax of £7.6 million is well ahead of market expectations, while the integration of Greenfield Online is transforming its global position. More
GfK has announced a partnership between its subsidiary GfK Asia Pte Ltd and global mobile media industry trade association Mobile Entertainment Forum (MEF), which promises insight for the mobile content industry. More
Australian insights consultancy The Leading Edge has restructured its Sydney-based business with the return of overseas executives, internal promotions and the appointment of a new senior specialist. More
US technology market intelligence firm International Data Corporation (IDC) and events firm naseba have formed an alliance to provide and promote new technology-focused research and events in the Asia Pacific region. More
Eye tracking software company iMotions has struck a reseller deal with Objective Digital, bringing local customer service and support for the former's Attention Tool in Australia and New Zealand. More
Aegis, Synovate's parent company, is raising funds through the issue of a convertible bond for c.£190m, which it plans to use to make acquisitions in the US and China. More
Clarity Strategic Research has launched a panel of early adopters of technology, using consumers from Research Now's panel in Australia. More
Market research software providers Confirmit and MRDC Thailand have announced a reseller partnership which will extend the former's reach into Asia. More
Synovate has reported a 13.7% fall in net revenue on an organic basis during 2009, while describing the research sector as 'much weaker than expected from historical precedent'. More
Digital audience metrics company Effective Measure has expanded into South East Asia with the opening of a hub in Bangkok, where it has appointed digital media specialist Russell Conrad to lead the business. More
Research technology firm Voxco has appointed Juergen Hessdoerfer as MD of its German subsidiary Voxco GmbH. He will oversee Central and Eastern Europe, Scandinavia and Asia Pacific sales and operations. More
Lightspeed Research has announced results from the first Asian wave of its Global Web Index survey. The study covers online behavior, motivations and impact and was developed jointly with technology consultancy Trendstream. More
Marcoms giant WPP saw revenues in its insights division fall 9.5% on a like-for-like basis during 2009, whilst on the same basis gross margin fell by 7.7%. More
IT specialist Springboard Research has acquired Hydrasight, an independent IT industry analyst firm in Australia. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
In the US, health care research giant IMS Health has announced completion of its acquisition by investment firms TPG Capital and the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB), for $5.2bn. More
The Nielsen Company has announced its financial results for the year ended December 31, 2009. Revenue was almost exactly level with the previous year ($4,806m) but up 4% if currency fluctuations are excluded. More
Social media sample provider Peanut Labs has launched an Australia sample consisting of over 226,000 respondents, and says twenty other countries will follow, many in 2010. More
GfK has reported a 4.6% decline in 2009 sales to EUR 1,164m, taking into account acquisitions and currency effects. However, for the fourth quarter, the group recorded sales of EUR 324m, compared with EUR 282m in Q3. More
Despite a 3.6% decline in revenues to EUR 943.7m, Ipsos says it is 'ready for battle' in 2010, with plans to simplify management structures, increase effort in innovation, and extend its presence among a larger number of clients. More
iPOWOW! – which provides tools for gathering opinion through online video – has partnered with digital signage producer MediaTile to develop a new interactive audience measurement system for digital touch screen systems. More
In the first quarter of 2010, Maritz Research has created more than 50 new jobs at its European and Asian offices, including around 20 in Hamburg. More
In Australia, the Outdoor Media Association (OMA) has officially launched its industry-wide audience measurement tool MOVE. More
YouGov co-founder and CEO Nadhim Zahawi is preparing to step down from his role, after being selected to stand as the parliamentary candidate for the safe Conservative Party seat of Stratford-on-Avon in the forthcoming general election. More
Online measurement firm comScore has rolled out its Media Metrix 360 'panel-centric' solution in the Asia Pacific region. More
In Australia, digital audience metrics company Effective Measure has secured a $4m investment, earmarked for the rollout of its services. More
Kantar owned TNS and Compete have launched a web evaluation service, which identifies areas of a brand's web site that are underperforming, and goes on to recommend how the client can enhance the site for optimal performance. More
Australian insight firm Pathfinder Solutions has been acquired by consultants Deloitte for an undisclosed amount, strengthening the latter's fast-growing analysis and data management offering. More
In Australia, location and wireless technologies specialist GPS Innovations has announced a new offering promising real-time data collection methods for market researchers. More
US research giant IMS Health has reported a 3% increase in fourth quarter revenues to $599.2m. The firm has also received shareholder approval for its sale to TPG Capital and the CPP Investment Board. More
Technology research giant Gartner has reported a 5% fourth quarter 2009 drop in total revenue to $328.8m, while rival Forrester Research posted a revenue decline of 2% to $61.5m, compared with the same period in 2008. More
US-based Cambiar and Asia Pacific's Gordon & McCallum - consultancies dedicated to the market research industry - have agreed to develop joint services and partner to provide 'on-the-ground' presence to support clients' geographical expansion plans. More
Neuromarketing firm NeuroFocus has formed a joint venture partnership with Nielsen to roll out its services in Australia. More
In the US, online measurement specialist comScore has appointed former AOL ad technology leader Chris Nicotra as Chief Technology Officer, responsible for overseeing software and data application engineering, and the infrastructure technology teams. More
Pharmaceutical research giant IMS Health has received clearance from the European Commission (EC) to proceed with its sale to US investment firms TPG Capital and Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) for $5.2bn. More
Web analytics firm Webtrends has released a new tool to measure and quantify how customers are engaging with both mobile web sites and mobile applications. More
MR software firm E-Tabs is to open a New Zealand office in June, to meet 'increasing industry demands' for report automation and to better serve existing clients in Asia Pacific. More
Panel and technology services provider ToLuna has released a trading update for the year ended 31 December 2009. Revenue is expected to exceed £49m, slightly ahead of market expectations, with underlying pre-tax profit of at least £7m. More
In Australia, public sector specialist and former TNS exec Paul Vittles is launching The Vittles Organisation, centred around training and development, and with the particular goal of working with small and medium-sized research firms. More
Ipsos has acquired LA-based hi-tech entertainment research specialist OTX (Online Testing Exchange) for an undisclosed sum. More
WPP communications agency MediaCom Worldwide has strengthened its consumer insight division, with the promotion of Robert Fry and Gast=n Betoled to the positions of Regional Head of Insight for Asia Pacific and Latin America respectively. More
TNS has integrated its US-based employee and customer behavioral research division The Foresight Group into its Global Stakeholder Management division. More
In its second rebrand of the week, Kantar has re-named the TNS Worldpanel network as Kantar Worldpanel. Earlier in the week the group rebranded its media assets. More
US organisation Digital College Network (DCN) has partnered with iPOWOW! - which gathers viewer opinion through online video - to collect real-time data and feedback from advertising signage in colleges. More
After eighteen months of losses, Harris Interactive has posted net income of $1.3m on revenue of $44.6m for the quarter ending December 31. More
In the US, Millward Brown and its digital unit Dynamic Logic have partnered with Kantar sister-firm Cymfony, to integrate analysis of discussions on social media sites, blogs and message forums into their suite of digital, media and marketing solutions. More
In a move that should please privacy advocates and regulators including the EC, Microsoft has announced changes to its data storage policy for the Bing search engine. Bing will now keep search data including IP addresses for just six months. More
In Australia, former Research International director Scott MacLean has founded Nulink Analytics, a consultancy providing both advanced data analysis and consultation on research design and interpretation. More
John Shanahan, founder and CEO of market research agency Colmar Brunton Australia is to become Executive Chairman of the Colmar Brunton Group, as his firm announces the acquisition of benchmarking firm, The Advantage Group International (AGI). More
In Australia, the Outdoor Media Association (OMA) has appointed former Research International veteran John Gandar to drive its Measurement of Outdoor Visibility and Exposure (MOVE) initiative towards its launch next month. More
UK-headquartered dmrkynetec - which specialises in market research for the crop protection, biotech and animal health industries - will now operate as GfK Kynetec, following its acquisition by GfK Group. More
In New Zealand, credit bureau Veda Advantage and Christchurch-based data and analytics company VortexDNA have announced a partnership to develop new predictive tools targeting clients at home and abroad, including the Middle East and SE Asia. More
Firefly Research founder Simon McDonald has joined Australian agency The Leading Edge (TLE) as Managing Partner of its UK office. More
US-based JD Power and Associates has promoted John Humphrey to the post of Head of Global Automotive Operations, in a move to align operations globally and enhance and extend its industry benchmarks. More
dunnhumby has acquired KSS Retail, which provides price modelling and optimization solutions for retailers worldwide. More
Database giant Infogroup has announced a rebrand, aimed at providing clients with 'a more unified approach'. MR subsidiary Opinion Research Corporation is among the major brands keeping their identity while strengthening their positioning as an Infogroup company. More
Business intelligence giant Thomson Reuters has acquired Discovery Logic, Inc, a provider of customizable analytics and decision support solutions for scientific research. Financial terms were not disclosed. More
Jack Noonan, the CEO of MR software firm SPSS, has been replaced by IBM veteran Deepak Advani, following the firm's acquisition. More
Agricultural market reseasearch specialist Kleffmann Group has reported a 5.2% increase in turnover to $28.5m in 2009, and is predicting a positive outlook on growth prospects for 2010. More
IBM has introduced a subscription-based analytics offer that mines diverse data sources from customer service interactions, to deliver a single view of customer sentiment. More
In New Zealand, Unite Union has asked its members and the public not to participate in interviews conducted by market research agency Colmar Brunton, following the firm's decision to make fifty union members and other call centre staff redundant. More
Kantar's web analytics firm Compete and WPP's Media Innovation Group (MIG) have linked up to enhance the latter's B3 ad optimization product through the addition of the former's online consumer data. More
Australian firm iPOWOW! - which provides tools for gathering opinion through online video - is to expand to the US with the opening of new headquarters in Silicon Valley and the appointment of two new members of its management team. More
The Nielsen Company is selling eight publications including Billboard music magazine and The Hollywood Reporter, to a newly formed media investment group, e5 Global Media LLC; and is discontinuing two other titles. More
Samsung Electronics Australia has made three hires for its corporate marketing team, adding considerable research and insight expertise. More
Business and financial information giant Bloomberg has announced the acquisition of news, data and analysis firm New Energy Finance (NEF), whose services include custom research as well as database and subscription-based insight products. More
The Nielsen Company has promoted Eva Leung to the position of Executive Director, Retail Measurement, Hong Kong, replacing Angel Young who has moved to a regional role within the firm.. She was previously Director, Client Service, Retail Measurement. More
Millward Brown has promoted company veteran Daren Poole to the newly-created position of Chief Client Officer (CCO) for Australia, effective 1 January. More
Ipsos has launched a specialist gaming research practice, 3D. The unit integrates new tools and various existing skills from within the group to focus on the needs of game developers, marketers and console manufacturers. More
Online measurement giant comScore has extended its reach in Asia with the addition of consumer Internet usage monitoring for Indonesia, the Philippines and Vietnam. The first data is due for release in early 2010. More
Custom panel firm Vision Critical has announced the hiring of former Colmar Brunton MD and current AMSRS President Peter Harris as its new Managing Director for Australia and New Zealand. More
WPP Chief Martin Sorrell has told a Reuters summit that with 'vicious' price activity in the market, he expects the group's 2010 revenues to be flat. Sorrell says new business activity in his media businesses is strong, but in MR and creative functions there is less cheer. More
Retail market intelligence giant IRI (Information Resources, Inc.) has enhanced its Consumer and Shopper Insights platforms with a series of new digital media solutions. Partners including [x+1] and Dynamic Logic have already announced new offers based on the technology. More
IT research giant Gartner, Inc. has agreed to acquire supply chain specialist AMR Research, Inc. for approximately $64 million in cash. More
Technology consulting group Forrester Research has announced the acquisition of the Strategic Oxygen business from Massachusetts, USA-based Monitor Group, for an undisclosed sum. More
B2B specialist Kadence International has reported a 20% rise in revenue for its insight division, and overall growth of 9% to $11.3m during the financial year 2008-2009. More
KPO specialist Pulse Group has reported pre-tax losses of almost £1m for the full year to the end of May, up from just £171,900 the previous year. More
In Australia, Nielsen's online research division has promoted Matt Bruce to the position of Managing Director, from his previous role as National Sales Director. More
A new non-profit organization has been set up to educate research buyers and suppliers on the practice of offshoring, and establish offshoring disclosure standards for firms that deal with clients' customer survey or database information. More
UK-headquartered global insight consultancy Nunwood has announced plans to open four new offices early next year, starting with New Zealand and Australia and following up with launches in both The Netherlands and California later in the first quarter of 2010. More
In Australia, industry veteran Brian Fine has today launched his own online panel and sample firm 'Australia Online Research' (AOR). More
Nielsen's group revenues for the three months ended September 30, 2009 were down 1% to $1.25bn from the same period last year. CFO Brian West described the quarter as having been 'steady'. More
Independent marketing consultancy Iris is to open a branch of its in-house strategy consultancy Concise in Australia, which will add research and analytics, CRM, loyalty and commercial innovation to its existing offering. More
Nielsen has rolled out a fast turnaround method to enable agencies to quickly review the performance of recently launched TV ads, and react accordingly. More
In Australia, Sweeney Research has linked up with youth communications agency Lifelounge Group to extend the reach of the latter's report into young adults in Australia - Urban Market Research (UMR). More
Pharmaceutical research giant IMS Health has agreed to be sold to private equity firm TPG Capital and the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) for $5.2bn. More
Kantar Media has expanded its Global Target Group Index (TGI) Network of syndicated single-source marketing and media studies, following parent WPP's acquisition of TNS. More
comScore has partnered with non-profit organization the Wikimedia Foundation to improve understanding of the reach and impact of free knowledge on the web. More
WPP has reported a like-for-like revenue decline of 8.7% for the third quarter - a smaller drop than was seen in the second quarter. Consumer insight revenues stayed depressed although margin was better. The firm also pointed to strong regional differences and predicted a 'LUV' shaped recession. More
Japanese Internet service company EC Navi has announced the opening of a new subsidiary, Research Panel Asia Inc. (RPA), offering online survey panels in Asia. The first RPA panel, 91wenwen.com, launches in China today. More
Synovate has promoted Mike Cassidy to the position of Managing Director of its Australian business, and Brent Stewart to the newly created global role of CEO Strategic Units. More
The Market Research Society of New Zealand (MRSNZ) and the Association of Market Research Organisations (AMRO) have condemned the New Zealand Labour Party for what they describe as 'unethical and misleading activities'. More
Nielsen veterans David McCallum and Alastair Gordon have launched a new consultancy in Sydney, Australia and Wellington, New Zealand, to help agencies maximize their performance and clients optimise their research spend. More
In the US, KantarHealth Joint CEO Elaine Riddell has decided to leave the company to 'pursue other opportunities': Joint CEO Lynnette Cooke assumes sole global CEO responsibilities with immediate effect. More
Less than two days after it was announced that e-Rewards was considering buying online panel specialist Research Now, the firms have agreed on the terms of a cash acquisition, which values Research Now at around £85.1m. More
Harris Interactive's Asia President Anthony Venus has decided to leave the firm in mid-November. He will re-locate from Hong Kong to Sydney, where he plans to pursue a career in private equity. More
Pharma market research giant IMS Health has reported a 6% drop in third-quarter revenue to $540.8m, compared with $573.7m a year earlier. The news follows reports earlier in the week that the Board of Directors is considering selling the company. More
GfK has created a global database of point-of-sale data for electronic consumer goods. The 'Digital World' service has been designed by GfK Retail and Technology in conjunction with the US Consumer Electronics Association (CEA). More
Consumer Health Sciences (CHS) has added more than 13,300 Chinese consumers to the database for its 'National Health and Wellness Survey' (NHWS). Plans are also in place to roll out the service further across Asia, Eastern Europe and Latin America. More
US-based e-Rewards has made an indicative approach to online panel specialist Research Now, which may lead to an offer for the latter's entire share capital. The price would be not less than £4.30 in cash per share. More
In Australia, the Outdoor Media Association (OMA) has postponed the launch of its audience measurement system MOVE until next February. Its original plan was to roll out the system this year. More
According to reports, pharma market research giant IMS Health is in talks with several private equity firms regarding selling the company. More
Brand and communications research specialist Hall & Partners has teamed up with the Open Mind Group to launch a joint venture in Australia, headed by former Research International (RI) Exec Louise McCann who will be based in Sydney. More
In New York, Nielsen has hired Steve Hasker to fill the newly created position of President, Media Product Leadership and Advertiser Solutions - a new business unit set up to help advertisers 'deliver the right messages to the right consumers'. More
Digital marketing agency iCrossing has released a social media monitoring application for the iPhone, that enables users to search Twitter, Digg and thousands of forums and blogs. More
In Sydney, Australia, online fieldwork and panel specialist Research Now has announced the appointment of Martin Filz as Managing Director, Asia Pacific from 1 November, replacing Jason Buchanan who is leaving to 'explore a new business venture'. More
Data collection agency Field Force has become the first firm in Australia to join the 'Panel Exchange' sample marketplace operated by Swedish software firm Cint. More
In Australia, former Galaxy Research Director Chris Lonergan has launched his own full service market research agency, which he says will 'marry old school rigour' with new technology and a thorough understanding of business issues. More
The biggest new MrWeb section in nine years opens today with launch articles from five research luminaries. 'MRT' is an online home for custom panel builders, mobile researchers, data miners, neuromarketers and many others at the leading edge of what we broadly define as 'MR'. More
In the US, regulators have given graphic design software giant Adobe the go ahead to proceed with its acquisition of web analytics firm Omniture for around $1.8 billion, or $21.50 per share. The offer deadline for shareholders is October 22. More
Former Ipsos operations head Efrain Ribeiro has joined online panel specialist Lightspeed Research as Chief Operating Officer, based in the US and responsible for global online operations. More
IBM has completed its $1.2bn acquisition of MR software and predictive analytics giant SPSS. The completion was announced on Friday after SPSS shareholders gave their approval. More
Three agencies, Acrobat Research, Cimigo and EuroInterview are combining to create a new global operations business called Cido Research. More
In Australia, SampleWorx has launched an online sample marketplace where potential buyers can log on and post details about their projects, and suppliers can place bids to win these contracts. More
Online specialist Research Now is to offer Experian's consumer segmentation tool Mosaic, across its panels globally. More
The practice of 'digital fingerprinting' may breach Canadian privacy laws - and by extension those of many European and Asian countries - according to a statement today by Canada's Marketing Research and Intelligence Association. More
WPP agency Added Value is launching three new initiatives to help clients address strategic marketing questions facing their business and brands. The first, AV-id(TM), uses the principles of social networking to help clients develop and refine conceptual marketing ideas in real time. More
MR software giant SPSS has announced that it has settled its trademark case with company founder Norman Nie over use of its name. The company is due to put its $1.2 billion acquisition by IBM to shareholders' vote this Friday, while the litigation was due to come to trial the following Monday. More
TNS Magasin has launched a service focusing on understanding shoppers who don't buy the products in front of them, identifying and analysing attrition amongst shoppers at every stage of the process. More
Synovate has expanded its Retail Performance shopper counting and analytics business across Europe, the Americas and Asia; and appointed a 'Business Development champion' for each of these three regions. More
In Australia, B2B research firms Beaton Research & Consulting and Taylor Management Consulting have merged. More
In Australia, Mark Sundquist is standing down from his post as Chief Executive Officer of consumer insight consultancy The Leading Edge (TLE), after 14 years with the company. More
US web analytics firm Omniture and online measurement specialist comScore have partnered to deliver what they describe as a 'unified digital audience measurement system'. More
Panel and online research software provider Toluna has reported strong revenue and profit growth and increased market share in all European territories in the first half of 2009. Revenue grew 67% to £13.7m and first-half operating profits were up 21% to £1.6m. More
In Sydney, Australia, AMR research founder Brian Fine is to leave his job in November. Fine started the company, now part of marketing content and services firm STW Group, 25 years ago. More
Graphic design and display software giant Adobe Systems Incorporated is to acquire web analytics and online business optimization firm Omniture, Inc. for around $1.8 billion. More
In the US, professional association the CMO Council has announced the launch of 'Pause for a Cause', a program which aims to direct millions of dollars in funds to good causes in exchange for survey responses. Major charities and corporations are among those backing the initiative. More
High profile UK-based start-up Verve is already opening its first overseas offices, in Sydney, Australia - and will launch customer advisory panels and online brand communities in Australia and New Zealand. More
Nielsen has moved Oliver Rust into the position of Managing Director, overseeing its business portfolio in Hong Kong. He replaces Ms Fanny Chan, who has moved to a regional role with the company. More
In Australia, a tool has been developed to enable companies to conduct remote online user testing of their web site, on any kind of digital interface. More
MR software and predictive analytics giant SPSS has reported second quarter revenues of $69.7m, down 8% from the previous year period. Revenues for the six months ended June 30, 2009, totalled $141.8m, also down 8% from the same period in 2008. More
Global market research revenues grew 4.5% to $32bn in 2008, according to the ESOMAR Global Market Research Report. However, the organisation says that this equates to a net increase of only 0.4% after taking into account inflation. More
After more than six years at Unilever Australasia - most recently as Director of Consumer Insight and Marketing Operations - Tiina Raikko has launched a consultancy of her own, called Fuel. More
US-based Communispace - which creates online customer insight communities - has partnered with Australian ad hoc market research agency Colmar Brunton to develop private online communities in the Asia Pacific region. More
Australian digital audience measurement firm Effective Measure has expanded with the opening of offices in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and has hired Brendon Ogilvy for the newly created role of Regional Director for MENA (Middle East North Africa). More
Healthcare market research specialist Majestic MRSS has opened a new office in Dubai, and equipped ten of its existing focus group facilities across Asia with 'Focus Vision' video-streaming facilities. More
US-headquartered automotive manufacturing marketing research specialist Enprecis has appointed Ike Lee as CEO of its Asia operations. More
Online measurement firm comScore has appointed industry veterans Anne Hunter as Vice President of Advertising Effectiveness Products, and Daryl McNutt as Vice President of Marketing Solutions, Media. More
MR software and predictive analytics giant SPSS will be holding a special meeting of shareholders on 2 October, to provide them with an opportunity to vote on selling the company to IBM. More
Aegis-owned Synovate has appointed Robert Philpott as its new Global Chief Executive Officer, replacing Adrian Chedore who will retire on 1 September. More
Synovate parent Aegis has reported an 86% drop in first half pre-tax profits to £6.6m despite growing revenues by 4.8%. The research agency itself made an underlying operating loss of £3.2m in the first half, compared with a £7.9m profit a year earlier. More
In Australia, TV technology firm NDS and TNS Media Research have partnered to track and analyze audience behaviour across pay-TV operator Foxtel's network, to enable it to introduce advanced advertising products. More
In Australia, Nielsen has released data from its upgraded Internet panel, in a move towards its final accreditation by the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB). More
Survey Sampling International (SSI) has introduced a number of outreach programs that engage and recruit in-demand, hard-to-reach segments of the population, such as African Americans, Hispanics, males and teens. More
Ipsos has reported a 3.2% decline in first half revenues to €447.8m, compared with the same period in 2008. The firm says it would be unrealistic to hope for the second half of 2009 to be much better. More
UK marcoms giant and Kantar-owner WPP has reported a 47.9% drop in first-half net profit to £108.4m from £208.2m a year earlier, but predicts a brighter performance for the rest of 2009. Like-for-like consumer insight revenue was down 10%. More
Shopper behaviour consultancy TNS Magasin has combined EEG (electroencephalography) and eye tracking technologies to capture shoppers' emotional and cognitive responses at what it describes as 'an unprecedented level of detail'. More
TNS Healthcare and consumer comms agency McCann Healthcare have linked to launch the first in a series of studies providing insights into the Singapore health sector. More
Synovate has appointed Erik Hellquist as Head of Synovate Business Consulting in Hong Kong and Satoshi Ayukawa as Business Development Manager of its Marketing Management Analytics (MMA) unit in Tokyo. More
Australian readership research is in flux as incumbent currency provider Roy Morgan declines to take part in a new-look tender. As of yesterday, magazine publishing giant ACP has quit its national association in support of the Roy Morgan survey. More
Analysts expect ad giant and Kantar owner WPP to cut its sales forecast again this week. However the firm's debt position and strategic focus are considered solid, while buoyant reports in the UK press suggest business confidence in general has turned the corner. More
Australian software developer EB Strada Pty has added to the growing armoury of data collection tools available to researchers. FormReturn 1.0 offers a cross-platform optical mark recognition (OMR) system for simpler analysis of hand-written data such as that on questionnaires. More
Harris Interactive has announced its financial results for the fourth quarter and full year fiscal 2009, showing a 23% decline in annual revenue. More
The latest release of Google Insights for Search looks into the future and predicts what will be searched for, based on a combination of current searches and the way trends have developed in the past. More
Researchers who joined together to form the Association Collaborative Effort (ACE) last September, have announced their first combined effort - a set of terms and definitions for online research. More
Media giant Time Warner has signed a seven year agreement with Nielsen, which will bring together TV, online, mobile measurement services, research on advertising segmentation and targeting, and consumer engagement research, under one contract. More
In Australia, marketing services group Photon - which owns MR firms The Leading Edge and Jigsaw Strategic Research - is attempting to raise AUS$114.6m through a share offering. The money is for debt reduction and to ensure the firm can fund future earn-outs. More
Nielsen has reported a 6% dip in revenues to $2.36bn for the six months ended June 30 2009. Revenues for its market research business dropped 11.7% to $1.25bn from $1.42bn in the year earlier period. More
GfK has reported a decline in sales and operating income during the first half of the year despite an improvement in the second quarter. In organic terms, first half sales were down 8.5%. More
Prior to agreeing to IBM's $1.2bn acquisition offer, MR software and predictive analytics giant SPSS rejected approaches from two other companies, and two initial offers from IBM itself, according to an SEC filing on Monday. More
Revenues for the top 25 global research firms increased 3.9% last year, to $18.9bn, according to the new Honomichl Global Top 25 ranking, to be published in the AMA's 'Marketing News' this month. Allowing for inflation, the figure equates to a tiny real increase of 0.6%. More
Daily Research News has today launched a page for short summaries of breaking news items. Readers interested in items appearing can register their email address to receive a link to the full story if and when it is published at the end of the day in the main DRNO bulletin. More
Business and professional information giant Thomson Reuters has reported results for the second quarter ended June 30, showing revenue growth and margin expansion, with continuing progress on the Reuters integration. Today, shareholders gave it the OK to drop its London and Nasdaq listings. More
Canadian-based custom panels and communities specialist Vision Critical has announced a 75% increase in first-half gross revenue, versus the same period in 2008. More
TNS has launched a series of reports measuring the sporting and entertainment passions of consumers in Asia. More
TNS Media Research has been awarded a ground-breaking three year audience measurement contract to gain new insights into the viewing and behaviour of audiences in subscription TV homes across Australia. More
Synovate has rolled out its Marketing Management Analytics (MMA) business across the Asia Pacific region. More
An investigation is being conducted by SPSS shareholders who believe that the firm's recent acquisition by IBM 'appears to be unfair'. More
Microsoft and comScore are collaborating to build a hybrid audience measurement tool, which will allow advertisers to determine and predict how consumers will respond to their digital ads. More
Online measurement firm comScore has announced financial results for the second quarter of 2009, with revenue, GAAP income before taxes and EBITDA all higher than forecast, at $31.4m, $2.6m and $7.0m respectively. More
Ad industry execs including Sir Martin Sorrell have welcomed yesterday's news of a deal between Microsoft and Yahoo! to work together on search and advertising. More
The McGraw-Hill Companies has reported Q2 revenue down 12.4% to $1.5 billion. Revenue and profit in its Business-to-Business Group, which includes research firm J.D. Power, were hit by weakness in the automotive sector and by deferments due to methodology changes at the vehicle research giant. More
Media market intelligence firms Media Partners Asia (MPA) and Screen Digest are to collaborate to offer research and consulting services to clients in Europe, North America and Asia Pacific. More
Computer giant IBM is to acquire SPSS for around $1.2 billion. The deal should close later this year, subject to shareholder approval, regulatory clearances and other conditions. More
Advertising firm Starcom MediaVest Group (SMG) has announced that its Malaysian CEO Yap Chee Weng is to resign from his role to pursue personal interests outside the industry, and will be replaced by insight and analysis specialist Ranganathan Somanathan. More
Pharma market research giant IMS Health has reported a 19% drop in Q2 profit to $62.9m from $77.7m a year earlier. Accordingly, the firm is planning to shed a total of 850 staff, or 11% of its global workforce. More
Full service firm Majestic Market Research Support Services (MMRSS) has expanded with the opening of an office in Jakarta, Indonesia. More
US-based online market research panel operator e-Rewards has appointed former TNS Director Mark Walton as Senior Vice President of International Operations, responsible for Europe, Asia Pacific, Middle East, Africa and Latin America. More
Customer behavioural data specialist Business Logic Solutions has opened a solution centre in Malaysia, in a bid to better serve mobile operators in the Asia Pacific region. More
In Australia, the IAB (Interactive Advertising Bureau) has appointed online research, measurement and audience analysis specialist Gai Le Roy to Chair its Measurement, Research, and Standards & Guidelines councils. More
B2B specialist Kadence International has reported a 40% climb in UK revenue to £4m during the financial year 2008-09. More
WPP CEO Sir Martin Sorrell has extolled the virtues of organic growth; of helping ad budgets to follow consumers online; and of a balance between local and multinational clients, as he looks five years into the future of WPP. More
US-based healthcare and government researcher Abt Associates has promoted Kathleen Flanagan to the position of President and CEO, succeeding Wendell Knox who is to retire from the post he has held for the past 17 years. More
Having passed its ten thousandth news story in May, MrWeb registered its 10,000th jobseeker at the beginning of this month. More
ToLuna CEO Frederic-Charles Petit has welcomed the staff of the Internet Survey Solutions (ISS) division of Greenfield Online to his firm, following the completion of its acquisition from Microsoft. More
Web analytics firm Omniture has opened a new office in Melbourne, taking the number of locations it has in the Asia Pacific (APAC) region to eight. More
Kantar Health has hired Scott Davies as General Manager of China, to direct the group's growth strategy in the region. Kelly Wong has also been appointed as Business Leader and Head of Research, China. More
In the US, Nielsen has launched what it describes as the industry's 'most advanced panel and platform' for measuring Internet audiences - increasing its measurement of web sites from 3,000 to more than 30,000. More
Directors at panels specialist ToLuna have given the thumbs up for the purchase of the Internet Survey Solutions (ISS) division of Greenfield Online from Microsoft. More
In Germany, the TNS Infratest Group - which includes TNS Emnid - has announced that it is to shed 35 staff positions at its Bielefeld site. While 20 employees have been made redundant, 15 others have been offered jobs in the firm's Hamburg office. More
B2B specialist Kadence has appointed former Nielsen Director Benjamin Webb as Managing Director of its operations in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. More
Research process outsourcing firm Pulse has rolled out the beta version of its mobile and IVR (Interactive Voice Response) research solutions, to provide a multi-mode data collection service across Asia. More
Robert Louis-Dreyfus, former CEO of pharma MR giant IMS Health and the main shareholder in French soccer team Olympique Marseille, has died at the age of 63 after a long battle with leukaemia. More
In the UK, TNS has told 'a small number of employees' in its Custom division that their jobs are at risk, and has made a more general request to employees to take a fortnight's unpaid leave during the second half of 2009, as it tries to avoid further cuts. More
US ratings giant Arbitron has told the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) that it has no authority to impose regulations on its Portable People Meter (PPM) system, which replaces previously used paper diary-based methods for logging radio listening habits. More
WPP's insight division Kantar is to merge Lightspeed Research's online panel business with the TNS 6th Dimension network of online managed access panels. More
Online research and panels specialist Research Now has beaten its predictions for first half revenues, growing them 24% to £23.6m (2008: £19.1m). More
French-based advertising company Publicis Groupe is feeling acquisitive, according to remarks made to Dow Jones Newswires at Cannes last week by CEO Maurice Levy. Market research companies may be targets. More
Microsoft has sold the survey division of Greenfield Online to panels specialist ToLuna for a cash consideration of $40m (just over £24m). The french-based company will use a placing and subscription to raise c.£26m net for the acquisition and other investment. More
Alec Gallup, who previously served as Co-Chairman of the Gallup Organization, has died at home of a heart ailment at the age of 81. More
Millward Brown Optimor - the consulting unit dedicated to brand strategy and marketing investment - has made its annual 'BrandZ Top 100 Most Valuable Brands' ranking available as a free application on the iPhone. More
Following the recent launch of Bing, Microsoft is linking up with marcoms giant WPP to conduct research which will explore the dynamics between search engine marketing and brand building. More
In the UK, Phyllis Macfarlane has taken on the new role of Chairman of GfK NOP, while Richard Jameson steps up to her previous position as Managing Director, and joins the global Board of GfK Custom Research. More
London-based MR recruitment specialist Hasson Associates has announced a partnership with recently launched Asia Research Recruitment (ARR). More
A member of the newly formed ethics council of the Indonesian Public Opinion Survey Association (Persepi), has called for a block on the results of opinion polls funded by political parties being released to the public. More
Online research and panels specialist Research Now has launched a 'family' of mobile survey products called Momentum. The new technology offers quick polls using SMS; and online surveys using WAP, GPRS and 3G connections. More
Market research group Optimisa has reported a loss of £4.5m (2007: £5.5m) for 2008. The firm is also asking shareholders to vote on de-listing the company from the AIM stock exchange, to save the £100k associated admin costs. More
US research revenue was up 1.6% to $8.98bn in 2008, according to the annual report by Jack Honomichl. This compares with growth of 6% in 2007. More
Technology giant IBM has announced plans to invest $100m in a five-year program to conduct research into mobile communications. More
Nielsen and secure identity solutions firm Digimarc are to launch two joint ventures that will combine the latter's solutions for deterring fraud, counterfeiting and piracy with the former's consumer and business data. The ventures replace a more informal agreement in place since 2007. More
The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) has released guidelines to establish a common methodology for measuring ads that appear in PC or console-based games. More
In Sydney, research veterans Alex Sweeney and Alasdair Johnston have formed Clarity Strategic Research, a new agency offering qual and quant research services to the financial, B2B, telecoms, retail, FMCG and media sectors. More
In the US, the Advertising Research Foundation (ARF) has reported findings from its 'Foundations of Quality' (FoQ) project, examining the key issue of quality of online survey response. More
Mike Everett, formally CEO of Ipsos MORI in the UK, is to become Global HR Director for the Ipsos Group in July. More
In Australia, the subscription television (STV) industry has created an independent company to provide research and audience measurement services to its members and the broader media and marketing community. More
David Day will become Global CEO of Kantar-owned online panel specialist Lightspeed Research, following the departure of Anne Hedde, who is leaving to pursue a different role with a competitor. More
Dubai-based Real Opinions has opened an office in central London, which will be run by founder and CEO Dan Healy. More
Global MR organisation ESOMAR has launched a series of revised guidelines, to take account of recent developments in technology and increasing public concern about privacy and control of personal information. More
Nielsen has re-organised its consumer research group into a global practice, and appointed practice expert teams across its five geographic regions. More
GfK-Nnrnberg e.V - GfK's non-profit market research promotion arm - is developing a process that records and analyzes human emotions via the software-based detection of facial expressions. More
At today's AGM, WPP shareholders gave the thumbs up to a scheme which could see CEO Sir Martin Sorrell receive a £60m bonus over the next five years. Meanwhile Sorrell announced a 6.7% dip in like-for-like revenues for the first four months of the year, which sent shares tumbling 4.8% to 456.25p. More
In Australia, digital audience measurement firm Effective Measure has announced plans to roll out a new visitor opt-out mechanism, which it says promises a 'new benchmark' in visitor privacy. More
Microsoft is hoping to boost its search engine market share with the launch of 'Bing', billed as a next generation search helping customers to make faster, more informed decisions. More
Online measurement giant comScore has announced the arrival of Media Metrix 360, a 'panel-centric hybrid' solution to digital audience measurement. More
Online panel specialist Lightspeed Research has launched a sample de-duplication platform that prevents respondents from retaking a survey from the same computer, through either multiple panels or by using multiple identities. More
Shareholders at marcoms giant WPP are opposing a scheme which could result in CEO Sir Martin Sorrell receiving up to £59.7m ($95m) worth of free shares during the next five years. More
In Australia, Sydney-based Connection Research - which analyses sustainability issues - has launched a service to report on sustainable housing, domestic energy and water consumption patterns, and the household use of technology. More
UK-based media group Aegis has announced organic decline in revenues for the first quarter for both its main divisions. With currency and acquisition effects revenue rose 4.8% for Aegis Media and 9.6% for MR division Synovate; without them it fell 13.1% and 9.1% respectively. More
For the first three months of the year, GfK's sales slipped 1.3% from €268.1m in Q1 2008 to €264.7m. In order to absorb further 'crisis-related losses' the firm has announced measures to reduce personnel costs including short-time work, hiring freezes, salary cuts and redundancies. More
Swedish eye tracking firm Tobii Technology has raised another $16m in investment funding, which it plans to use to roll out its existing technology into new markets as well as for developing new applications. More
Nielsen has reported revenues for the three months to the end of March down 7% to $1.1bn from $1.2bn for the same period last year. Excluding the impact of currency fluctuations however, revenues increased 1%. More
Users of Internet audience measurement are not satisfied with the metrics and information available to them, according to feedback from a new survey conducted among more than 800 executives from ad agencies, media publishers, ad networks and advertisers across the globe. More
Ipsos has reported global revenues down 4.6% in Q1 2009 to €207.3m compared with the same period in 2008, with negative organic growth of 5.1% and a negative currency effect of 2.3%. The firm says it has held up well in an exceptionally difficult environment. More
MR software and predictive analytics giant SPSS is rolling out PASW Collaboration and Deployment Services 4, which it says provides an integrated platform for sharing, managing, automating and integrating analytic assets directly into business processes. More
Global PR agency Edelman and online intelligence firm Brandtology have partnered to develop a range of analytics aimed at helping Asian marketers engage with people and communities online. More
Harris Interactive has amended its credit agreement in a move which President and CEO Kimberly Till says will provide it with 'the financial stability and flexibility needed' as the firm continues to implement its strategic plan. More
In the US, IBM veteran Christopher Caine has launched Mercator XXI, which will help clients export their success globally. As well as market access and market research, the new firm offers advice on government relations and public policy. More
Marcoms giant WPP, which eliminated 3,600 positions in Q1, is planning to make 6% of its global workforce redundant resulting in the loss of 7,200 posts in all this year. More
Online research and panels specialist Research Now is predicting first half revenues will rise 23% to £23.5m (2008: £19.1m), ahead of its interim results which are due out on Wednesday 1 July 2009. More
Nearly a third (31%) of marketers say they have decreased their use of market research as a result of the recession, compared with 14% who have upped their investment in this area, according to an online survey conducted by B2B International. A number of positive trends also emerge. More
ORC parent and database giant infoGROUP has reported a 17% drop in first quarter revenue to $127.5m from $153.3m in the prior year period. For the quarter, reported net loss was $9.3m compared with net income of $6.6m in 2008. More
Indian full service market research agency Market Xcel Data Matrix has expanded in the Asia Pacific region with the opening of an office in Singapore. Bhoorender Panwar joins the new operation as Regional Sales Manager. More
First quarter revenue at online audience measurement firm comScore increased 16% to $30.6m from the prior year period, but the firm has cut its 2009 full-year revenue growth forecast to 10-12% from its previous prediction of 15%. More
Ipsos' shareholders have approved the appointment of five new Board Directors, including Pierre Le Manh who is Global CEO of Ipsos Marketing and Chairman of the CEEA and MENA regions. More
UK marcoms giant WPP has reported a 5.8% fall in Q1 revenues, excluding the impact of acquisitions and currency fluctuations. The firm says this reflects a cut in client spending in reaction to the global financial and economic crisis. More
Online retail companies are struggling to understand visitor behaviour and to produce analytics they trust to give them a good picture of ROI, according to new research from Internet marketing and business optimization specialist Coremetrics. More
In the US, Edison Research, which is best known for its national election exit polls, is to extend its services to the island of Guam in the Pacific Ocean, through a partnership with local firm Victory Communications. More
US pharma research giant IMS Health has seen total first quarter revenue fall 8% to $526.9m from $574.2m as the strong dollar impacts on overseas sales. Nevertheless, the quarter saw a sharp rise in net income. More
Synovate parent Aegis has disclosed in its 2008 report and accounts that former CEO Robert Lerwill has been paid a total of £2.1m following the termination of his contract last year. More
Global b2b research agency Kadence has appointed Jo-Ann Foo as Associate Director, to head up its Malaysian insight team based in Kuala Lumpur, and capitalise on the business links between Malaysia and her home country of Australia. More
Full service agency InterfaceASIA has announced the launch of new online panels in India, Taiwan and Hong Kong. More
New Zealand's Unite union has published the Memorandum of Understanding it agreed with Synovate earlier in the week. This includes the terms relating to pay rises for call centre workers which were interpreted in different fashions by the two parties yesterday. More
Research process outsourcing (RPO) firm Pulse Group plc has opened its second facility in Malaysia, expanding its CATI capacity by 45 seats; and has announced that it will be embarking on the ISO certification of its operational centres. More
In New Zealand, Synovate has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the union Unite which ends the lockout of workers. The company says the MOU establishes a working party which has six weeks from 14th April to reach a deal over a performance pay scheme for interviewing staff. More
Panel firm ToLuna Plc has reported results for the year ended 31 December 2008, another year of strong growth with revenue up 74% to £21.7m (35% excluding the effect of acquisitions), and profit before tax up 48% to £4.7m. More
More than 30 call centre workers at Synovate in Auckland, NZ, were notified by text on Good Friday that they were locked out of the office, after turning down a pay increase of 20 cents per hour. More
UK customer insight specialist Beyond Analysis and social media services firm Netemic have partnered to deliver a social media analysis engine which predicts and analyses market trends and monitors brand equity through the millions of online conversations across the Internet. More
MR software giant SPSS has created a new and distinct brand for its predictive analytics products, PASW (Predictive Analytics Software). More
UK-based web analytics provider Site Intelligence has opened an office in Sydney, Australia to enable local organisations to use its business intelligence across both online and offline data. More
In Switzerland, market research consultancy CBC has acquired 34% of consumer and social analysis firm Konso AG (Institut fnr Konsumenten und Sozialanalysen). More
Rumours that up to 50% of YouGov's UK staff are to be made redundant have been strongly denied by UK CEO Tim Britton. Britton says a review announced this week is intended to 'cut the firm's cloth' to match current conditions and will probably mean 'a small number' of job cuts. More
The field operations division of Market Probe India has been spun off as a separate unit called MP Global Link India. The company will offer fieldwork solutions for market research companies, consultancies and corporate clients. More
In the UK, Bob Douglas has been promoted from Head of Synovate Healthcare's global custom business to overall Global Head of Synovate Healthcare. More
GfK has reported an increase in income of €58.4m to €1,220.4m for the year 2008, reflecting organic growth of 5.5%. More
Nielsen has promoted Jennifer Wang to the position of Managing Director in Taiwan, replacing Gordon Stewart who will be returning to Australia in the summer. More
infoGROUP Inc. has entered into an agreement to sell social research specialist Macro International Inc. to ICF International for $155 million in cash. Macro was acquired with ORC in December 2006 but is not considered to be 'a strategic fit' with the Group's other business. More
In London, former Research Now Director Charles Pearson has today announced the launch of a new research agency, EasyInsites, focusing on custom panel solutions and using technology from Cint AB. Research Now's former Client Development Director Jo Winning joins him in the venture. More
In Auckland, New Zealand, the Unite union says it has reached a settlement with the Oceania Customer Interaction Service (OCIS) over staff conditions, following emergency talks on Saturday morning. More
In New Zealand, 59 call centre staff at Oceania Customer Interaction Service (OCIS) have been locked out by their employer, after going on strike in protest over wages. More
Nielsen has reported 2008 revenues up 4.5% on a constant currency basis to $5bn, despite a climate which CFO Brian West predicts 'won't get any better, any time soon'. More
Marcoms giant WPP is preparing to make thousands of staff redundant this year, in response to declining revenues and its £1.1bn debt-financed acquisition of TNS. Credit agencies S&P and Moody have downgraded the firm's rating from stable to negative. More
Ipsos has announced a deal with Thomson Reuters to provide 'regular intelligent information about behaviours, attitudes and opinions of consumers and citizens', based on regular multi-country polling on a wide-range of topics. More
Australia's print audit body the ABA is to launch a web traffic measurement service for its member publishers, on 1st May, with the first data a month later. Participating members will have their site traffic data compiled through Nielsen Online's Market Intelligence tool. More
TNS has announced further changes to its senior management team, following its recent merger with Research International. The latest appointments cover global roles, North America and Europe. More
Analyst and consultant Frost & Sullivan has launched a New Zealand office to service a growing private and public sector client base; and has appointed Andre Clarke, previously of Yankee Group, as New Zealand Country Manager. More
TNS has appointed a new Regional Operating Board for the Asia Pacific, Latin America, Middle East and Africa (ALM) region, led by former TNS Regional MD Jamie Hall, who assumes overall responsibility for the region as ALM CEO. More
British marcoms group Aegis - which owns market research firm Synovate - has announced plans to cut around 780 jobs across its global operations as part of a cost-saving plan to beat the downturn. Meanwhile CEO John Napier denied reports he has held merger talks with competitor Havas. More
UK-based online research specialist BrainJuicer Group has reported a 2008 organic revenue increase of 42% to £9.3m for 2008, while pre-tax profits rose 56% to £1.37m. More
Ipsos has posted organic growth of 7.8% and operating margin up 8.2% for 2008, despite a financial crisis which it describes as 'unprecedented in its scale since the modern economy took shape'. More
Synovate has announced an agreement with Canadian software provider Vision Critical, to power its online community panels around the globe. More
Martin Sorrell has talked of 'big, big opportunities' and 'a tsunami of funds... waiting for the recovery' in an interview with the BBC. The WPP chief also discussed his views on headcount reduction in a recession, on Google, and the future market share of different advertising media. More
Harris Interactive has made a further 90 staff redundant - 16% of its US full-time workforce - in a bid to make $10m in cost savings. The firm saved $9.5m through headcount reduction in October and December last year. More
In Korea, B2B e-commerce marketplace EC21.com has launched a new web-based market research service for those looking to launch a new business in the region. More
Arbitron is moving its corporate headquarters from New York City to Columbia, Maryland, where its research and engineering operations are already based. The NYC location will continue as a sales office. President and CEO Michael Skarzynski says he wants 'to live and work where the operational core of the business resides'. More
WPP has reported healthy results for the full year 2008. Like-for-like revenue growth of 2.7% came from a combination of a strong first half and slower second half. Insight division Kantar provided 17.1% of all WPP revenue and 12.8% of operating profit. More
In Australia, the Outdoor Media Association (OMA) is testing a new audience measurement system called MOVE, which calculates people's 'likelihood-to-see' an outdoor ad campaign (LTS), rather than counting all potential viewers who pass by. More
According to preliminary figures, GfK has achieved organic revenue growth of 5.5% to €1,220m for the financial year 2008. The firm has also implemented a new efficiency programme which it says should save €30m between now and 2012. More
Specialist MR recruiter Elizabeth Norman International (ENI) has promoted Emy Rumble-Mettle to MD of its UK operation, and has announced a partnership with US-based Morgan Search International, as it expands its international presence. More
In New Zealand, up to 20 market researchers at Synovate's east Auckland call centre will begin a 24-hour hunger strike today in protest at what they describe as 'poverty wages, inadequate breaks and no job security'. More
Australian marcoms group Photon, which owns MR firms The Leading Edge and Jigsaw Strategic Research, has made 5% of its staff redundant - a total of 129 jobs of which 17 are in its research arm. More
The Kantar Group is streamlining its businesses after buying TNS. The TNS Custom business will merge with Research International and will be generally known as TNS. A new social research force for the UK is established in TNS-BMRB, while Kantar has four new vertical sector operating units: Media, Health, Retail and Worldpanel. More
Most web surfers are not happy with having information collected about them in order for advertisers to provide them with more tailored ads, even where the info is not personally identifiable, according to study results from ad technology firm Burst Media. More
Marketing research agency Data Development Worldwide (DDW) has increased the size of its online 'Know More' panel to provide access to 3.4 million households and 6 million consumers in the US and 1.5 million consumers in Canada, the UK, Europe, Australia and Scandinavia. More
Marcoms agency Prompt Communications has launched a market research service to provide quant and qual insights into market conditions, demands and opportunities for B2B firms. Its focus at present is on technology companies across Europe, the US and Asia Pacific. More
New London-based technology, telecoms and media research provider Verve has hired former Synovate CEO/CFO Peter Chopra as Partner, Strategic Finance and International Development. More
United Business Media's publishing, events and research group Light Reading is opening a new office in Beijing, China, from where it will launch an Asia-specific site to cover key trends and news with analysis targeted at communications service providers in India and China. More
Industrial products manufacturer H.B. Fuller Company is to open a regional technical center in Shanghai Zhangjiang Hi-Tech Park, China. The center will provide market research, development and testing for its range of adhesives, sealants, paints and specialty chemical products. More
Ipsos has reported full-year organic growth of 7.8% with revenues up 5.6% to €979.3m from 2007. The group says that in 2009 it intends to deliver further growth, while maintaining margins - at the very least - at their 2008 level. More
In New York, media's 'most quoted man' Jon Mandel has left his role as President of NielsenConnect, which is closing after two years in operation. More
Fourth quarter net income at online audience measurement firm comScore jumped 60% to $20.4m or 67 cents per share, from $12.7m, 42 cents per share, in the same period the previous year. More
Nielsen has appointed Duncan Falzon as Executive Director of Nielsen Media Thailand and Media Index, Asia Pacific. More
Forrester Research has reported revenues of $62.9m for the fourth quarter, up from $58.2m the previous year, while for the year ended December 31, 2008, total revenues increased to $240.9m from $212.1m a year before. More
Brand innovation company Clear has opened an office in Hong Kong, to enable it to manage projects in Asia for its global clients. More
B2B research specialist Kadence has reported revenue of US$7.8m in the six months to December 2008 - 40% up on the same period a year before. More
Harris Interactive has announced a steep decline in revenue for the second quarter of its fiscal 2009, to $50.7m from $62.7m a year previously. An already substantial operating loss for the quarter looked a lot worse after a write-down of $40.3m for goodwill impairment. More
WPP's new partner Omniture has announced results for its fourth quarter and fiscal year ended December 31, 2008. Revenue of $296m is more than double the 2007 figure - on a like-for-like basis it grew 113%. More
Pharma research leader IMS Health has announced full-year 2008 revenue up 3% at constant currencies to $2,329.5m. Income grew slightly (2%) and EPS respectably (11%) in real terms. Chairman and CEO David R. Carlucci said the firm was 'positioned to perform well in a slower growth environment'. More
Technology market research firm Gartner has posted a 1% increase in fourth quarter profit to $347.3m, helped by good growth in its research and consulting segments. For the year, the firm has posted a 9% revenue increase to $1.28bn. More
Nielsen is about to roll out its store layout and category space management solution my.spaceman, across more than 100 markets. More
Private equity firm Apax Partners and research firm GfK have edged nearer to making a bid for Aegis's market research arm Synovate, according to an anonymous source cited in The Daily Telegraph. More
Research International (RI) has launched a simulated test market system designed to provide sales predictions within the consumer packaged goods category. More
Online research and panels specialist Research Now has announced a 60% increase in group revenues to £41.2m for 2008, compared with £25.8m a year previously. Profit before tax was £5.7m, compared with £0.3m in 2007. More
Google's platform for TV advertisers is to offer new time-shifted viewership data, showing how and when viewers see commercials in recorded programs, via an alliance with technology solutions distributor MediaBank. More
Marcoms giant WPP has announced a partnership with US web analytics firm Omniture to provide clients with 'more effective insights' across both digital and traditional media channels. The deal involves WPP investing $25m in Omniture stock. More
In Japan, IT solutions giant NEC has developed a digital signage board containing face recognition technology, which can serve up targeted ad content according to the viewer's gender and age and measure how interested they were in a particular ad. More
In Australia, panels from Lightspeed Research and The Online Research Unit (The ORU) are the first to be accredited with the new international standard for online research, QSOAP. More
In Germany, the GfK Association – GfK's main shareholder – has passed a resolution to ensure that any future bids to buy the group must first be authorised by its new Members' Council. It has also appointed four new members to its Executive Board. More
Online research and panels specialist Research Now has opened an office in Auckland, New Zealand, and appointed former TNS exec Martin Tomlinson as Client Development Manager. More
Healthcare market research specialist Medimix International has opened a new regional office in Hong Kong, which will be known as Medimix Asia. Managing Partner Bruno Leraillez will head the new unit. More
For the first time, the number of people worldwide aged 15+ using the Internet in a single month has passed the one billion mark. Online audience measurement firm comScore says the milestone was passed in December. More
In China, XFMedia group has entered into an agreement to sell all of the outstanding equity interests in Shanghai Hyperlink Market Research to Tokyo-based market research firm INTAGE. The sale price is 1.05bn Yen (c$11.86m). More
Australian market research and polling company Roy Morgan is advertising for a new Chief Information Officer, following the resignation of Douglas Young. More
Global communications group WPP is planning to move away from its role as a traditional media and advertising supplier, to concentrate on becoming a more insight-led organisation, says CEO Sir Martin Sorrell. More
Despite the global downturn, GfK has booked nearly a quarter of its expected revenue for the year, says CEO Klaus Wübbenhorst – almost precisely in line wth figures for this time last year. More
Ahead of the 2009 elections in Indonesia, Jakarta-based research firm MarkPlus Insight has launched a system to enable political parties, analysts and candidates to access and analyze opinion polls and map voters' behaviour in each election district. More
UK-based online quant research specialist BrainJuicer Group Plc has issued a trading statement with 2008 results ahead of market expectations. Reported revenue rose more than 40% to £9m – all organic growth - and operating profit was up by 45% to over £1.2m. More
The USA is viewed favourably by a majority of people in India (72%) and Poland (53%), and in America itself, but not in nineteen other major economies in a survey conducted by Ipsos for Reuters. Meanwhile other polls show the country's high hopes for its incoming President. More
Computer giant IBM has unveiled a portfolio of solutions designed to help retailers analyze data and apply it to business processes. More
After almost exactly two years at the helm of SSI, Jim Follett has departed the company and is replaced by Bloomerce founder Kees de Jong. Dennis J. Beckingham meanwhile joins the firm as President and CFO. More
Canadian Customer Experience Management (CEM) firm Empathica has partnered with Australian market research firm DBM Consultants, to roll out its services and products to organizations in the region. More
GfK and venture capital group Apax Partners could be possible buyers for Synovate, while Havas Chairman Vincent Bolloré nets the remainder of Aegis, according to reports in the UK press. More
WPP's insight and consultancy division The Kantar Group has made what it claims is an industry first appointment, with the naming of George Pappachen in the newly-created role of Chief Privacy Officer. More
Omnicom-owned brand and communications research specialist Hall & Partners has acquired a majority stake in Jigsaw International, a custom qualitative research agency based in Shanghai, China. Terms were not disclosed. More
In what is being billed as 'India's Enron', the head of IT outsourcing giant Satyam has admitted to inflating the firm's cash and bank balances by 70bn rupees ($1bn) in an effort to forestall a takeover. More
Research software provider Confirmit has partnered with call recording/outbound dialling technology firm Magnetic North to deliver a hosted telephony platform that enables market research firms to reduce the cost of telephone research projects. More
In the US, media ratings company Arbitron has settled a lawsuit filed by New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, who had claimed that the firm's Portable People Meter (PPM) ratings misrepresent minority listenership. More
In the US, CRM outsourcing firm ICT Group has announced that it will no longer be providing market research services, and that it will be closing or partially closing six of its contact centers in the US and Canada, and offshoring much of the work from those in Europe and Australia. More
ESOMAR, the global association for market and opinion research, has appointed US-based Gunilla Broadbent as its President for the period 2009-2010. She is the second woman to hold the position and the first President who resides outside Europe. More
A report in the UK's Observer newspaper which outlined WPP's plans to cut thousands of jobs in Western Europe and North America has been denied by a company spokesperson. More
British marcoms group Aegis has commissioned a review of the business which could result in the spin-off of its market research arm Synovate, according to a report in UK newspaper The Sunday Times. More
In the US, Vin Gupta – the founder and former CEO and Chairman of ORC parent and database giant infoGROUP – claims he is exploring a proposal to acquire all the firm's outstanding shares and take the company private. More
Some of the world's biggest advertising groups have this week announced thousands of job cuts. However, their MR firms seem to be relatively little affected so far, as do PR subsidiaries, while ad agencies themselves bear the brunt. More
Pharmaceutical companies are turning to MR departments to help them run leaner organizations in troubled economic times, according to a new report from sector specialist Cutting Edge Information. More
Cello has announced that Group Executive Chairman Kevin Steeds died last night, after a four month battle with cancer. More
Harris Interactive's new President and CEO Kimberly Till has implemented a series of restructuring initiatives, including a net loss of 51 US jobs, c.8% of the total US full-time workforce; the formation of new vertical teams; and changes in senior management. More
GfK has acquired a 74% majority stake in Egyptian consumer research company Market Insight; and has formed a joint venture with the Median Group under the name of GfK Custom Research Middle East Holding, in which GfK holds a 51% share. More
Nielsen has sold its Hong Kong Advertising Monitoring (AIS) service to admanGo, a firm which provides a competitive advertising and ad monitoring service through an online platform. Terms were not disclosed. More
Business process outsourcing (BPO) firm Motif has opened a new 450-seat delivery centre in Quezon City in the Philippines, to provide back office support, and research and analytics to firms in the region as well as in the US. More
French financier Vincent Bolloré has said that if combined, his Havas Advertising Group and rival British marcoms group Aegis could 'do better'. More
In New Zealand, MR agency Surveytalk has responded to statements made earlier in the week by the trade union, Unite, whose members are striking over pay and conditions in its telephone unit; and has underlined the need for the country's CATI services to remain competitive in the global economy. More
In Singapore, market research firm The Kalypso Agency has been awarded funding to analyse online virtual worlds, as part of a 5-year $500m incentive programme to transform ideas into 'breakthrough' products. More
Aegis-owned Marketing Management Analytics (MMA) has been moved to the group's market research arm Synovate, with the aim of enhancing marketing and research synergies between the two companies. More
Web site usability researcher JuxtConsult has created an online panel of more than 115,000 consumers in India, which the firm says are representative of 86% of the country's total urban population of 337 million people. More
Interviewers working for data collection firm SurveyTalk in Auckland, New Zealand have gone on strike. The action is described as a protest at the firm's failure to improve rates of pay and health and safety standards, or to allow staff to take annual leave. More
Custom online panel firm Vision Critical has announced a new branch in Sydney, Australia, extending its presence into the Asia Pacific region. Kris Hartvigsen will lead the operation as MD, Australia. Last week, the firm announced the release of its newest online research platform, Sparq. More
The Australian Federal Government is to shake up the way it selects ad agencies and market research companies, reports the Sydney Morning Herald. Finance Minister Lindsay Tanner promised an end to the 'closed shop' operated under the previous government. More
Online research specialist MarketTools has conducted research which it says conclusively demonstrates the connection between fraudulent survey respondents and skewed survey data. More
Online research and panels specialist Research Now is forecasting results ahead of previous market expectations, including reported revenues up more than 55% to £41m, and operating profit up 120% to around £6.2m, for the year ended 31 October 2008. More
India-based outsourcing company Annik has opened an operation in Shanghai, to service clients in Japan, China and Korea – with local language support capabilities. More
Havas' Vincent Bolloré is more confident of securing his two boardroom seats at rival Aegis, after a recent meeting with interim CEO John Napier, according to sources quoted in the Sunday Telegraph newspaper. More
Analysts are watching Aegis closely following yesterday's surprise departure of CEO Robert Lerwill. Initial speculation about easing conditions for a Havas merger has given way to caution, and the share price has not continued its rise after a brief morning surge. More
Robert Lerwill is to stand down as group CEO of Synovate parent Aegis, at the end of this month. Chairman John Napier will take on his responsibilities on an interim basis. Aegis shares leapt 17% today as rumours linked the move to a possible merger. More
Melbourne, Australia-based research software developer QSR International and Tokyo-based training and tech support firm Hulinks have launched the first dedicated Japanese version of QSR's NVivo qual research software, part of the NVivo 8 release. More
Australian digital audience measurement company Effective Measure has linked with MR firm Real Opinions to provide a new audience measurement tool for the Middle East. More
Synovate has announced the appointment of Pamela Welch as Key Account Director in Southeast Asia, based in Singapore and starting in January 2009. More
In the US, automotive specialist JD Power and Associates has named Finbarr O'Neill as its new President, succeeding Stephen Goodhall who is retiring after 30 years with the company. More
Global information services group Experian has posted a pre-tax profit of $318m for the first half of the year; up from $270m for the same period in 2007. Organic revenue growth varied widely by region with North America and the UK up just 1% but Latin America more than doubled. More
Nielsen is moving into direct competition with Arbitron over US radio ratings: two major radio broadcasters today announced a switch to Nielsen Media's ratings service in a number of markets from Q3 of 2009. Arbitron has described the once-a-year Nielsen service as 'a step backward'. More
TNS has launched Digital Suite, described as a 'new generation' of online ad monitoring tools. The suite combines cookie tracking technology with the company's 6th Dimension Panel to give in-depth analysis of online ad consumption. More
Microsoft will for the time being remain the owner of Greenfield Online's Internet Survey Solutions (ISS) business, after potential buyer ZM Capital failed to meet financing conditions. President and CEO Al Angrisani will stay on in an advisory capacity while a new home is sought. More
Nielsen CEO David Calhoun says the firm plans to push for dominance in the 'three screen audience measurement' market, and can continue to grow despite world economic problems. The firm reported revenue of $1,260m in the third quarter, up 3% after excluding currency fluctuations. More
Despite painting a grim picture of an unfolding 'financial, economic and ideological crisis' around the globe, Ipsos has reported Q3 revenues of Euros 234.2m, a 5.9% increase compared with Q3 2007. Organic revenue growth was 8.2%. More
In Australia, online research solutions provider The Digital Edge has launched mobile phone technology which will enable surveys to be conducted with consumers who have access to the mobile Internet. More
Nielsen and WPP have signed an asset swapping agreement. Nielsen will acquire WPP's half of AGBNielsen Media Research (AGBNMR), and in return, WPP will take over three of Nielsen's media services assets. More
Thwarted in its TNS marriage plans, GfK appears to be enjoying the single life. Revenue for the first nine months of the year rose to €883.8m, representing organic growth of 7.2% (up from 5.5% the previous year); and adjusted operating income up 1.7% to €104.3m. The firm described the results as 'satisfactory' in the current economic climate. More
In Australia, an official report has revealed that the Howard government spent $AUD 1.6m of taxpayers' money in 2007 on its controversial research on voters' views of industrial relations issues. The work was conducted by Melbourne-based Open Mind Research. More
MR software and predictive analytics giant SPSS has announced third quarter revenues up 4% vs Q3 2007 to $74.9m and net income up 25% to $10.5m. However, the firm intends to respond to the global downturn by cutting costs, including a ten per cent staff reduction. More
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has announced that it will not intervene in WPP's acquisition of TNS, after receiving court-enforceable undertakings from WPP regarding its TAM (Television Audience Measurement) services. More
Online audience measurement firm comScore has reported a 37% Q3 revenue increase to $30.7m, while launching a new service to track distributed web content across third party sites. More
Survey Sampling International (SSI) has added a new wireless / mobile telephone sampling capability to its online sample ordering system SSI-SNAP. More
Pharmaceutical research giant IMS Health has reported third-quarter revenue of $574m, up 6%, or a modest 3% year-on-year on a constant dollar basis. However, net income and EPS grew 33% and 41% respectively in the quarter. More
Nielsen has appointed Rebecca Chiu as Director, Consumer Research (FMCG) based in Hong Kong. More
Harris Interactive has announced that President & CEO Greg Novak is leaving the firm, to be replaced by former TNS North American CEO Kimberley Till. The company has also announced today that it will make around 30 US staff redundant. More
Marketing communications group WPP has now received acceptance from shareholders representing 91.72% of TNS, for its offer to buy the UK market research agency. More
Social networking site 'Hey! Nielsen' is to close. The research giant says it is 'working on a new consumer site' but has not yet given details of the reason for the closure or the nature of the new offering. More
Australian Liberal Party polling guru Mark Textor has found himself in the middle of a dispute over interviewer pay after apparently sending a strongly worded email. More
Online audience measurement firm comScore has doubled the number of web sites it reports on worldwide, to offer more robust and granular site audience data and improve its trending capabilities. More
Survey Sampling International (SSI) has launched a new strategy for expanding the availability and diversity of panel members worldwide and improving the quality of sample provided to clients. More
GfK has received a break fee of around €13m (£10.6m) from TNS as compensation for the abandoned 'merger of equals' deal planned earlier in the year. The German firm has also reported a bulging order book. More
Research International (RI) has announced an alliance with STAT'COM to launch a new simulated test market product named MicroTest Nouveau, integrating state of the art modelling of market conditions with a global database of over 40,000 records in order to put results into context. More
Location intelligence provider Pitney Bowes MapInfo has updated its AnySite Australia tool to include a detailed forecast of population, housing and income data for the next ten years. More
Greg Wayman, Jayne Van Souwe and Ian Thomas have been named Fellows of The Australian Market and Social Research Society (AMSRS). More
WPP has declared its offer for TNS 'unconditional as to acceptances' after securing the approval of shareholders representing 81.78% of TNS stock by its latest deadline of 3pm today, UK time – well over its new 75% target. More
New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo has called Arbitron's early PPM launch on Monday 'an affront to racial and ethnic minorities in New York and around the country'. However, a number of radio broadcasters have come out in support of the ratings firm, saying the FCC has no jurisdiction in the area. More
IMRB International has been named 'MR Agency of the Year' by the Market Research Society of India (MRSI) for the third time since the award was introduced in 2005. More
US-based online market research panel operator e-Rewards has attracted a $60m minority investment from private equity and buyout firm TA Associates. More
Following WPP's announcement on Friday that around 61% of TNS shareholders had accepted its bid, the TNS Board has recommended that shareholders accept, to avoid the risk of being left with a minority interest in an unlisted company. More
Arbitron is turning to the courts to prevent the current enquiry into its representation of ethnic audiences from stopping publication of its PPM listening estimates, which today went commercial in eight new markets. The firm cites 'unfair conduct' by the New York Attorney General. More
WPP has again extended the deadline for acceptance of its TNS bid to next Wednesday, October 8th, with 61% of shareholders accepting. However, major TNS shareholder Cedar Rock has taken its holding past the 10% mark, which may impact the ad giant's options. More
WPP says its current offer for TNS is final and will not be increased unless a rival bidder emerges. The ad group has also sent TNS shareholders information clarifying its intention to create a new UK-listed but offshore-based parent company. More
WPP has announced that its bid for TNS had been accepted by around 43% of the latter's shareholders as of 2.30pm Monday – up from just 34% on Friday. The acquisitive ad group also says it will move its 'domicile' to Ireland due to the current 'complexity' of the UK tax system. More
WPP has again extended its deadline for TNS shareholders to decide on its £1.2bn bid - to this Friday, October 3rd - but has now received acceptances from 33.8% of them - up from just 11% two weeks previously. More
GfK has appointed Dr. Arno Mahlert to replace Hajo Riesenbeck as Chairman. Stefan Pfander replaces him as Deputy Chairman. More
Global research turnover rose in line with expectations last year to just over US$28bn, according to statistics from ESOMAR, revealed at last week's annual Congress. The rise from 2006 figures was 6.5% or 3.9% after adjustment for inflation. More
The Indian MR Outsourcing (MRO) sector will grow to around $800m in 2012, from current revenues of c.$148m (2007), according to a new report. The study also warns of challenges in acquiring and retaining talent. Meanwhile another study predicts steady growth for the global information industry as a whole despite more general economic gloom. More
Software giant SPSS has unveiled Viz Designer(TM), which uses 'leading-edge' graphic technology to display results from its Predictive Analytics software more clearly and intuitively. More
Online audience measurement firm comScore expects to double its revenue to $200m in the next two to three years, according to President & CEO Magid Abraham. More
TNS has today issued its shareholders with a new statement urging them to reject WPP's offer for the firm, underlining its strength as a standalone group. More
TNS is to adopt research software provider Vovici's Enterprise Feedback Management (EFM) Platform and Community Builder Model as its standard platform for building custom online panels and communities for its customers. More
WPP has received a qualified approval from the European Commission for its offer to buy TNS. The deal will comply with EU merger rules, provided two divestments are made. More
For the first half of the year, European panels and software firm Toluna has posted a flat pre-tax profit of £1.39m, despite revenue growth of 36% to £8.2m million and organic revenue up 32%. More
US analysis firm Global Insight is to be acquired by HIS, which provides information and insight on the energy and security markets, the environment and product lifecycles. More
Nielsen has appointed Christophe Cambournac as President, Asia Pacific and India, succeeding Nonoy Niles who will be leaving the company after fourteen years. More
TPI, the outsourcing data and advisory firm owned by Information Services Group (ISG), has launched a new business unit with an independent management team which will provide information and insights to outsourcing and offshoring service providers. More
Online fieldwork provider Research Now has established a joint venture in Shanghai and opened an office in Singapore, while launching eight new Asian panels. More
Panels and software firm Toluna has expanded into the Asia Pacific region with the opening of a new office in Sydney, Australia. Mike Billingsley will head it up, bringing more than 20 years of market research experience. More
204 weeks separate the Beijing Olympics and the start of the next games in London – precisely one week for each country that took part in the events in China. MrWeb will be following a trail across the world for the next four years, each week profiling one country and its research industry, linking also to news, jobs and suppliers. More
GfK is adding to its optical products tracking services in Asia. The firm will soon begin tracking spectacle lens and other optical products in Taiwan, in addition to the existing contact lens retail measurement, and says it will develop new markets in the region. More
Online panel specialist Lightspeed Research has launched a new panel in Belgium which will enable respondents to conduct surveys in either Flemish or French, according to CEO for Europe David Day, who discussed the firm's plans and strategies with DRNO. More
In the US, Nielsen has appointed Ed Dandridge as Senior VP and Chief Communications Officer, responsible for managing communications between Nielsen and its key audiences and stakeholders inside and outside the company. More
Hajo Riesenbeck is to resign from the Supervisory Board Chairmanship and Presidency of GfK Nürnberg e.V. Riesenbeck was closely associated with the TNS bid, while CEO Klaus Wübbenhorst is said to have been more convinced of the firm's ability to grow on its own. More
WPP said today it would extend its offer for TNS shares to September 26th. Only 11% of shareholders had accepted the offer by today's 3pm London deadline, already an extension. More
In response to pressure from European Union data protection officials, Internet giant Google has halved the length of time it will retain personal search data; pledging to anonymize IP addresses after nine months. More
Microsoft has revealed that it is selling the Greenfield Online Internet Survey Solutions (ISS) business to ZM Surveys, a 'shell' organization affiliated with media-focused private equity firm ZM Capital. Terms were not disclosed. More
In China, mobile ad network operator Madhouse has partnered with research firm iResearch Consulting Group to help inform advertisers and investors about the latest trends in the country's mobile marketing sector. More
Full service agency Market Probe has extended its international footprint with the acquisition of UP-Point China in Beijing. The company, which will be renamed Market Probe China, has annual revenues of $8m RMB (USD $1.2m). Terms of the deal were not disclosed. More
UK researcher Matthew Lawrence has set up his own agency in Cyprus, offering all aspects of qual data collection and project management. More
In Singapore, Pauline Chia and Andrew Wood have opened Asia Talent – a market research recruitment consultancy, serving the needs of the industry across Asia. More
Malaysian firm Opinion Box, a market research agency that collects data among online community members, is to launch Blue Box, a project management system for use in online surveys and sample outsourcing. More
The European Commission has extended by ten working days its investigation into the potential effect on competition of communication group WPP's takeover bid for global agency TNS. More
WPP has extended its offer to buy shares in TNS to 3pm London time on September 12th. The company's original deadline passed on Friday with only 8.61% of TNS shareholders accepting its offer. TNS continues to recommend rejection. More
Greenfield Online has revealed the identity of its new potential buyer - Microsoft. Having offered $486m to clinch the deal, the software giant intends to sell Greenfield's online survey arm and just keep the Ciao comparison shopping web sites. More
Australia-based research software developer QSR International has added Spanish and Chinese language versions to its flagship NVivo qualitative research software tool. More
In the UK, employee-owned investment firm Cedar Rock Capital – the largest shareholder in TNS - is understood to have rejected ad giant WPP's latest £1.1bn offer. More
Following yesterday's news that it had shelved plans to acquire UK rival TNS, GfK has bounced back by announcing its highest rate of sales growth since the firm's IPO in 1999. Organic sales were up 11.4% for the quarter, and 8.4% for the first six months of the year. More
UK marcoms group Aegis has posted overall organic revenue growth of 8.2% for the first half of 2008. Research arm Synovate reports healthy revenue and profit rises but has reduced expectations for 2008 organic market growth to 4.1% from 5.1%, in the light of tough trading conditions. More
Opinion Research Corporation (ORC) has appointed Koh Hwee Hoon as Research Director – Singapore, responsible for co-ordinating and overseeing the company's research operations in the local market. The firm has also moved in to larger Singapore offices. More
GfK has cancelled plans to acquire UK rival TNS after failing to secure funding for the deal. TNS, whose shareholders must vote this week on the bid of its remaining suitor WPP, also announced 6-monthly results today with revenue and profit rises both in double figures. More
Billionaire investor and Havas Chairman Vincent Bolloré has bought another $376,000-worth of Harris Interactive shares, bringing his stake in the business to nearly 13%. More
Harris Interactive has announced results for its fourth fiscal quarter and fiscal year ended June 30, 2008. Annual revenue was up 13% to $238.7m, but pro forma organic revenue was down 1%, with a decline of 3% in North American more than cancelling out good growth of 6% in Europe. More
WPP has announced its unaudited interim results for the six months ended 30th June 2008, showing good revenue and profit figures in all regions and for all divisions including insight. While his own firm may be healthy however, CEO Sir Martin Sorrell says the current merger process is 'not doing [TNS] much good'. More
Australian polling firm Roy Morgan Research has angered the country's unions by sacking fifty-six interviewers in its Melbourne call centre by email and with little or no warning. More
Company founder Vin Gupta is to receive $10m as part of a severance agreement from ORC-owner infoGroup. The company filed its delayed second-quarter earnings report with the SEC yesterday, revealing that soaring costs reduced quarterly net income by almost 32% to $4.3m despite a 17% increase in revenue to $187.2m. More
Less than a month after removing Vin Gupta from his role as Chairman of database giant and ORC parent infoGroup, the firm's Board has announced his resignation as CEO. More
Consumer and retail research providers The NPD Group and GfK Chart-Track, and publisher Enterbrain have partnered to produce a single source of data on video game software sales in their respective countries: the US, UK and Japan. More
GfK will use the time available to it before making any offer for TNS, according to CEO Klaus Wuebbenhorst. This is likely to mean September, while WPP boss Sir Martin Sorrell will see TNS shareholders vote on his proposals on 29th August. More
Nielsen has reported increased second quarter revenues of $1,304m, up 12% from the same period in the previous year; and a year-on-year rise of 12% in first half revenues to $2,518m. More
Ipsos has posted a 4.5% increase in revenue to Euros 462.8m for the first half of 2008, and organic growth of 8.4%. Four of the firm's business lines reported double-digit organic growth during the period. More
WPP CEO Sir Martin Sorrell says GfK is misleading the market about being able to pull together the resources to buy British rival TNS, and about having access to an 'unidentified but substantial source of capital'. More
In the UK, online market research agency YouGov has warned that 2008 profits will be impacted by a one-off £1.2m cost it incurred by terminating merger talks. However, the firm said gross margins will be slightly ahead of market expectations and detailed a range of recent initiatives. More
In the US, Greenfield Online, which has recently received two takeover offers, has seen a decline in net income to $2.1m, compared with $3.1m a year earlier. More
GlobalNR, a multi-country consortium of independent research agencies, has extended its reach across 21 countries with the addition of seven new members to its network. More
Former ACNielsen Exec Terilyn Reber has established an international coalition of data collection agencies, to offer CATI/WebCATI and online research to clients around the world. More
Panels and research process outsourcing (RPO) firm The Pulse Group has opened a new office in Singapore, its third in the Asia-Pacific region. More
In the US, Greenfield Online has announced that in addition to the offer made by investment firm the Quadrangle Group to buy the company, a second offer has been submitted by an unnamed party to acquire its stock for $17.50 per share. More
GfK is reportedly in talks with private equity house Apax Partners about funding a cash bid for TNS, which last night outlined in a shareholder document why its Board had rejected WPP's most recent hostile bid. More
Indian-based market research outsourcing firm exëvo has launched a Global Technology Panel, comprising more than 125,000 dedicated business and consumer panellists across 15 countries. Meanwhile, Research Now has launched an online panel in India. More
Internet audience specialist Nielsen Online has rolled out its competitive online media intelligence service AdRelevance service in Taiwan. For the first time, the product categories used have been standardised for research on both online and offline media. More
WPP has posted TNS shareholders a formal offer for the company, valuing it at $2.28bn. It includes news of an option to sell TNS' television monitoring arm TAM to Ipsos, if required to meet EU competition law. More
In the US, technology research and consulting firm Forrester has acquired rival JupiterResearch and its parent company JUPR Holdings for $23m in cash plus assumed liabilities. In addition, Forrester has posted Q2 revenue of $63.5m, compared with $55.2m last year. More
In partnership with Digital Media Group (DMG), Nielsen has conducted what it describes as the 'first ever' China subway TV rating survey, using an evaluation method that the pair say has never been applied to digital outdoor media until now. More
With just a week to go before the start of the Beijing Olympics, Knowledge Networks (KN) has announced it is to provide overnight data about time spent consuming Olympic content across more than a dozen NBC Universal properties. More
GfK Asia has released its first Pan Asia contact lens retail forecast, covering sales in China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Korea and Singapore. More
GfK's discussions regarding a possible offer for TNS are 'progressing positively' the company said today, as it announced a strong order book from the first half of 2008 and a two-week delay in financial reporting. However, TNS has reportedly been talking to Sir Martin Sorrell and scouting for other possible buyers. More
Global PR firm Weber Shandwick has launched the CorpComm Optimizer(TM), a new, proprietary consultative service designed to help Chief Communications Officers (CCOs) make the best of their role driving business strategy and building corporate reputation. More
China's national TV network China Central TV (CCTV) will be using analytics firm WebTrends to generate insight about visitors to its web channels during the 2008 Olympics, and customize content for hundreds of millions of Chinese Internet users throughout the games. More
The Board of database giant and ORC owner infoGroup has removed Vin Gupta from his Chairman's role following an investgation which has found him guilty of 'excessive spending'. In support of the finding, the firm has introduced a new policy which limits directors' use of company funds. More
Indian regulator TRAI has worried researchers with its recommendations regarding the country's future TV audience measurement. Its conclusions favour 'self-regulation' via the newly constituted BARC body, but recommend the inclusion of government nominees on the latter's committees. More
IMS Health has announced second-quarter revenue up 12% (4% at constant currencies) to $600.7m. Operating income rose 11% (1% at constant currencies) to $131.4m. Net income on a GAAP basis was $77.7m, compared with $73.4m in the year-earlier quarter, an increase of 6%. More
GfK is understood to have had talks with European private equity firm Cinven about finance for its bid for TNS. Such a partnership is likely to be treated with caution by major shareholder the GfK-Verein. More
GfK will not take 'unreasonable' financial risks in bidding for TNS, according to Klaus Wuebbenhorst. The CEO has played down the pressure on his firm, which is said to be in talks with 'other wealthy German families' in addition to the Herz family. More
New Zealand's Parliamentary Services function has responded to public concern and clarified that MPs are in the clear using consultants for market research and other purposes, provided such use is intended to make MPs better at their jobs, and not for electioneering. More
GfK is said to be discussing financial backing for its counter offer for TNS with Mayfair, the Hamburg investment vehicle owned by billionaire siblings Günter and Daniela Herz, who inherited their wealth from their coffee magnate father. More
German market research agency GfK has stressed today that there is no certainty it will make an all-cash offer for UK rival TNS, after the pair scrapped their plans to merge yesterday. More
GfK, backed by an as-yet unnamed investor, is preparing to make a counter-offer for TNS in response to WPP's £1.08bn ($2.1bn) hostile bid announced this morning. More
2007 was a mixed bag for US research providers, some reporting impressive growth and others struggling, according to figures in the latest Honomichl 50, just out. Overall, growth was a respectable 6%, the mean of the two previous years, achieved despite a US workforce reduction of c.1,300 among the top 50 firms. More
Despite approval from the Board of the GfK Verein, the 'merger of equals' with TNS continues to face pressure from two sides: Sir Martin Sorrell, who has one more day to decide for or against a 'hostile' bid; and workers and a former Chairman at the German firm he describes as 'very traditional'. More
NBC Universal (NBCU) is to use the forthcoming Beijing Olympics as a unique testing environment for a more rounded measurement of media consumption, covering a wide variety of media. More
In New Zealand, Privacy Commissioner Marie Shroff has urged a legal review to consider the setting up of a national 'do not call' database similar to that in the US and Australia. More
The Administrative Board of GfK-Nürnberg e.V. has approved the firm's merger with TNS, leaving the vote of Verein members on 21st July technically unnecessary, 'though 'important'. Meanwhile, the bosses of TNS and WPP have been exchanging increasingly hostile comments. More
TNS has fended off a third approach from communications giant WPP, stating that the bid still substantially undervalues the company. More
The proposed $426m sale of Greenfield Online to media and communications investment firm the Quadrangle Group is being hampered by complaints from investors Springhouse Capital and Pennant Capital that the agreed sum undervalues the company. More
Advertising, marketing and comms agency Omnicom has formed a consultancy, led by a dozen female execs, to help clients make connections with women – whether as consumers, customers, employees or other stakeholders. More
In the UK, the Panel Executive, an independent body which administers the City Code on takeovers and mergers, has ruled that marketing firm WPP must clarify whether it intends to make a firm offer for TNS by 9 July. More
In the UK, Andrew Cooper, Founder and Group MD of online panel firm Research Now, is to step down as part of a restructure designed to streamline management during the firm's next phase of growth and development. More
In the UK John Napier, the former CEO of market research agency AGB, will join Synovate parent Aegis as Non-Executive Chairman from mid-July, when he replaces Colin Sharman who is retiring after nearly nine years in the role. More
In the UK, market research consultancy Ci Research has appointed former Nunwood Board member Richard Walker as its Director responsible for PR, marketing and brand development. The firm is also planning to make several other appointments in the coming months. More
The proposed 'merger of equals' of GfK and TNS faces political opposition in Germany, reports suggest, with some German local authorities represented in the company's majority shareholding 'Verein' saying they will oppose the deal at next Friday's key meeting. More
Panels and Research Process Outsourcing (RPO) firm The Pulse Group has announced its Initial Public Offering (IPO) on the PLUS markets in London, with trading commencing today. More
Both TNS and WPP have reported healthy revenue growth in the first five months of 2008 - the former doing particularly well in the UK, balancing a slight decline in the US. Meanwhile Martin Sorrell has again asked TNS for more financial information. More
Google has unveiled a free web analytics, research and media planning tool to enable media buyers to determine the web sites where their online ads will have most impact, based on demographics and traffic info. More
Ipsos is to acquire Buenos Aires-headquartered research firm Livra Panels, which provides online panels and data collection services for market research agencies in the Spanish and Portuguese speaking markets. Terms were not disclosed. More
In Paris, Research International (RI) has promoted Douwe Rademaker to the newly created position of Worldwide Director of Marketing. He was previously MD of Continental Europe. More
In the UK, former NOP owner United Business Media (UBM) has pulled out of talks to buy information group Informa, which acquired Datamonitor last year. More
French financier and Havas Chairman Vincent Bolloré has said he is unlikely to make a sixth attempt to obtain two seats on the Board of Synovate parent Aegis this year. More
European panel and survey technology provider Toluna has bought US-based panel management firm Common Knowledge for an initial $8.49m in cash and a deferred cash sum of $2.16m. More
Consumer and media intelligence firm Mintel has launched China Innovation Spotlight, a series of reports focusing on the latest trends and topical issues in new product development in the region. More
Research and predictive analytics software giant SPSS has launched a text mining tool to enable users to analyze unstructured data from social media, consumer blogs, community boards, e-mail, call center notes, RSS feeds and surveys. More
Greenfield Online is to be sold to private media and communications investment firm the Quadrangle Group for approximately $426m (£217m). More
Online research agency BrainJuicer has opened an office in Switzerland, while also announcing plans to acquire Melbourne-based market research firm The Slater Marketing Group. More
TNS Chief David Lowden has today met with WPP's Sir Martin Sorrell to present him with the data his firm has already disclosed to GfK as part of the nil premium merger announced in April. More
In the UK, insight consultancy Truth has reported rapid growth since its launch last year – with client billings for 2008 forecast to exceed £3.5m. The firm is also considering opportunities for an overseas presence in Asia and the US. More
Synovate has launched a division which will offer an integrated approach to clients across the company's different service areas, to help them develop more profitable relationships with their customers. More
WPP has refuted TNS's claim to have provided it with the same information given to GfK as part of the recent merger agreement. Sir Martin Sorrell's firm says it has only been given access to a subset of the information provided to GfK Verein, GfK's controlling shareholder. More
TNS has agreed to open its books and give WPP the same information it gave to GfK as part of their recent merger agreement. Meanwhile, reports suggest that the GfK-TNS merger may face an EU competition probe; and may be 'sweetened' by a cash bonus for TNS shareholders. More
Former NOP owner United Business Media (UBM) is in preliminary talks with publishing group Informa, which acquired Datamonitor last year, over a merger that could create a FTSE 100 global b2b media group worth £3.1bn. More
Pranesh Misra, Global Director Marketing Accountability at Lowe Worldwide, is leaving to launch a new firm offering KPO (Knowledge Process Outsourcing) for marketing data analytics and 'insight mining'. More
Sir Martin Sorrell is said still to be considering this week's GfK-TNS merger announcement and whether or not to come back with a fresh offer for TNS. Quoted in the UK's Guardian newspaper, the acquisitive WPP boss described the GfK-TNS proposal as 'a defensive merger'. More
Google is integrating its Google Analytics traffic analysis tool with its Google TV Ads program. Some observers are interpreting the move as further evidence that the search giant is headed for direct competition with Nielsen. More
GfK is making waves in the burgeoning area of linking FMCG purchases and online ad campaigns, with the launch of a new service, Web Efficiency Panel (WEP). WEP has been developed in partnership with technical solutions provider Nurago and boasts Google as a 'technical advisor'. More
Research International's Nic Hall, a former SAMRA Chairman and currently Director of Market Strategy in the UK, is moving to Singapore to assume the role of Client Service Director Asia Pacific. More
GfK and TNS have agreed the terms for their 'merger of equals' to create GfK-TNS plc. Aside from 'significant opportunities' for revenue growth, the firms say the move will bring annual pre-tax benefits through cost reduction of at least Euros 97m (£76m) by the end of the third full year following completion. More
infoGROUP, until this week known as infoUSA, is combining two of its market research businesses, recently acquired Guideline and Opinion Research Corporation (ORC), and has placed ORC President Gerard Miodus in charge of all operations for the new unit. More
Survey Sampling International has opened a new office in Seoul, South Korea, and appointed Simon (Quan) Zhang to lead it. Zhang worked previously for Tesco International Sourcing. More
Reports in the UK press have suggested the GfK-TNS merger may be 'under threat' after TCS Capital Management, a US hedge fund, reportedly offered its 6% shareholding in the group to would-be TNS buyer WPP Group. More
Indian-based KPO firm Dexterity has appointed Dr. Jayendra Ramesan as Practice Head – Analytics. Dr Ramesan is a former Director, Sales and Marketing Analytics at Dun & Bradstreet (D&B) – USA. More
comScore has announced the acquisition of mobile measurement firm M:Metrics, Inc., for a cash payment of $44.3m and the issue of c.50,000 share purchase options for comScore stock. More
Nielsen has extended its online audience profiling service to the mobile Web. The new service provides marketers and publishers with lifestyle and demographic information for the audience of more than 200 mobile web sites. More
B2B specialist Kadence has officially launched in China with the opening of a Hong Kong office, and says it will launch a Shanghai office before the end of the year. More
The Nielsen Company and its subsidiary Interactive Market Systems (IMS) have announced the launch of IMS Clear Decisions(TM), a new software platform claiming to simplify access to media and marketing data and speed up the generation of insights from it. More
Research International's New Zealand MD Colin Yee has been appointed as Chairman of AMRO New Zealand, the country's Association of Market Research Organisations. Yee has been Deputy Chairman for the past two years. More
At its 2008 AGM, shareholders of Synovate parent Aegis Group plc have rejected the appointment of the nominees of Havas Group Chairman Vincent Bollore for the fifth time in two years. It's another win on points, but it may not be the last in the franchise. More
UK-based specialist B2B International is following up a successful office launch in China last year with a New York office, opening next month. More
GfK's proposed 'merger of equals' with TNS could take place this year or early next, according to comments from CEO Klaus Wuebbenhorst at the German-based firm's AGM yesterday. Meanwhile shareholders voted overwhelmingly in favour of converting GfK to a European 'SE' style company. More
MrWeb, the world's busiest daily news and jobs service for market researchers, has expanded with the appointment of Chris Jensen as Marketing Executive. Initially, his focus will be on building the site's Asian and US job listings, and its UK and international audience. More
B2B specialist Kadence has appointed Rowena Lim as Project Director, to support the ongoing expansion of its Asia-Pacific company. More
London-based communications research agency MESH Planning has opened its first office in the Asia Pacific region and appointed former InsightAsia MD Craig Griffin as Managing Director in Singapore. More
In Australia, the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) has appointed Paul Fisher as its first CEO. He takes up the new post at the beginning of July. More
Ipsos first quarter revenues rose 6.2% to €217.3m from Q1 2007. Despite slow going in North America, global organic growth reached 9.6%, which the firm said exceeded its full-year targets. More
GfK has described its Q1 results as 'sound', with organic growth in sales up 5.1% to €268.1m and consolidated total income rising almost 21% to €12.5m. More
Nielsen has reported $1,214m revenues for Q1, an increase of 13% from Q1 2007. Excluding the impact of currency fluctuations, the increase was a healthy 8%. However, the firm still made a net loss from continuing operations of $82m. More
WPP boss Sir Martin Sorrell has increased his offer for TNS from £948m to £996m (($1.9bn), but has been rejected for a second time by the market research group's Board. More
Greenfield Online, Inc. has reported first quarter results, with rapid revenue growth for its Comparison Shopping business (up 60.3% year-on-year to $10.8m) masking a 3% decline for its Internet survey solutions segment. Greenfield has also agreed in principle to settle a pending class action lawsuit regarding 'false and misleading' projections. More
Business information provider D&B last week reported results for the first quarter of 2008, ended March 31st. Revenue rose 8% on the year (excluding currency effects) to $414.7m, of which the Sales & Marketing Solutions division accounted for $109.7m, up 5%. More
GfK CEO Klaus Wübbenhorst has told employees of the German-based global agency that the proposed merger with TNS would mean more jobs, not fewer. Prof. Wübbenhorst said comments suggesting the contrary from WPP's Martin Sorrell were 'morally reprehensible'. More
Pulse Group is to give regional coverage to its online travel survey. Already rolled out in Malaysia with support from Tourism Malaysia, the firm plans to extend the study to other markets including Singapore, Thailand, Australia, New Zealand, China, Taiwan and Hong Kong. More
WPP CEO Sir Martin Sorrell has said that he is surprised and disappointed by TNS' 'cavalier' rejection of his £1bn part-cash / part-share offer to purchase the firm. More
Harris Interactive has reported third quarter fiscal 2008 results showing consolidated revenue up 11% to $57.3m, with a very good performance from newly acquired companies in Asia, France, Canada and Germany. However, due to declines in the US and UK, consolidated pro forma organic revenue dropped 4%. More
US online measurement firm comScore has reported Q1 revenue of $26.4m, up 41% from $18.6m in Q1 2007. Pre-tax net income rose by 165% to $4.2m, net income by 64% to $2.5m and adjusted EBITDA by 104% to $5.6m. More
In the US, Survey Sampling International (SSI) has conducted a study to analyze the motivating psychological factors behind survey participation using a new principle called self-determination theory or SDT. More
In the US, an institutional investor has filed a law suit against ratings giant Arbitron, charging the firm with 'false and misleading statements' regarding the roll out of its Portable People Meter (PPM) service. More
UK-based B2B International has opened an office in New York, and transferred Julia Cupman stateside to take on the role of US Business Development Manager. More
UK-based panels firm Research Now is anticipating total revenue for the six months ending 30 April 2008 to exceed £18.5m versus £9.9m last year – a leap of 85%. Operating profit is expected be £2.3m, up from just £300,000 a year ago. More
For the first quarter of 2008, Synovate has seen organic revenue growth of 5% and total revenue growth at constant currency of 9.1%. More
Top five global MR firms TNS and GfK are in discussions about a possible 'merger of equals', which would create the world's second-largest market and information group. More
Last year saw a 3.5% increase in the number of focus groups and other qual market research interviews conducted worldwide, according to FocusVision's annual 'Focus Group Index'. The figure matches the previous year's growth. More
WPP has announced first quarter like-for-like revenue growth of just under 5%. Reported revenues were up 14.1% to £1.56bn for the group and up 11.3% to £227.1m for Kantar, the group's information, insight and consultancy arm. More
UK based data processing agency MRDC has doubled the size of its operation in Thailand and employed extra staff to man the expanded unit. Employees David Ward and Fiona Turnbull have meanwhile become Directors in the UK. More
Indian company Satyam Computer Services has bought the market research and customer analytics operation of Caterpillar Inc. for $60m (c.£30.2m); and Belgium-based consulting firm S&V Management Consultants for $35.5m (£17.8m). More
The combined value of the world's top 100 brands – headed by Google – rose by 21% last year, according to the third annual BrandZ (TM) Ranking from ROI specialist Millward Brown Optimor. More
In the US, the Council for Marketing and Opinion Research (CMOR) has responded to the Federal Trade Commission's (FTC) proposals to regulate online behavioral advertising, by requesting that any definition of the practice excludes survey opinion and marketing research. More
In Sydney Australia, Stuart Pike has returned to Nielsen as Director of Industry Solutions for Nielsen Online, from his previous position of Chairman of the Australian Internet Advertising Bureau (IAB) sub-committee for online measurement. More
UK-based retail giant Tesco is working with partner firm dunnhumby to extend its consumer insight and analysis system to match its international footprint, minus the US. The Asian and East European roll-out includes tailored versions of its pioneering Clubcard loyalty programme. More
In the UK, consumer product and media intelligence firm Mintel has bought Snapshots International, a London-based publisher of global market reports. Terms were not disclosed. More
Vincent Bolloré, Chairman of communications group Havas, will make a fifth attempt to secure representation on the Board of Synovate's parent company Aegis, in which he is the biggest single shareholder. More
In the UK, Comperio, the research arm of US sports marketing and media group IMG, has promoted Iain Barnett to the position of MD. Barnett will oversee the firm's global network of offices, and have direct responsibility for all business operations and strategy development. More
GfK has made a series of acquisitions, including Turkish market research firm Bilseim International, the remaining 35% of Swiss oncology specialist GfK Research Matters, the Brazilian MR company Shopping Brazil, and the watch panel set up by French MR agency Société V. More
Panel and software provider GMI (Global Market Insite) has increased the size of its Singapore consumer panel from 40,000 to 85,000 double opted-in members. More
Consumer packaged goods specialist Information Resources Inc (IRI) has partnered with the GfK/TNS-owned Europanel Association to offer what the firms describe as 'the widest-reaching, single-panel research service in the world'. More
In the US, TNS Healthcare has introduced a new service to help pharmaceutical and biotech companies measure the effectiveness of their own and competitive sales calls. More
In Australia, qualitative research software developer QSR International has updated its NVivo product to include new audio and visual capabilities. More
US-headquartered data collection firm Western Wats is to add to its presence in the Philippines by opening a new 500-seat call center in Davao City in mid-July. The firm, which also operates in Cebu City, has already invested between P60m and P70m (c$1.5m) in the new operation. More
Millward Brown has promoted Patricia Driver to the newly created position of Managing Director in Singapore, from her existing role as Head of Client Service at the firm's London office. More
GfK has confirmed a record year of trading in 2007 with organic sales up 5.8% to EUR1,162m. Adjusted operating income rose 4.7% to EUR157.6m and margin crept up to 13.6%. The firm has also announced plans to change its legal form to an SE, or Societas Europaea. More
The Nielsen Company has appointed Justin Garrett as Director, Financial Services in Hong Kong. More
Gallup has announced the official launch of its 'World Poll', an annual global survey of opinions and behaviours via interviews in 140 countries representing 95% of the world's adult population. The firm says it has has committed to conducting the study for the next 100 years. More
Company profiling firm OneSource Information Services will be expanding in the Asia Pacific region, doubling its workforce in Singapore during the forthcoming year. More
US-based automotive research agency RL Polk has released commercial vehicle registration data for China, split for the first time by locality and other variables. More
Luc Rens, Research International's (RI) Regional Director of Qualitative Asia Pacific, has been given an expanded role as Lead Co-ordinator and Spokesperson for the firm's worldwide qualitative team. More
Harris Interactive has appointed Stephen Wallace as its new Chief Information Officer, responsible for infrastructure and information security. More
In India, research and analytics firm Dexterity has announced a refocusing of its business on marketing and customer informatics, and appointed former Accenture USA Partner Anantha Krishnan as Chairman and CEO. More
Ipsos has acquired agricultural and animal healthcare research firm Forward Research, and also created a joint venture to develop business management consulting in Indonesia. More
Media and market research groups Aegis and Cello, and global MR agency Ipsos have all beaten industry analyst predictions and recorded healthy profits for 2007. More
In the Philippines, the Quezon City Regional Trial Court has suspended proceedings filed by broadcaster ABS-CBN against AGB Nielsen Media research, to allow the parties time to try and reach a settlement. More
London-based behavioural data insight firm Beyond Analysis has acquired Sydney-based engagement agency Enzyme Insight Solutions, and re-branded the firm Beyond Analysis Australia. More
In the US, Ford Motor has appointed Anne Bélec as Director of Global Marketing, responsible for marketing strategies and processes, brand positioning and consumer insights. More
NWC Opinion Research, the AsiaPac arm of Opinion Research Corporation (ORC), has appointed Joseph Chui as Senior Research Director, leading a team serving local and regional clients based in Hong Kong and Mainland China. More
TNS has grouped several of its North American operating units into a new division, TNS media, with Dean DeBiase as CEO. TNS media intelligence and TNS media research join newly-acquired companies Compete and Cymfony to form the new entity. More
The Nielsen Company continues to break new ground following its rebranding from VNU last year. Today it announced its first global brand awareness campaign, built around a marketing collaboration with The New York Times Company and including sole sponsorship of an Olympics Special issue of the latter's 'PLAY' sports magazine. More
In the US, Gallup and healthcare support provider Healthways have forged a 25-year agreement to measure and track the well-being of communities and companies, as well as the effectiveness of programs implemented to improve health, well-being and productivity. More
Louise McCann, the Chair of Research International Australia, has been given an expanded role within the company's Asia Pacific (APAC) offices to oversee RI's commercial operating strategy for the region. More
Online panel specialist Lightspeed Research has launched a new weekly omnibus to provide clients with fast access to consumer opinion across Europe, North America and Asia Pacific. More
Nielsen Online has promoted Megan Clarken to the position of MD, Pacific to lead the firm's commercial business in Australia and New Zealand. More
TNS has announced an agreement to acquire online behaviour measurement company Compete, Inc. for US$75m in cash, doubling if targets are met over two years. The company also reported full year results for 2007, with revenue of UK£1,067.7m, representing underlying growth of 5.4%. More
Research Process Outsourcing (RPO) company Pulse Group has launched its second new office of the year, this time in New Delhi, and says it aims to boost client development throughout the South Asian region. Nitin Gulati will lead the new location. More
In the final quarter of 2007 GfK achieved organic growth of 6.5% and a margin of 16.8% – a figure the firm says is the most successful in its history. Based on preliminary data, the group also reported an organic sales increase of 5.8% to Euros 1,162m for the full year. More
Ipsos Australia's public affairs division has joined with Eureka Strategic Research to found the Ipsos-Eureka Social Research Institute (IESRI); bringing together a team of 30 staff focused on issues affecting government and society. More
US-based technology analyst IDC is opening a base in Canberra, Australia for its Government Insights practice. The office will be headed by the group's Federal Government Business Manager Michael Hennessey. More
Arbitron and Nielsen have ditched development of 'Project Apollo', their much-vaunted scheme to give a better understanding of the link between consumer exposure to advertising through multiple media and shopping / purchasing behaviour. More
In Singapore, IT specialist Springboard Research has appointed Michael Barnes as VP for Software Research. More
In the US, Emotiv Systems, which creates brain computer interface technology, has launched a neuroheadset that allows players to control gameplay with their thoughts, expressions and emotions. The firm believes that this technology could be applied to market research to demonstrate products to consumers. More
Commercial Radio Australia – the industry body representing Australia's commercial radio broadcasters – has teamed up with Nielsen Media Research to develop an enhanced ratings system to reflect changes in audience listening habits. More
Online panel specialist Lightspeed Research has appointed Angus Macaskill as VP of Client Operations and Charlie Winn as Panel Operations Director based in the firm's Sydney office. More
Following the closure of Opinion Research Taiwan (ORT), a number of the firm's key staff have joined Millward Brown Taiwan. MB has also promoted Deepender Rana to Chief Client Officer Africa Asia Pacific (AAP), and given AAP COO Adrian Gonzalez additional responsibility for Greater China. More
Ipsos has posted full year revenue of Euros 927.2m, up 8.2% on the back of organic growth of 9.1%. Strong performances in Asia Pacific, Latin America and Europe more than offset a slight decline in the group's North American revenue. More
Global b2b research specialist Kadence has reported revenue growth of 18% in 2007, reaching $9.3 million. The group says all its established international offices performed strongly while new locations were launched in Malaysia and Indonesia. More
London-based marketing consultancy kae: marketing intelligence has expanded into Asia and appointed former Synovate Asia-Pac MD Damien Duhamel to head its two new offices in Shanghai and Singapore. More
Research Process Outsourcing (RPO) firm Pulse Group has opened an office in London headed by Jonathan Sheldrake, who joins as Associate Director for Europe. More
While Internet ratings firm comScore has posted a 39% increase in Q4 2007 revenue to $25.3m, its forecast of lower-than-expected profit for both Q1 and 2008 led to shares tumbling more than 11% in after-hours trading last night. More
In India, MR and data analytics provider Annik has launched a system which enables the creation and delivery of insights from multiple primary and secondary data sources. More
Global agency Millward Brown (MB) and fellow Kantar company IMRB are launching a Joint Venture. MB will take a majority share of the new business, to be known as Millward Brown India, which will start with offices in Mumbai, Delhi and Bangalore. More
Research and predictive analytics software leader SPSS has debuted the latest version of its Dimensions(TM) software suite. Dimensions(TM) 5.0 promises to improve response rates, access to respondents, advanced survey creation and interactive results delivery. More
Online fieldwork and panel specialist Research Now has appointed Peter Blansjaar to head up its operations, project delivery and quality assurance systems in the Asia Pacific region. More
Pharma research leader IMS Health has announced full year 2007 revenues up 12% (a very respectable 8% at constant currency) to $2,192.6m. Operating income for the year was down from $444.2m to $393.3m after a fourth quarter restructuring charge of $88.7m. More
IT specialist Springboard Research has hired Bryan Wang as a Research Director focusing on Connectivity. Wang takes responsibility for increasing the firm's profile in the telecoms, mobility and data communications markets. More
London-based panels firm Research Now has ended the 2007 financial year with a 168% rise in revenue to £25.8m, and has doubled its organic revenue, now £19.2m. More
TNS has merged its Hong Kong and Singapore operations and appointed Wade Garland as MD of the combined group, while existing Singapore MD Grant Bertoli will now manage TNS in Thailand, Malaysia and the Philippines. More
Media and marketing holding group Omnicom has launched a new BrandScience division to focus on the measurement of marketing and media effectiveness. More
Barry Ooi has been named Executive Director Southeast Asia Shopper Insights, Nielsen Malaysia's newly-established Retailer Practice Group. Richard Hall takes over from Ooi as Executive Director, Retail Measurement Services, while Hanis Harun joins as Executive Director Telecommunications Industry Practice Group, Asia Pacific. More
Research International (RI) is continuing its leadership re-shuffle with the appointments of Kirk Ward to the newly created position of Global Product Development Leader, Andrew Wish to the new title of Worldwide Infrastructure and Operations Director and John McHarry to Chief Information Officer. More
Online research software firm Confirmit has posted a 68% increase in revenue for the final quarter of 2007, including 38% organic growth. The Q4 total of $12.8m includes $2.5m consolidated revenue from the acquisition of MR software firm Pulse Train. More
Nielsen Marketing has appointed Chris Morley as Managing Director, to expand the company's retail and consumer research capabilities in China. More
In Australia, communications services group STW is splitting its panels business The Online Research Unit (The ORU) from its MR agency AMR Interactive, and has appointed AMR Chairman and Founder Brian Fine to head the offshoot. AMR Interactive will now be run by MD Gary Wilkinson. More
TNS is to offer its researchers across the Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa region the opportunity to study for the MRS Advanced Certificate in Market & Social Research Practice – the first time the UK-based Society's qualification has been taught across the region. More
Information services provider The McGraw-Hill Companies has given details of restructuring carried out in the fourth quarter of 2007, with the loss of 600 jobs, c.3% of its workforce. Research company J.D. Power and Associates, a subsidiary, lost around the same proportion of its staff. More
Sir Bernard Audley, whose UK-based company AGB Research became the world's second-largest market research firm behind AC Nielsen, has died at the age of 83. More
Just seven months after he was appointed MD of Nielsen//NetRatings Australia, Allan Dibb is leaving due to what the firm describes as 'personal issues'. More
Not-for-profit BSRIA, which provides market intelligence to the construction industry, has opened an office in Beijing to increase its international research portfolio and act as a 'window' to other BSRIA services. More
Warner Brothers has promoted Sue Kroll to President Worldwide Marketing - a new position where she will oversee all aspects of the studio's marketing from market research to campaigns and publicity. More
TNS's joint venture CSM Media Research has been given the go-ahead to undertake TV and radio audience measurement in China for a further 10 years. More
Synovate has appointed Kiranjit Singh as Business Group Director of its Business Consulting division, based in Malaysia. More
Global marketing communications group Havas has signed an agreement with TNS Media Intelligence (TNSMI), ending its contract with Nielsen Monitor-Plus and making TNSMI its primary provider for competitive advertising intelligence. More
TNS says it expects revenue growth of more than 5% for 2007, based on strong performance in Europe and the Asia-Pacific regions. Also this week, TNS Media Intelligence has acquired Irish media analysis firm MediaMarket for an undisclosed sum. More
Internet data collection and comparison shopping firm Greenfield Online has launched a suite of Asia-Pacific online omnibus products for the Japanese, Chinese, Indian and Australian markets. More
GfK has expanded its global network with the acquisition of Australian research firm the Blue Moon Group, while taking a 51% majority stake in Macedonian MR agency Stratum Research. More
Market research recruiter Sinead Hasson has launched her own consultancy, Hasson Associates Recruitment Ltd. Based in Soho, London, Hasson will draw on her experience from leading teams at Pricejamieson and RP Cushing Recruitment. More
In the Philippines, the Quezon City Regional Trial Court (RTC) has dismissed the 'ratings cheat' case brought by television company ABS-CBN Broadcasting Corp against ratings firm AGB Nielsen Media Research (AGB), citing the requirement for notice periods in the contract between the two companies. More
Synovate has appointed Pranay Jeyachandran as UK Head of its MarketQuest team, which focuses on product design and development. More
Global pharma research firm IMS Health has announced plans to cut staff numbers by 10% during 2008 in an effort to save money and improve efficiency. More
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has launched a new beta service to make it easier to locate relevant statistical data stored in its multiple databases. More
WPP's brand development business Added Value has acquired US-based consultancy Cheskin. Cheskin Added Value will retain a high degree of autonomy with Darrel Rhea maintaining his leadership role as CEO. More
Audience measurement continues to bring its share of legal problems for Nielsen worldwide. Today, the court in the Philippines 'bribery' case ordered a halt in TV audience fieldwork; while in Spain, a newspaper has filed a claim against the ratings giant for losing it '$1.4m' in ad revenue. More
Pharmaceutical and healthcare insight firm Decision Resources, Inc. has acquired Arlington Medical Resources, Inc. (AMR), a provider of market intelligence for the pharma and diagnostic imaging industries. More
Research Now has added three more online panels to its global offer – in Mexico, Chile and Argentina. The firm already operates panels in the US, Canada and Brazil, as well as Europe and Australia. More
Bangalore-based offshore MR provider Markelytics Solutions India Pvt. Ltd is to offer its online MR services to the domestic market too – helped by an expansion of its operations including an additional facility housing a team dedicated to Indian customers. More
From January, GfK will replace its existing five business divisions with three sectors in order to exploit synergies in the cross-divisional use of technology, data collection and the application of methods. The firm has also appointed Debra Pruent to its Management Board. More
Filipino broadcasting firm ABS-CBN has filed a lawsuit against AGB Nielsen Media Research Philippines for gathering and releasing what the firm describes as 'erroneous' TV ratings data, following the 'bribing' of respondents by one of its competitors. More
The MrWeb site has had its first major overhaul and redesign in several years, including a new logo and frame-free html. More
In Mumbai, TNS India has appointed Dipika Sharma as SVP-People and Culture. Her sixteen years of experience in senior leadership roles include spells as VP-HR for Dow Chemical and Head of HR with Transworld Group. More
Starfish Research continues its advance in the Pacific with the appointment of William Apa as General Manager of operations in the region, based in the firm's Papua New Guinea (PNG) office. More
TNS has announced a 'consolidation' of its Technology research sector in Australia, with the appointments of Jon Foged as National Director of Technology, and Justin Connally and Kim Albert as Directors. More
Sampling solutions provider Survey Sampling International (SSI) has appointed three new VPs to strengthen its global operations. Kim Giangrande will manage Global HR; Suresh Subbiah, Global Client Services and Delivery; and Harold Kelley, Global Marketing. More
Greenfield Online has appointed Mark Shepherd as Director of Internet Survey Solutions, to establish the new Greenfield-Ciao office in Tokyo while helping expand the firm's Asia-Pacific operations. More
Online fieldwork and panel specialist Research Now is aiming to raise £7m by placing 2.33 million shares with institutional investors. More
Technology researcher Springboard has opened a global research centre in Casablanca, Morocco, to serve its clients in the Middle East and Africa. More
One time world-leading PC-maker Dell has announced a new agency agreement with WPP valued at $4.5 billion in billings over three years. The deal envisages a very close partnership within the framework of a new global integrated marketing and communications agency. More
Mitch Barns has been named President of Nielsen Greater China. He will report directly to Nielsen Chairman and CEO David Calhoun, and will serve on the group's Executive Committee. More
WPP's insight division the Kantar Group is restructuring its media businesses, in response to 'a rapidly changing media environment'. A newly formed Kantar Media Research (KMR) unit will bring together the media audience measurement assets and talent from across Kantar. More
Global group Ipsos has bought a controlling share of India's Indica Research and acquired advertising, marketing and CRM specialist ResearchPartner in Norway. More
In Australia, following a three-month review of how online audiences should be measured, the Internet Advertising Bureau (IAB) has announced that a panel-based methodology should become the industry standard. Nielsen Online has branded the decision 'a step backwards'. More
The NPD Group has launched a consumer tracking service for the sports market in Japan. The service covers consumer purchasing, attitudes, and behavior for sports apparel, athletic footwear, and sports equipment. More
Synovate's CEO for Australia and New Zealand, Brent Stewart, has been appointed CEO Global Business Planning. He will continue to lead the Australia and New Zealand businesses from Perth, in addition to his new responsibilities. More
Photon, the Australian marketing services group which owns MR firms The Leading Edge and DVL Smith, is buying UK-based brand experience agency Sledge for $AUD 9.2m, or £3.95m, plus deferred, performance-related payments. More
Sports and entertainment marketing and MR firm The Bonham Group Europe is to be acquired after just over a year in business by AEG, the company which operates the O2 arena and owns David Beckham's US team LA Galaxy. More
Ipsos has reported revenues of Euros 664.2m for the first nine months of 2007, and says it is expecting full-year growth of at least 9%. More
TNS has promoted Tania Kulman, General Manager of TNS Sydney, to the role of Australian MD; Jacqui von Hirschberg to ANZ Director of Consumer; and Evette Cordy to Regional Director for the Technology sector in its ALM super-region. More
GfK has announced organic sales growth of 6.7%., and a sales increase of 5.5% to €833.9m for the first nine months of the year. Meanwhile Dr Derek Allen is joining the group in the US as EVP of the GfK Research Center for Excellence. More
Software giant Oracle has launched a 'Data Masking Pack', to help organisations who share information with researchers and others, to hide confidential or sensitive data. More
TNS has announced a strategic alliance with Intellidyn, a US-based database marketing and analytic services company focused on the financial sector. The research giant says the merging of the firms' expertise will help it create a new global practice, TNS Customer Intelligence Consulting. More
Radio ratings leader Arbitron has responded to a strong attack on its PPM device and methodology by the National Association of Black Owned Broadcasters (NABOB). NABOB points to 'significant flaws' and 'tremendous fee increases'; Arbitron says the PPM is tried, tested, audited and better than diaries. More
Online research software firm Confirmit has announced the release of its Confirmit 12 product, which includes what it calls 'the world's first engine for concurrent sampling'. More
Greenfield Online has reported a 29.9% Q3 net revenue hike to $32.3m, and a 25.4% climb in profits. The firm's Chairman Peter Sobiloff will step down at the end of the year to be replaced by Joel Mesznik, who has served as a Board member since 1999. More
Arbitron's Portable People Meter (PPM) rating service has come in for fierce criticism from Bob Neil, President and CEO of Cox Radio, during his firm's third quarter conference call. More
Flat panel research specialist DisplaySearch has added eleven new people to its analysis and support teams worldwide. They include Rich Alires as VP of North America Business Development, and Michael Boo, Calvin Hsieh and Hidetoshi Himuro as Directors in Korea, Taiwan and Japan, respectively. More
Synovate parent the Aegis Group has purchased New Zealand-based MR agency Research Solutions for an undisclosed sum. More
Harris Interactive has reported fiscal first-quarter revenue up 17% to $55.2m, mostly due to the inclusion of $6.1m from acquisitions made earlier in the year. Organic growth year-on-year was 4%. More
Microsoft has begun beta testing its new Google Analytics competitor, intended to offer web publishers and adCenter advertisers advanced tools for measuring how people found their sites, and their behaviour once there. More
In the US, a coalition of nine privacy and consumer groups has asked the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to implement a 'Do-Not-Track' list for Internet users who do not want their online activities tracked, stored and used by advertisers and marketers. More
Online measurement firm comScore has reported a 39% increase in revenue to $22.4m for the quarter ended 30 September 2007. This compares with an increase of 8% for the second quarter of the year. More
TNS has announced a global quality programme for its panels, Six Degrees of Online Quality - to begin next year. More
Nielsen Media Research is commencing the Singapore launch of the Nielsen Personal Outdoor Device (Npod), and plans to launch the measurement system in Hong Kong in the near future. More
Technology consultancy Gartner, Inc. has reported results for the third quarter, with rapid growth in its Research business segment. The segment represents almost two thirds of its revenue and in Q3 saw contract value rise 18% year-on-year to a record $704.7m, following investment in its sales force. More
Global agency Fieldwork International Healthcare has launched an online panel in Japan, providing access to more than 150,000 physicians. More
Online competitive intelligence service Hitwise is launching 'New and Returning Visitors', the latest feature for its Clickstream service. The new data will split web site visitors into new and repeat traffic, with information on where each type comes from and goes to. More
Two European online ad bodies, IAB Europe and the EIAA, are to collaborate to develop 'standard, comprehensive international definitions' for interactive audience measurement. The standards will cover site-centric, user-centric and combined measurement systems. More
In the US, The National Political Do Not Contact Registry (NPDNC) has provided voters with the option to opt out of receiving political polling calls through its www.StopPoliticalCalls.org website. More
European-based online panel provider ToLuna has hired Lowell Ricklefs as Group Chief Operating Officer, to assist the firm with it's global ambitions. More
IT and BPO outsourcing firm Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation is to acquire NJ-based Life Sciences analytics firm marketRx, Inc., for c.$135m in cash. More
Nielsen has announced a massive, ten-year outsourcing deal with India's Tata Consultancy Services (TCS). The research giant's IT, operations and HR functions worldwide are among those covered by the $US 1.2 billion agreement. More
WPP has reported third quarter revenues up 4.9% to £1.48 billion – a rise of 8.1% in constant currencies. The Information, Insight and Consultancy division underperformed the group as a whole but grew a respectable 4.8% at constant currencies, to £218.5m. More
In the third quarter of the year, MR software firm Confirmit has increased its revenue by 82% to $8.9m, while operating profits were $833,000, 50% higher than in Q3 2006. More
Starfish Research has followed up its recent launch of Papua New Guinea's (PNG's) first syndicated consumer study with the opening of an office in the capital, Port Moresby. The location will serve as its regional office for research conducted in PNG and the South Pacific. More
TNS has announced two global leadership appointments. Leendert de Voogd is promoted to Global Sector Head, Political and Social, replacing Marita Carballo who leaves to pursue 'academic and other interests'; while former Dell man Renaud Collery is appointed as Head of Global Operations. More
B2b specialist Kadence has made ten new appointments, reflecting significant business growth across its worldwide operations. Two people join the firm's UK headquarters in London and eight more are added to offices in Boston, Malaysia and India. More
Synovate has announced three key promotions to leadership positions in its Global Qualitative function. Steve Hales becomes Head of Clients; Sue Phillips Training and Development Director; and Steve Wolf, Commercial Director. More
In the US, the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) has announced the release of final guidelines for ad impression measurement in Rich Internet Application (RIA) environments. It also published a report on the state of in-game advertising. More
Top ten global research agencies IMS Health and Information Resources, Inc. (IRI) have announced a global, multi-year alliance to provide intelligence, analytics and consulting for the consumer health marketplace. More
YouGov has announced results for the financial year ended 31 July, with group turnover up 51% to £14.3m, profit before tax and goodwill up 39% to £5.7m and both global acquisitions and launches in new sectors promising another buoyant year to come. More
India's audience measurement agency TAM has confirmed that its Radio Audience Measurement (RAM) survey will go ahead this month using Diary methodology, despite concerns expressed by the Media Research Users Council (MRUC) that the technology is not sufficiently robust. More
Synovate Healthcare has launched a new syndicated service which it says will provide clients with a holistic view of pharma companies' relationships with their key stakeholders. More
Synovate Censydiam co-founder and former CEO Jan Callebaut has left his part-time consultancy post with Synovate after just four months. More
Recruitment consultancy Pricejamieson, whose specialist teams cover marketing and digital communications in addition to MR, is expanding its research services to Asia Pacific. Senior Consultant Rowan Haylett moves from the London office to parent company Aquent in Australia. More
The Sri Lankan arm of brand evaluation and strategy firm Brand Finance has launched its 'Brand Ratings' scheme, which enables brands to benchmark themselves against top performing competitors. Partner TNS Lanka will provide the research component. More
The Nielsen Company has laid off 1,250 of its staff, but says the losses are probably 'the last for some time' and the total of c.4,000 redundancies originally planned for 2007 will not be reached, according to Reuters. More
The biggest challenges faced by data miners are dirty data, data access, and explaining data mining to others, according to a survey of more than two hundred professionals worldwide, by Rexer Analytics. More
Retail info giant IRI has appointed John Freeland, an Accenture veteran most recently President-Worldwide Operations for salesforce.com, as its new President and CEO. He succeeds Scott W. Klein, in the roles since January 2004, who moves up to IRI's parent, Symphony Technology Group. More
Plans for a joint venture between UK-based polling firm YouGov and Australian marketing services firm Photon Group have reportedly been abandoned, with Photon instead said to be buying social research specialist Auspoll. More
TNS will be merging its Media Intelligence and Media Research (iTRAM) units into one, in an effort to further develop its TV and online audience measurement services. More
Consumer psychology research specialist Synovate Censydiam has developed a suite of interactive tools. They include a panel of respondents with shared contextual motivations, and a tool for conducting pre-field interactive chat sessions. More
Nielsen Media Research has informed its TV network and syndication clients that its Monitor-Plus tracking system is struggling to identify some new forms of 'live' TV advertising; and asked them to work with it to solve the problem. More
Sydney, Australia -based market research firm MRA (Marketing & Research Associates) has been acquired by communications agency Daemon Group. More
UK researchers scooped four of the five ESOMAR annual excellence awards presented at the final session of the association's 60th Congress in Berlin, with David Smith of DVL Smith Group taking home the top John Downham Award and a prize of €10,000. More
Researchers worldwide expect another year of increased use of online data providers and access panels, according to the Online Research Barometer conducted by Greenfield Online and Ciao Surveys. The firms also highlight the healthy state of the b2b research market. More
Ziment has announced the worldwide launch of 'Benchmark Discrete Choice', its system for determining the market potential of pharmaceuticals compounds in early- and late-stage development. More
The 60th ESOMAR Congress has kicked off at the Intercontinental Hotel in Berlin, offering an astonishing variety of fare including a children's choir, researchers both navel- and future-gazing, a very tall and celebrated film director, and three Scottish ladies on MR's contribution to the 'joy' of 'doing it with the lights on'. More
TNS has unveiled BriefScape, a research product for the early stages of brand communications development. The global agency says its range of offerings in the area now constitute 'a research solution for the complete brand communications lifecycle'. More
Papers at today's ESOMAR Congress looked at 60 years of the development of research within electronics manfacturer Philips; and at the successful repositioning of the sagging SlimFast brand. More
In the UK, holding company Optimisa has launched a cash offer for marketing services group EQ worth £6.4 million. More
Dallas-based MR and data analytics provider Denuo Source has hired Rahul Chowdhury as President and CPO (Chief People's Officer), to head the firm's worldwide HR operations and maintain client relationships in the Asia Pacific region. More
Specialist MR recruiter Kate Langford has left PriceJamieson after eight years to work at rival consultancy Elizabeth Norman International (ENI). More
Synovate parent, The Aegis Group has posted an 8.7% increase in first-half pre-tax profits, while confirming that Synovate continues to outperform expectations, having grown almost twice as fast as its market. More
Software and panels provider GMI has partnered with Amsterdam-based MR firm DervalResearch to launch SLIC (Second Life Interview Corner), claiming to provide a new perspective on conducting one-to-one research interviews in a virtual environment. More
Former TNS China General Manager Paul Zhou has left to set up a new agency called Illuminera in Shanghai. More
Database giant Experian has launched a new global image and identity which includes a re-vamped logo and tagline. The firm has also appointed Tony Pullen as Managing Director of its Business Information Division in Nottingham, UK. More
Nielsen Media Research in China has promoted Rita Chan to the post of Executive Director of Sales & Client Services, more than 25 years after she joined the group. More
Synovate Healthcare has launched The Synovate Healthcare India Oncology Monitor, which it says is the first of its kind in the country. More
Marketing services group Omnicom has acquired majority ownership of Consultech, a healthcare market research, marcoms and strategic planning consultancy based in China. More
TNS has today released unaudited interim results for the six months ended 30 June 2007. The firm says underlying revenue growth of 5.9% and operating profit up 8.9% to £45.4m show the successful implementation of a strategy commenced last year. More
In Australia, Coffey International Limited is paying AUS $4.0m to acquire Stratcorp Consulting Pty Ltd, a boutique consultancy providing strategic advice for large sporting and leisure projects. Coffey will merge the firm into a new high-end consulting division. More
Nielsen has announced it will shortly begin the syndicated measurement of professional healthcare web sites. The research giant says the move will create a new standard for measuring healthcare professionals' activity on the Internet. More
Market intelligence agency DVL Smith Group has appointed Marianne Cantwell as Project Director based in its London office. More
Measurement firm comScore has been suspended from online privacy organisation TRUSTe's Trusted Download Program (TDP), after a comScore distributor broke its rules on getting user consent for downloads. More
Massachusetts-based search engine firm Northern Light has launched an IT analyst research solution called Analyst Direct to help technology marketers search reports from multiple research firms simultaneously. More
Millward Brown has enhanced its LINK(TM) suite of advertising research tools to help advertisers understand the overall effect of their multimedia communications. The new LINK360 tools will help to measure the impact of online video, blogs, print, TV, radio, outdoor and online campaigns. More
Nielsen has signed an agreement with business intelligence (BI) and performance management firm Cognos, to use its Cognos 8 Business Intelligence software to deliver integrated information services to its clients and accelerate the growth of its Nielsen Answers(TM) solution. More
The Nielsen Company has appointed Christophe Cambournac as MD for Bases Asia Pacific, located in Hong Kong. He succeeds Marc Lagrois who stays within the firm but will return to the US. More
Harris Interactive has announced results for the fourth quarter and its full fiscal year 2007, ending 30th June. Fourth quarter revenue declined to $57.1m – down 3% from the same period a year ago – and full year revenue was $211.8m, similar to figures a year ago and well down on forecasts made then, of $230-240m. More
In the US, the Web Analytics Association (WAA) has published an expanded set of metrics definitions covering visits, content, and conversion, which it says promote a better overall understanding of web analytics. More
Papua New Guinea (PNG) is to get its 'first' annual syndicated research study, courtesy of Starfish Research (Asia-Pacific). More
MrWeb has announced a partnership with the US-based association MRA (Marketing Research Association). The deal aims to give MRA members access to daily updates of global news and job vacancies while promoting MRA's services and programs to readers of Daily Research News. More
UK-based pollster YouGov has signed a joint venture with Photon Group, owner of several MR agencies, to establish an online panel business, YouGov Australia. The partners hope to build a panel of 50,000 adults in time to cover the country's forthcoming federal election, in October. More
comScore has updated its qSearch analytics suite to encompass market share measurement of the five major US search engines; the top 50 most trafficked properties where search activity is observed; and vertical search locations such as eBay, Amazon and Expedia. More
Flat panel technology specialist DisplaySearch is to begin tracking the DVD sector, and has hired Paul Erickson to lead this unit. Takao Tsukahara also joins, with a remit to expand the firm's research into small and medium display markets. More
Harris Interactive has acquired research firms Decima in Canada and MarketShare in Asia Pacific in deals with a combined value of more than $24 million. More
Online research is cheaper but more profitable, says WPP, and that's why its research division's revenues are stagnant while its margins are buoyant. The Group's information, insight and consultancy firms saw organic growth of only 1.3% in Q2, but gross margin improved 5.9%. More
Ipsos and Nielsen have reported results for the first half of the year. Ipsos increased revenue by 8.7% over the year earlier period to €443.1m, while Nielsen's grew from $2,019m to $2,241m. More
Greenfield Online has announced good second quarter results for its survey solutions and comparison shopping businesses, with the latter particularly strong. Both divisions saw double-digit growth in revenue, as did overall operating income and adjusted EBITDA. More
Online competitive intelligence provider Hitwise has launched 'Hitwise Widget', which will supply online usage trends from its 'Hitwise To Go' RSS-based feed. The feed provides stats on online behaviour for the US, UK and Asia Pacific markets. More
GfK has reported first half results which are 'moderate compared with the highly successful prior year'. Business in two divisions, Custom Research and HealthCare, fell short of expectations, although others forged ahead giving respectable overall organic growth of 4.9%. More
Lightspeed Research has begun the roll-out of a global service offering consumer surveys via mobile devices, with initial launches in Great Britain and Australia. The firm says it plans to expand into the US and other countries in Europe and Asia Pacific over the next few months. More
Mark Cranmer, who replaced Roger Banks as Global CEO of Research International only last year, will himself be leaving the post by the end of 2007. Bob Meyers, currently completing his term as CEO of Millward Brown, will replace him. More
B2b specialist Kadence is boosting its Asia Pacific presence with the launch of new offices in Jakarta, Indonesia, and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. More
The Nielsen Company has launched NielsenHealth, offering clients 'consumer centric' analytical tools to more effectively understand and address the attitudes, behaviors and needs of patients and physicians. Matthew Dumas becomes its MD. More
MR outsourcing specialist and panel provider Pulse Group is launching a new qualitative division, including state-of-the-art viewing facilities for focus groups. Qual veteran Chan Choy Ping, previously of NFO and Synovate, will lead the division. More
Private equity firm SV Investment Partners has acquired FocusVision Worldwide, Inc., which provides video transmission and digital recording technologies for the qualitative MR industry. SV's partners include former NOP boss William 'Jay' Wilson. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. More
Lightspeed Research has announced the launch of a new GB Sports Panel. The panel pre-identifies consumers on the basis of sports watched and participated in. More
IMS Health has named Kevin Knightly in the new role of Senior VP, Business Line Management, and promoted Adel Al-Saleh to replace him as President, Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA). More
The world's pharmaceutical companies have been hiring market researchers at a rapid rate in the last year, according to a report from sector specialist Cutting Edge Information. Overall MR headcount is reportedly up an average of 21%. More
YouGov has announced a major expansion of its international presence, completing its buy of US-based Polimetrix and also acquiring Nordic agency Zapera, while raising around £27m by means of an institutional share placing. More
Comperio Research, the research arm of sports, entertainment and media vompany IMG, has opened an office in Melbourne, Australia, with a full-service quant and qual offering. Research Director Iain Barnett leaves the London HQ to head up the new operation. More
Online measurement firm comScore has announced results for the quarter ended June 30, with revenue up 23% on the year to $20.8m. It also reports a growth in the proportion of its income from subscriptions, and strong investment for the future. More
Synovate owner Aegis Group plc has agreed to acquire the consolidated Ion Global network from CDC Corporation. Ion is a digital marketing specialist with businesses in Seoul, San Francisco and Hong Kong, and its services include consulting and user experience analysis. More
Greenfield Online, through its subsidiary Ciao, has expanded its presence in the Asia Pacific region by adding Greenfield-Ciao in Shanghai to existing offices in Sydney, Australia and Gurgaon, India. More
Ben Dixon will take up his new role as Managing Director of Millward Brown's Australian business in September, after nine years working with Nielsen. More
Automotive research specialist R.L. Polk has agreed to acquire a majority interest in ROADTODATA, a supplier of real-time automotive price and specifications data with operations in Europe, South America and Australia. More
Ipsos Interactive Services (IIS) has launched a global division that will focus on research using client supplied or specialist sample data. More
Retail information provider The NPD Group has opened a Beijing office and launched a service tracking sales of prestige beauty products in China, covering the fragrance, make-up, and skincare businesses. More
Asian-based outsourcing and online panel firm the Pulse Group has officially opened the doors to its New York City office with industry veteran John Saez at the helm, while in Kuala Lumpur the firm has made an additional seven senior hires. More
Kantar, WPP's Information, Insight and Consultancy division, has appointed leading design consultant Aziz Cami as its first Creative Director. He takes up the position next week. More
American Matthew Fagan, accused of killing Research Now Finance Manager Cathy Marlow, pleaded not guilty to the murder at the Old Bailey in London on Friday. His trial will now commence in the last week of February next year. More
Google yesterday reported a 58% year-on-year increase in Q2 revenue, but a decline in profits saw its share price fall more than 6.5% in the day. Recent comScore figures for search engine share show a rare dimple in the market leader's long-term growth, with Microsoft the main beneficiary. More
Pharmaceutical and healthcare intelligence giant IMS Health continues its recent growth, today announcing second-quarter revenue up 11% on the year (8% at constant currencies) to $537.5m. More
Synovate is restructuring its Asian business with future growth in mind. To support the changes, in August the firm will be making a number of senior promotions in China, North Asia, South Asia and Korea. More
Pharmaceutical companies have decreased their US MR budgets by an average of 22.7% since last year, but increased them elsewhere in the world, according to a new study by Cutting Edge Information. More
Nielsen has promoted Lisa Lee to the role of Senior Vice President, International Communications, where she will take responsibility for all corporate and marketing communications outside North America. More
Millward Brown has moved its Africa Asia Pacific regional COO, Adrian Gonzalez, from Sydney to Beijing, effective 3 August 2007. More
Synovate owner Aegis Group plc has appointed Chantal Restivo-Alessi, formerly of EMI, as Head of Strategy and Corporate Development. More
MR software companies Confirmit and Pulse Train have completed their previously announced merger and announced increased revenue of 34% and pre tax profit of 65% for the second quarter 2007. More
Kadence Asia Pacific has appointed Joseph Tan to its newly created role of Fieldwork Client Services Manager, to provide a central contact for international clients looking to undertake research in the region. More
NetRatings has announced the addition of 'Total Minutes' and 'Total Sessions' metrics to its syndicated audience measurement service NetView, in line with changing attitudes to what constitutes a successful web site. More
TNS has issued a trading update, ahead of reporting interim results on 3 September. The group says its previously troubled US custom business has returned to growth and expects underlying organic revenue growth of over 5% for the first six months of 2007. More
J.D. Power and Associates has strengthened its Asia Pacific management team with the promotions of John Humphrey, Dan Pavlinac and Tim Dunne. More
Online fieldwork and panel specialist Research Now has reported a pre-tax loss of £235,000 in the first half of its financial year, but also a strong start to the second half with record sales in May and June. More
In Sydney, GfK has announced that it has promoted Neville Ray to the position of Senior Account Director covering consumer electronics, imaging and telecoms accounts. Meanwhile GfK-Nürnberg's Dr Raimund Wildner has been named the German MR Personality of the Year. More
infoUSA-owned Opinion Research has bought Melbourne-headquartered NWC Research, headed by current AMSRS President Greg Wayman, in a move to expand its presence into the Asia Pacific region. Details of the transaction were not disclosed. More
Ipsos has announced the acquisition of Australian agency Eureka, a specialist in public opinion, social and CRM research, headed by former AMSRS President John Sergeant. More
Synovate Healthcare has launched an online Psychoses Therapy Monitor, its first venture into coverage of psychiatric treatment. Initial waves in the five biggest European economies will be followed by a US launch soon. More
TNS has acquired Auckland-based Conversa Global, creating what it says is New Zealand's largest research consultancy. The global group's NZ business will be merged with Conversa Global to form a new company, TNS Conversa. More
Research Now has seen its share price plummet by around half in the space of two days, after a profits warning with the identification of further unrecorded costs of £0.6m in the first half of the year. More
Online ad spending in the UK is growing much faster than in the US and other developed nations, according to eMarketer: this year the UK should account for more than half of all online ad spending in Western Europe. More
Panels provider Research Now has launched a multi-country online qual focus group facility, offering clients online groups in a chat-room-style environment similar to that seen in online communication tools such as MSN Messenger and Skype. More
The Nielsen Company China and membership organisation The Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) have announced a broad strategic partnership to deliver statistics, analyses and forecasts to the region's travel and tourism industry. More
Database giant infoUSA has entered an agreement to acquire customised business research and competitive analysis firm, Guideline in a $41.6 million deal. The transaction is likely to contribute to earnings in 2007 and is expected to be completed by the third quarter. More
Nielsen is acquiring San Francisco-based syndicated telecom MR firm Telephia, in a move designed to accelerate measurement of consumer behaviour across the $350 billion mobile phone sector. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. More
Following a two-year research programme which has seen Tesco's US CEO Tim Mason and his team invest thousands of hours investigating the needs of the American consumer, the supermarket giant will be launching its Fresh & Easy stores in the US by the autumn. More
Box office measurement division Nielsen EDI has expanded its coverage to include Japan and South Korea, the two largest box office markets in Asia. More
The Nielsen Company has completed its merger with NetRatings, Inc. NetRatings becomes a privately held company, wholly owned by Nielsen and its subsidiaries, and with its shares delisted on Friday from the Nasdaq Global Market. More
Harris Interactive has introduced GlobalSynch(SM), an integrated, web-based platform giving fast and easy real-time access to research data collected anywhere via any method. More
Global spend on business information will grow at 5.8% a year to around $111bn in 2011 from $83.5bn in 2006, according to research by PricewaterhouseCoopers. More
Mumbai-based research and data analytics firm Ugam Solutions is planning to open a London operations centre in mid-August, from which it will offer multi-lingual project management and data collection services. More
The Nielsen Company has promoted Paul Richmond to the position of MD of ACNielsen in Singapore and Malaysia. He takes over from Ashok Charan, who moves to a newly established Regional Client Service role. More
Advertising industry pioneers George Wiedemann and Kenneth Lomasney have established Wiedemann & Lomasney (W&L), a holding company aimed at creating a 'customer centric marketing services firm'. The partners plan to announce a first buy before the end of the month. More
India's first syndicated audience measurement system for outdoor media has been launched by The Media Research Users Council (MRUC) and Hansa Research in the shape of the Indian Outdoor Survey (IOS). More
Google has cut the length of time it keeps users' personal search data from '18-24 months' to a maximum of 18 months, following questioning by European Union data protection officials. The firm says the limit balances privacy with considerations of 'security, innovation and compliance'. More
Having announced its plans to go public earlier in the year, online audience measurement firm comScore has now confirmed its initial public offering of 5 million shares valued at an estimated price of between $14 and $16 per share. More
Database company and ORC owner InfoUSA has survived an attempt to unseat three of its directors at last week's AGM; but continues to attract heated criticism from minor shareholders including Dolphin Limited Partnership and Cardinal Capital, who last month filed a mismanagement lawsuit. More
Opinion Research Corporation (ORC) has rolled out its Out-of-Box-Experience (OoBE) research service in the States to allow clients to view firsthand how their customers react to a new or existing product from the moment that they receive and open the box. More
A study sponsored by the Web Analytics Association (WAA) suggests that in most organisations (82% of those polled) the subject is poorly understood, and those who interact with web data do not understand what the data actually means. More
TNS has launched a new survey tool, Revenue Growth Manager (RGM), to help clients evaluate which marketing investments are likely to reap brand revenue growth. More
In a week when one particular Olympic brand – the peculiar new London 2012 logo – has dominated many headlines, Nielsen Sports is expanding its FANLinks(TM) service to identify where Olympics fans shop and which brands they buy. More
Indian media researcher TAM has moved into radio measurement, citing rapid growth in advertising in the sector, and is also considering an out-of-home service. More
Synovate UK has launched a media research offering based on the consumer motivation model developed by the global group's Censydiam practice. The company plans to roll out the offer across Europe and Asia. More
Ipsos has appointed former AOL Time Warner HR professional, Lisiane Droal as Global HR Executive VP, and former ACNielsen Executive Tom Markert as CEO for Ipsos Loyalty. More
Japanese MR firm INTAGE has bought healthcare research specialist TM Marketing for an undisclosed sum. TM will absorb INTAGE's own medical research department and continue trading under its existing name. More
Synovate has introduced a suite of market potential models and simulators known as MVP – Market Value Potential; and has renamed its specialist Product Design & Development division 'MarketQuest'. More
US professional body MRA (Marketing Research Association) has launched an online rating system, the Exchange Evaluation Program (EEP), allowing researchers and client companies to rate their experiences with suppliers, products and services. More
The Nielsen Company has reported revenues for the first quarter of 2007 up 5% over the same period last year, helped by a strong performance (up 7%) from its Media Research division. More
Communications watchdog the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) has backed down on plans to prevent researchers from making calls on Sundays. More
Online agency Research Now has launched a proprietary research panel to gather consumer opinion in New Zealand. More
Australian-based consumer and branding specialist The Leading Edge (TLE) has named Darren Kemp as Director of its Branding and Innovation team, while Syada Jahan and Todd Eldridge have joined the firm's Advanced Quantitative Research team. More
Aegis investors today rejected Vincent Bolloré's fourth attempt to seek representation on the firm's board, as the group reported first quarter 2007 revenues up 4.6% (10.8% at constant currencies), led by market research arm Synovate. More
Greenfield Online has formally split its European subsidiary Ciao into two separate entities: the booming comparison shopping business will retain the short name Ciao, while the Internet survey solution wing, also growing fast, will be known as Ciao Surveys. More
MR software companies Confirmit and Pulse Train are to consolidate their businesses and product portfolios. More
The Internet Advertising Bureau (IAB) will work to 'educate' the marketplace about the different ways of measuring web site traffic, the body revealed this week. The commitment was made as NetRatings and comScore both agreed to audit timetables at their recent closed doors meeting. More
Pharma research firm Decision Resources has announced that Providence Equity Partners has acquired majority control in the company. The firm says it will use the cash to fund its growth. More
A month after Google bought DoubleClick for $3.1 billion, Microsoft's plans to acquire Internet ad agency aQuantive for $6 billion will provide its Ad Center clients with insight on which ads and keywords are most profitable. More
LRA Worldwide, a customer experience management firm which conducts mystery shopping exercises in the hospitality sector, has promoted seven staff to the post of Senior Consultant or Account Manager. More
The Nielsen Group has launched Brand3 – 'Brand Cubed' – linking retail market measurement data, household panel information and customised survey results to provide clients with a holistic perspective of a firm or product's brand equity. More
Internet specialist Greenfield Online has posted strong revenue growth to $27.5m for Q1 2007, up from $21.5m in same period last year. The group's comparison shopping business led the charge, but online survey revenue grew an impressive 14.3%. More
Ipsos has announced a strong first quarter with revenues up 8.9% to Euros 204.7m. Organic growth was 10.3%, the highest for a first quarter since Ipsos' IPO in 1999. More
The GfK Group has announced healthy first quarter results with sales up 5.2% to Euros 261.3m, with organic growth of 6.8%. Margin was up from 8.5% a year previously to 9.5%, and adjusted operating income rose by 17.3% to Euros 24.8m. More
Management consultancy Accenture has bought Sydney-based media auditor MediaSenz, in a move it says will improve its coverage of emerging markets. More
London-based academic and business publishing and events group, Informa, has agreed to buy rival market intelligence firm Datamonitor in a £502 million ($993 million) cash deal. More
Online audience measurement firm Hitwise has launched a new service, Hitwise To Go, an RSS-based service providing updates on online consumer activity and statistics. The firm say the key audiences are journalists and academics. More
Havas Chairman Vincent Bollore has taken a break from rocking boats at regular Aegis shareholder meetings to provide one for newly elected French President Nicolas Sarkozy. The right wing leader is celebrating his win with several days in the Med on the investor's 200-foot yacht. More
TNS has expanded its focus in the travel sector with its acquisition of the Sydney-based Travel Research Centre (TRC), and consolidated MD Carolyn Childs' role as Director, Travel and Leisure Research. More
Nielsen//NetRatings has launched a new syndicated measurement service dubbed VideoCensus, which combines panel and census methodologies to gauge audience size, demographic composition, engagement and competitive activity for video content. More
The man accused of murdering Research Now Finance Manager Cathy Marlow appeared briefly today at London's Old Bailey. US citizen Matthew Fagan entered a plea, the case for which will be heard on June 29th. One count of burglary was added to the murder charge. More
Harris Interactive CEO Greg Novak has apologised to shareholders as the company reduced its earnings projections and reported a mere 1% rise in Q3 revenue totals. However, he told DRNO this afternoon that 'Our strategy is working' and outlined the well-targeted acquisitions he believes will help. More
Online panels firm Research Now has made an interim financial statement reporting sales growth on target. Operating profit missed its target due specifically to the £500,000 cost of relocating after the murder in January of Finance Manager Cathy Marlow. More
Offshore MR services agency Markelytics has announced plans for expansion into Europe. Former ESOMAR and Nestle research chief Fredrik Nauckhoff joins to lead the expansion as Head of Sales in France. More
The Nielsen Company is to acquire the remainder of word-of-mouth media tracking agency BuzzMetrics, of which it already owns 58%. Terms of the deal have not been disclosed. More
After a 13 year career with ACNielsen, Robert Tomei has joined TNS as Global Head of Access Panels to establish, lead and deliver a growth strategy for the firm's global access panel business, 6thdimension(TM). More
Global news and information company Reuters has enhanced its machine-readable news service to include analysis of news sentiment, driven by linguistics software created by text analytics firm, Corpora. More
Panels and MR software firm, GMI, has made nine appointments including two senior hires - Daniel Fitzgerald as MD Sales, Central USA, and Christopher Spaniac as VP of Tax, both based in Seattle. More
Information Services Group (ISG), the acquisition firm chaired by former VNU man Michael Connors, is to buy outsourcing advisory firm TPI for $280m in cash. As part of the agreement, TPI's management team will invest 30% of the proceeds in ISG stock. More
UK recruitment consultant pricejamieson is to be acquired by Boston-based Aquent. The combined firm will be a global force in the marketing and communications staffing arena and plans to grow its already substantial MR division. More
comScore and Nielsen//NetRatings have issued positive responses to the call by the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) for them to submit to a third-party audit; but the Bureau has challenged them to back up their promises by setting and sticking to a scheduled timetable. More
US trade association the Interactive Advertising Bureau has sent an open letter to two of the major Internet audience measurement firms, comScore and Nielsen//NetRatings, asking them to submit to a third-party audit of their measurement processes by the MRC. More
A week of headlines for Google. On Friday the search giant announced first quarter revenue up 63% to $3.66bn, and rocketed to the top of Millward Brown's BRANDZ(TM) index with a worth dwarfing current figures - $66.4bn. Google also made headline deals and gained search share against rivals Yahoo! and Microsoft. More
AGB Nielsen Media's contract with Australia's TV ratings data supplier OzTAM has been extended for a further seven years from January 2008. More
Marketing giant WPP has reported first quarter revenue growth of 4.3% on a like-for-like basis, excluding acquisitions and currency. Due to an 11% decline in the US dollar against sterling, group revenue fell 0.7% to £1.366bn and that for the Information, Insight & Consultancy division fell c.5% to £204m. More
A fortnight after the announced flotation of rival comScore, online audience measurement firm Hitwise is to be acquired by information giant Experian, in a $240m cash deal which will close in May. More
Arbitron, Confirmit and IMS Health have all reported buoyant first quarters, with revenues up 7.9%, 14% and 35% respectively. More
Synovate has agreed a worldwide partnership with GMI giving the former access to over six million panellists across the globe. The move reflects changing attitudes to panel 'ownership' according to Synovate Global CEO Adrian Chedore. More
New York-based competitor intelligence (CI) firm, Sedulo Group, has acquired two CI and MR firms – Sharp & Associates in Shanghai and Perspicacite de Strategie in Paris. The move will more than triple the size of Sedulo's consulting offer. More
Last week DRNO covered a report looking at Google and the 'threat' it poses to the publishing and information industry. This week the concern is even closer to home, as the world's biggest research firm ponders the intentions of the search giant. More
The Nielsen Company has announced results for the full year 2006, with pro forma unaudited revenues of $4,174m, up just 2.8% on the previous year, but up 5% at constant currencies, the firm said. Four acquisition-related items totalling c.$316m affected operating income which was down to $212m (2005: $373m). More
Millward Brown's Bob Meyers has relinquished his CEO responsibilities to the firm's President of Global Development, Eileen Campbell. Meyers will remain as Chairman for the rest of 2007, and is likely to take another role within Kantar. More
Synovate Healthcare has promoted Stuart Bartlett to the post of Head of Business Development. He hands his former role, as Head of Synovate Healthcare Asia Pacific, to Sumit Sharma. More
Harris Interactive has revised its forecasts for the second half of the year following sales bookings around $8m lower than expected in the third quarter of its financial year. The firm also chose today to announce a new loyalty tool, the Commitment Model. More
Communications Minister Helen Coonan has asked the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) to exempt pollsters from the forthcoming ban on making Sunday calls. The ban, due in force from 31st May, has been strongly opposed by the MR community. More
Internet ratings firm comScore is going public, with an IPO aimed at raising up to $86.25 million. The company filed yesterday in the US with the Securities and Exchange Commission to list on the Nasdaq National Market. More
Greenfield Online, Inc. and Frost & Sullivan have announced a partnership to create a new business-to-business panel. Respondents will be offered access to the latter's research reports as an incentive for sharing their own business expertise. More
Kimberly-Clark Corporation has today unveiled a new global marketing structure, with three new senior roles filled from outside the firm, all reporting to CMO Tony Palmer. They include former Mars exec Roger Chacko in the position of Vice President, Global Marketing Knowledge and Intelligence. More
WPP-owned online panel provider Lightspeed Research has acquired global employee research firm, Foresight International, for an undisclosed sum. More
A survey released by home technology MR specialist, Park Associates, has revealed that around one-third of US households, or 31 million homes, have no access to the Internet and do not plan to subscribe in the next 12 months. Meanwhile, broadband usage is once again on the up, underlining the so-called 'digital divide'. More
Melbourne, Australia-based research software developer QSR International will launch what it claims are 'the world's first qualitative research software programs in Japanese', later this year. Japanese versions of the company's flagship NVivo 7 and XSight software are being developed in partnership with Tokyo based Hulinks. More
Panel and software provider, GMI (Global Market Insite), has increased the size of its panels in China by 65% and in India more than fivefold. Meanwhile senior Board member Larry Schack has left the company and the west coast, reportedly to work for his previous employer, PSB. More
Global group Ipsos has published results for the full year 2006 showing organic growth of 6.5%, above the industry average but below its own high expectations. Revenue increased 19.4% to Euros 857.3m, with the majority of the rise due to acquisitions. More
The Nielsen Company has announced the launch of a new web-based software tool for evaluation of past and present product placements; and the integration of consumer purchasing behaviour into its multi-country Global Track analysis tool. More
Australian-owned MR software firm Insight Marketing Systems has appointed Simon Barker as its European Director, based in its North London office. More
Research Process Outsourcing specialist Pulse Group has acquired a new facility close to the Petronas Towers in downtown Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The building is expected to house a state-of-the-art CATI centre and an additional 30 research professionals. More
NetRatings has released financial results for the fourth quarter and full year 2006. Full year figures show a profit for the first time, with a net income of $2.8m in 2006 vs a loss of $8.4m in 2005. Revenue rose 20% from $68m in 2005 to $81.8m in 2006. More
Aegis Group Plc has announced strong results for 2006, including rapid organic and other growth for its MR arm Synovate which grew its share of Aegis' total revenue from 38 to 40%. Synovate revenues were £401.2m and operating profit £30.8m, both up more than 20%. Group CFO Jeremy Hicks is leaving on this high note, to be replaced by Alicja Lesniak. More
Internet audience measurement provider, comScore Media Metrix, has designed a new set of metrics to measure the frequency with which a person views web content. The launch of 'visits' comes as reliance on page view stats declines among Internet properties and advertisers. More
In an exclusive interview with DRNO, Mike Connors admits the quarter billion dollars raised last month for his new acquisition company is 'burning a hole in our pockets' and that ISG will base its strategy on buying one information services firm worth $200-700m, within eighteen months tops. More
UK-based Illuminas Global has appointed Matthew Carr as Director responsible for Asia Pacific and China, a new position created to help drive the firm's long term growth in the Far East. More
Vodafone marketing leader David Wheldon has used a conference speech to question the relevance of current copy-testing techniques in the 'multi-platform age', singling out Millward Brown. Bob Meyers, the agency's Group CEO, told DRNO he thinks the remarks have 'to some extent' been taken out of context. More
WNS, a provider of offshore business process outsourcing (BPO), has signed a non-binding letter of intent to acquire Bangalore-based offshore analytics firm Marketics Technologies, for a total enterprise value of approximately $65 million in cash. More
Internet audience measurement and analysis firm, Nielsen/NetRatings, will expand its online advertising measurement service AdRelevance in Singapore, Hong Kong and New Zealand in the third quarter of 2007. More
Technology analyst Forrester Research Inc. will rewrite its old accounts, as it continues to put its own house in order following its discovery of financial irregularities in December. This week, it also released results of a study of innovation round the world, listing Switzerland among five leaders in the field. More
Norwegian MR software business, Future Information Research Management (FIRM) has changed its name to Confirmit, matching its flagship web-based survey, feedback and reporting software product. More
TNS has released full year results for 2006, showing revenue almost flat at £1,004.2m (up 0.5% from £999m in 2005). However the firm, whose US custom business has been restructuring since reporting problems a year ago, said results in other divisions were good. More
Ipsos Interactive Services (IIS) has merged its North American and European organisations into one global online research body, to be managed by CEO Andrei Postoaca. More
Healthy preliminary figures indicate that GfK Group's 2006 organic growth of 5.4% was again ahead of the estimated industry average of 4-5%. Declining sales in Japan meant overall Asia Pacific growth was nil, but the firm's operations in Central and Eastern Europe continue to boom. More
TNS has launched TNSInsightTvLive(TM), an interactive online platform which allows respondents to see a survey moderator via a real-time video link, and enables him or her to demonstrate visual material while at the same time, analysing survey responses. More
Compiler of Internet trend forecasts, eMarketer.com, estimates that while US online advertising spend has risen by more than 30% each year for the past three, the 2007 increase will be just 19%. Not that that's bad... but it's certainly a change of pace. More
SKY Television has partnered with TNS and pay TV solutions provider NDS to launch a new audience measurement service, based initially on a panel of 6,500 viewing households. More
Technology researcher Springboard has opened an Australian office and appointed Phil Hassey as Country Manager for Australia and New Zealand. Like the firm's co-founders, Hassey worked previously at IDC where he was Asia/Pacific Research Director. More
WPP, parent of MR agencies including Millward Brown and Research International, has announced preliminary results for 2006. Reported revenue is up almost 10% to £5.9bn and like-for-like revenue up 5.4%, while profit before tax is up more than 15% to £682m. More
Whatever its effect on the health of individuals, the cigarette industry itself does not appear to be in terminal decline, according to the latest TGI survey. More
Market intelligence agency the DVL Smith Group has officially re-launched, backed by Australian marketing group, Photon - owner of MR agency The Leading Edge. More
Technology analyst IDC has reported results for 2006, with worldwide revenues up 12% to $297 million. Twenty new countries were added to its coverage in the year, bringing the total to 93. More
Ipsos has acquired most of Peruvian agency, Apoyo Opinión y Mercado S.A., which commands a 30% market share of the country's MR and public opinion polling business. The global group has also announced preliminary results for 2006 with organic growth of 6.5% and revenues of 857.1m Euros. More
Philip Kleinman, The MR Journalist, has died in hospital following heart surgery. He was well known in the industry as former editor of 'Campaign' and a regular contributor to Admap, before founding the pioneering web site MRNews in the late 1990s. More
Research and predictive analytics software giant SPSS has reported a record 36% increase in its 2006 fourth quarter operating income, to $11.7m. The firm's annual revenue was up 11% from $236.1m in 2005 to $261.5m in 2006. More
Pulse Group, the Asian-based provider of panels and research process outsourcing (RPO), has today announced the receipt of 'significant' venture capital funding from JAIC, whose Hideaki Fujiyama joins the Pulse Board. More
Synovate Healthcare has announced five senior promotions, following strong growth in 2006 and continuing integration. They include Bob Douglas as MD, Global Custom and Marianne Purdie as MD, Europe Custom, plus HR Director Virginia Mount's elevation to the Global Exec Committee. More
Founder and CEO Rob Monster is to leave the helm of panels and software provider GMI, to pursue other interests. Monster will continue to serve as a board member and will participate in the selection of a new CEO, while the Chairman's role is taken by Enrique Godreau III, current GMI board member and MD of one of its major investors Voyager Capital. More
Nielsen has announced the consolidation of its digital television set top box measurement activities into a new service, Nielsen DigitalPlus. The system will take data from both cable system operators (MSOs) and satellite providers and integrate it with other Nielsen information. More
Panel company Greenfield Online has reported quarterly and annual financial results, showing a profit of c.$8.5m in 2006. President and CEO Albert Angrisani says the firm has re-established growth for its Internet survey solutions business and is in 'the last stages of solidifying its overall turnaround.' More
Synovate has promoted Ignacio Galceran from Executive VP to CEO of Latin America, responsible for operations in Mexico City, Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Buenos Aires and Miami. Elsewhere, Susanna Lam joins the agency as AD, Media Research based in Hong Kong. More
Following its December announcement, Nielsen has today completed the sale of most of its Business Media Europe (BME) division to venture capital firm, 3i - negotiations to sell the French arm are still ongoing. Terms of the sale were not released. More
Michael Connors, until recently Chairman and CEO of VNU's MMI Group, has resurfaced at the head of an acquisition company with almost $260m in funds. Information Services Group, Inc. (ISG) completed its IPO oversubscribed this week and boasts a strong line-up including several former Nielsen and VNU Execs. More
IT specialist Springboard Research has appointed Robert Triendl to expand its presence in Japan. In the role of Research Director, Triendl will report directly to CEO Dane Anderson. More
The Nielsen Company is to buy the remainder of online audience specialist NetRatings, for a total purchase price of $327m cash, or $21.00 a share. It already owns 60 per cent. More
Accounting and professional services firm Ernst & Young has launched a media performance auditing unit, part of its Marketing and Advertising Risk Services (MARS) practice. More
Ipsos has announced a number of new hires and leadership promotions strengthening its global and North American teams. Debra Mason joins as CFO of Ipsos North America, Efrain Ribeiro as COO of Ipsos Interactive Services, and Pushp Kamal as Senior VP of Research Analytics for Ipsos ASI's Tracking and Equity business. More
Software and panels firm GMI has promoted two senior execs at its Asia-Pacific headquarters in Sydney, in addition to making two senior appointments in Seattle and a raft of others worldwide. It has also upgraded its Research Analyzer tables tool, with enhanced weighting and data manipulation features. More
Panels company Research Now has announced the acquisition of Samplenet e-Research Solutions, which trades as OpenVenue. The price for Canada's largest specialist online fieldwork company is a maximum of C$47.5m (£20.5m), subject to performance. More
The EMEA market for Business Intelligence (BI) platforms will grow at an annual compound growth rate of 9.7% to reach 1.9bn Euros in 2010, according to Gartner. However, the analyst warns pure play BI companies to expect a strong challenge from software's 'mega vendors'. More
B2b specialist Kadence is launching a dedicated healthcare division in Asia, to be headed by Katherine Byrne, recently appointed as an Associate Director. The company is currently opening a Kuala Lumpur office and plans one for China in 2007. More
Survey Sampling International (SSI) has announced a number of senior promotions to support its worldwide expansion, following the recent appointment of Jim Follett as CEO. Among them, MD Europe Kees de Jong is promoted to Director of Globalization with COO Europe Michel Guidi stepping up to fill the MD Europe role. More
GfK and entertainment sales data firm Media-Control, have announced the formation of a joint venture, GfK M², to track mobile content sales. The company will get its data direct from content and network providers, and hardware and component manufacturers. More
Pharma and healthcare research giant IMS Health has promoted Gilles Pajot to COO and Leslye Katz as Senior VP and CFO. The firm has also been in a federal court this week, defending the right of companies to see prescription data from individual physicians. More
Three recent surveys highlight new technology's effect on consumer habits and the challenge facing advertisers. Newspapers' web sites are boosting their offline circulation; broadband video is bringing new and more lucrative advertising opportunities; and the days of the standalone DVR may be numbered. More
Online survey software provider, FIRM (Future Information Research Management), has reported 2006 revenue up 26% to $21.8 million, and a 13% EBIT margin. More
Gap CEO and champion of consumer insights Paul Pressler is leaving the role by mutual agreement with the clothing retailer's board, after sliding sales and falling profits in the last year culminated in a miserable holiday season and an 8% drop in sales during December. More
The majority of online gamblers aren't playing to win money long-term; it's more about entertainment value, according to the findings of the 'eCOGRA Global Online Gambler Survey'. The study plots the behaviour and attitudes of 11,000 players across 96 countries. More
Kantar has announced the merging of its Japanese businesses into a single unit. The Japanese offices of Research International, Millward Brown, ICM/Added Value and Lightspeed Research will henceforth function as Japan Kantar Research (JKR). Kantar says it has no plans to replicate this approach elsewhere in the world. More
VNU today continued its radical overhaul following its return to the private sector, by changing its name to 'The Nielsen Company'. The firm says the move 'emphasizes its best-known brand name and underscores its commitment to create an integrated, streamlined global organization'. More
A recent survey conducted by business-to-business research consultancy, Kadence, has shown that in half of all Asian SMEs the decision-maker in the key financial role is a woman. More
Synovate Healthcare has appointed Kelly Price as Head of its Asia Pacific Tandem Oncology Monitor (APTOM) in China, Korea and Australia. The role will include the expansion of the monitor into new markets in Asia. More
Consumer research and consulting firm, OTX (Online Testing eXchange), has hired Dave Kaye from Flamingo International, to head its newly launched qualitative arm in Europe and Asia. More
Online fieldwork provider Research Now has announced its Final Results for the year to 31 October 2006, with turnover nearly trebled to £9.6m (2005: £3.6m) and profit before tax more than trebled to £1.6m (2005: £0.5m). More
MRS Chairman Simon Lidington talks to DRNO about the challenges facing the organisation and the industry, and about the recent decision to join the international association of MR associations, EFAMRO. Today, the prospects for international co-operation; tomorrow a look at the MRS' domestic plans. More
Jim Follett, former COO of NOP World, is to replace Bev Weiman as Chief Executive Officer of panels firm Survey Sampling International (SSI). Weiman, who co-founded SSI along with Tom Danbury in 1977, cited personal reasons for her departure. More
Online survey professionals need to choose the right day and time to send invitations to potential respondents, according to a study by Lightspeed Research. Invites sent on a Monday afternoon got the best response rates (up to 39%) while for Friday afternoon mailings the rate fell to 28%. More
As the MRS reveals that 'happiness expert' Richard Reeves is to deliver the opening keynote slot at its annual conference in March, US provider Luth Research has published results of a survey into happiness around the world, highlighting the differences between countries and regions. More
UK research guru David Smith has revived his old company name and is back in business just days after vacating the Chairman's seat at Illuminas. The new DVL Smith Group already has offices in London Docklands and, thanks to a partnership with Australian financial specialist John Marinopoulos, in Melbourne. More
Texas-based researcher DisplaySearch has strengthened its team with seven senior hires. Three new staff join in the US, two in Korea and one each in China and Japan. More
Market research supplier, Mintel, and retail and consumer information provider, Information Resources Inc (IRI), have paired up to launch a new tool which they claim could reduce the cost of new product development by up to 80%. More
US-based software and panels firm GMI has announced the opening of a new technology center near the Sri Lankan capital Colombo; plus three new appointments from December. More
Most of the world has made New Year resolutions for 2007, according to ACNielsen. An online survey of more than 22,000 consumers in 46 countries found 56% of respondents resolved to do or change something, with exercising more and improving work–life balance topping the list. More
The 'next Bill Gates' is more likely to come from either China or Japan (49%) than from the United States (21%), according to a poll by Zogby International and 463 Communications. The poll also looked at perceptions of the Internet and its effect on work and society. More
At a time when a BBC survey shows that a minority (44%) of UK children know that Christmas is about the birth of Jesus, a Financial Times (FT)/Harris Poll shows Americans more likely than Europeans to believe in God, but also more likely to support the right of Islamic women to wear the veil. More
New owner infoUSA has announced its intention to split Opinion Research Corporation (ORC) into two distinct groups: government research under the name Macro International and corporate MR with the existing name. John F. Short steps down from the Chairman and CEO roles as two new leaders are named. More
TNS has further boosted its North America Custom management team under Kimberly Till with the appointment of Enzo Micali as Chief Information Officer. Micali previously held the same role at 1-800-FLOWERS.COM. More
India-based research outsourcing firm Dexterity is to expand its range of offers with Finalyzers, a division specialising in financial research and analysis. More
VNU has begun what it calls a 'major corporate transformation' including the phasing out of its existing group structure and the cutting of up to 4,000 jobs in 2007. NMR CEO Susan Whiting is promoted to a new group-wide EVP role while Frank Martell and Steve Schmidt will leave the company. More
Synovate is examining possible acquisitions in India. Asia CEO Tim Balbirnie said the company was looking for firms with strengths in specialist areas such as automobiles, healthcare and loyalty, as well as advanced analytics, according to online publication the Business Standard. More
Yankee Group and Chinese technology advisor Analysys International have announced a partnership agreement. The exclusive Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), signed today, commits the firms to working together on research reports, consulting projects and the hosting of industry events. More
Research Process Outsourcing (RPO) company Pulse Group has added social networking features to its 'Planet Pulse' online panel community, in line with the explosive growth of sites like MySpace and Bebo. Members in twenty countries can now interact with each other via a live forum feature. More
A substantial majority of people in Asia (59%) believe that expenditure on space exploration is justified, according to a CNN/TIME poll conducted by TNS. Still more (68%) believe that Asians countries should take a more active role in space exploration. More
Business to business specialist Kadence says it will double its turnover to $8m in 2006. UK business has leapt by 70% year-on-year and turnover in the US has grown by 66%, while the firm's newer Asian offices also report good growth. More
Online survey firm Ciao has launched a 'Career Profile' option. The new data allows clients to use job categories to select samples from its panelists in 23 countries across Europe, Asia, Latin America and Australia. More
The Internet has become the number one medium for data collection for quantitative physician studies, used for 43% of studies according to research by specialist US provider Medefield. Online research made strong gains versus face-to-face and telephone research for the third year running. More
US-based Survey Sampling International (SSI) has announced the opening of a new office in Sydney, Australia. More
In the US, ACNielsen has announced a long-term alliance with NACS (the National Association of Convenience Stores), designed to provide comprehensive analysis of sales data for the convenience and petroleum market. More
Choosing a moment when its home nation is presumably in upbeat mood (we're sorry we mentioned the cricket), strategic consultancy The Leading Edge (TLE) has dropped the .au from the end of its main domain name. The move reflects its evolution from an Australian-focused firm into an Australian-based international company. More
Synovate has announced with considerable fanfare the forthcoming launch of a new modelling system which it claims will be 'the first to accurately predict what people will buy.' The Brand Value Creator is the brainchild of Jan Hofmeyr, co-creator of The Conversion Model, who joined the agency in the spring. More
The battle for cricket's most famous trophy resumes in a few hours, with Australians hoping for a change of ownership, but continuity Down Under is the theme of two recent surveys. GMI / Anholt research finds the country's image little changed, while Ipsos finds its executives combining new media use with reading more newspapers than ever. More
Online MR software company FIRM will pre-launch version 11 of its Confirmit MR suite at the ESOMAR Panel Research conference in Barcelona next week. The new release includes a new Community Panel module which promises to enhance panellist engagement and response rates. More
Panel and research technology provider Toluna is to expand into the Asia Pacific market with the launch of an Australian panel community, currently at 30,000 members. More
World populations may be ageing, but consumers don't feel their age in the same way they used to, according to findings from ACNielsen. Majorities agree with the research firm's premises that 'your 40s are the new 30s' (60%), 'your 30s are the new 20s' (54%) and 'your 60s are the new middle age' (56%). More
European online fieldwork and panel specialist Research Now has opened a Chicago office and appointed Mike Gray, Vice President – Client Development, to build the Chicago team. Nine other staff join the agency's US team. More
Ipsos has announced a successful first nine months of 2006 with organic revenue growth of 8% over the year earlier period, and overall growth of 24.9% to Euros 613.2m. Third quarter growth was slightly slower at 22% (organic 7%). More
GfK Group has this week announced a successful third quarter of 2006 with revenue up 27.5% to Euros 800.4m and adjusted operating income up 34.2% to Euros 100.2m. Organic revenue growth was 5.7%. Central and Eastern Europe saw especially strong organic growth. More
Japanese market intelligence firm Data Garage Inc. and US-based iSuppli Corp. have announced a merger to create a worldwide specialist in analysis of the electronics industry. More
Pioneering Australian agency The Leading Edge (TLE) has launched a new strategy called '20/10 Vision', and hinted at expansion in 'Northern Europe, the US and North Asia' in the coming months. More
Greenfield Online has reported results for the third quarter of 2006, ended September 30. The figures show improvements over those for the previous year and President and CEO Albert Angrisani says there has been progress 'in many areas of the business' but that the management are 'not satisfied'. More
VNU has announced the appointment to its Supervisory Board of James M. Kilts, until a month ago Vice Chairman of The Procter & Gamble Company and since co-founder of advisory and equity firm Centerview Partners. Centerview will also make an investment in VNU alongside its six existing private-equity owners. More
David Smith, current Chairman and CEO of UK-based Illuminas Global, has announced he will leave the company at the end of 2006 to focus on training and personal development interests. John Connaughton will become CEO. More
In Australia, information on the location, ownership and components of the country's telecoms infrastructure is now available from Market Clarity who has launched a database service for carriers, service providers and government agencies. More
Australian market research provider Global Reviews has recently announced the opening of its European headquarters in London. Adam Goodvach, co-founder of Global Reviews, will head the company's London-based office. More
Simon Howell, director of Australian market research agency The Acid Test, has recently set up the Australian Market Research Forum where researchers can discuss industry specific issues online. More
Nielsen Media Research and News Corporation have announced an eight-year agreement for audience measurement services. Relations between the two firms had been troubled since News Corp company Fox TV questioned Nielsen's methods in 2004 and at one point called for government regulation of TV ratings. More
Online research software company FIRM has announced third quarter results with organic revenue up 32% year on year, from £3.7m to $4.9m. EBIT margin rose to 11% from just 2% in Q3 2005. More
Delhi is the latest new location for fast-growing b2b research specialist Kadence, which already has companies in Boston, London, Singapore and Sydney. Kadence Research India launches with a senior team of three directors, headed up by Aman Makkar, who becomes MD. More
Online audience specialist NetRatings has expanded its patent enforcement program with the filing of lawsuits against four companies, including WebTrends, Inc., alleging infringement of patents it owns or controls. More
Two companies providing services for research firms have scooped high profile awards in Asia Pacific: RPO specialist Pulse Group winning an APICTA 2006 Award, and software developer QSR International a top Australian Export award. Meanwhile in the UK, GfK NOP's Field Marketing team has also carried off a number of prizes. More
GfK has announced that, with the integration of NOP World running well and reduced net debt, it has arranged syndicated credit facilities of EUR 430 million and US$ 170 million. The Group has also launched a home shopping tracker, covering orders made through the Internet, digital TV, mail order and the post. More
New product development consultant ACNielsen BASES has this week launched introSCAPE(TM), described by President Mitch Barns as 'the most significant improvement we've made to our core services in years.' The analytical framework is based on a proprietary model that describes the process by which consumers adopt new products. More
Despite mobile phone providers' endeavours to recruit 3G customers, third generation technology remains a low priority for mobile users across the globe, with cost the biggest deterrent, according to Global Technology Insight (GTI), the massive annual mobile study by TNS. More
Australians are willing to contribute to the fight against global warming but many are uncertain of what to do, according to findings from Ipsos Australia's national omnibus survey, released to key government and environmental agencies at a recent Melbourne screening of Al Gore's film 'An Inconvenient Truth'. More
Ciao, the European company of online survey solutions provider Greenfield Online, has hired a new Director of Panels, Cyril Stern, and promoted several key sales and marketing executives within its European organization. More
GfK NOP has hired Richard Matthews for the new role of Director of Insight for its Technology division, tasked with developing a suite of services to integrate insight into client processes. Matthews worked client side in senior insight functions at Vodafone and Nokia for nearly ten years. More
VNU has announced results for the three months ended June 30, dominated by an adjustment of Euros 71m for costs relating to the sale of the company in May. Excluding this, pro forma operating revenue was up 6% year on year in constant currency to Euros 943m, and operating income up 11% to Euros 114m. More
US-based panels and software firm GMI has passed another busy month, with the opening of a Netherlands office, seven appointments including an MD, Business Development, and the news that its Chinese panel now includes roughly 1 in every 1,000 of the population. More
'BRIC' countries (Brazil, Russia, India and China) will account for 40% of all near future growth in the car assembly market, according to PricewaterhouseCoopers. Meanwhile a report from Strategy Analytics predicts that competition in the industry will increasingly be centered around smart vehicle software and hi-tech features. More
Online survey software company FIRM (Future Information Research Management) has announced the formation of an advisory board for its Confirmit product. The Board is made up of prominent executives from research providers, including TNS' Tony Cowling. More
Our review of this week's ESOMAR Conference continues with Phyllis Vangelder's look at Tuesday's papers. They include suggestions for reconstructing research for the 21st Century, and a review of the challenges of opinion polling in Iraq. More
Two global agencies have this week released latest results from elite surveys. Ipsos Media reveals that European business leaders are compensating for increased time away from home with gadgets, cars and holidays; while hybrid methodology is helping Synovate's Media Atlas get past the security gates to chart the rise of AsiaPac's urban affluent. More
ESOMAR drew to a close its 59th Congress in London yesterday, and announced the winners of four prizes. A new overall award for the best paper 2005-6 went to speakers from Australian agency The Leading Edge and client Carlton & United Beverages. More
Australian-based Agency The Leading Edge (TLE) has announced six new appointments across the business during the last month. Marika Lind is promoted to Senior Consultant within the firm's Asian division, while five new hires join the Sydney and Melbourne office. More
It may be another six years before London hosts the Olympics, but we've limbered up with this year's ESOMAR Congress... The annual flagship event of the worldwide association of research professionals has just concluded, sampled by our correspondent Phyllis Vangelder. More
Ipsos has confirmed its revenue for the first half of the year as Euros 407.7m, and announced a 36.2% rise in operating margin to Euros 32.7m and Group net profit up 35.7% to Euros 14.2m. Buoyant predictions are made for the next five years. More
Executive recruitment company Elizabeth Norman International has appointed a consultant to focus on Asia Pacific roles. Andrew Wood's arrival, together with a planned office in SE Asia, reflects the firm's growing presence in the region. More
Eleven senior and high-profile figures from the MR world, all of whom are now offering consulting *to* MR providers, have pooled their skills to form a network spanning three continents. 'gravitas' is billed as 'the world's first ever global consulting group dedicated to the market research industry'. More
MR software and panels provider GMI has launched an initiative aiming to protect the online research industry from fraudulent panelists. PureSample.com offers online MR firms the opportunity to match panelists against a database of 'known offenders', and report offenders of their own. More
Global MR turnover topped US$23.3bn in 2005, according to ESOMAR's Industry Report, launched at its annual Congress today. France overtook Germany to become the third biggest world market, while China grew at 25% and will break into the global top 5 markets in 5-6 years if current growth continues. More
Starfish Research & Strategy has launched BluRay Select, a virtual concept testing tool for new product development, allowing consumers to interact with three dimensional concepts or prototypes. More
Yankee Group Research has acquired emerging technology specialist Trendsmedia, Inc., which also produces the WiMAX World conference. Trendsmedia founder and President Eliot Weinman joins the Yankee Group Board in the new role of President of the Events & Publishing Division. More
President and CEO Mario Mrvica is leaving MR software company VOXCO after four and a half years at the helm. Company founder Raymond Cyr will now take the position of CEO while shareholder Louis Lessard becomes Chairman of the Board and CFO. More
Online audience specialist Hitwise has launched a Data Centre for easy access to the latest UK Internet stats, giving top-line competitive intelligence data. Meanwhile Ipsos Insight has launched a site section giving easy access to its 'Face of the Web' consumer studies. More
TNS has appointed Michelle Griffin as Regional HR Director for its Asia Pacific, Latin America, Middle East and Africa (ALM) region. She replaces Wyn Black who will leave TNS to return to his native New Zealand. More
Research faces a future of constant change, but recent legislation is unlikely to hinder its continuing growth, according to the 2006 Research Industry Trends Report. Last week we looked at data collection methods and world regions - this week, legislation, changing suppliers and the general outlook. More
Online health information provider MDLinx has announced the expansion of its market research panel to 240,000 global healthcare experts. Following its recent merger with Sony Group company So-net M3, MDLinx says it has 'exceptional reach into the Japanese and Korean physician markets' with 50%+ and 86% respectively. More
The Internet is leaving CATI far behind as the research industry's main data collection method, but also contributing to a move towards 'richer and more rewarding interactions among clients, providers, and the public', according to the 2006 Research Industry Trends Report. More
QSR International has announced that it is the first qualitative research software developer in the world to become a Microsoft Gold Certified Partner. More
Greenfield Online subsidiary Ciao has announced the launch of a global media panel, which will give clients the ability to target survey respondents based on their preferences for various media including television, radio, newspapers and magazines. More
Synovate parent Aegis Plc has announced impressive half year results to 30th June 2006, with both research and media businesses strong contributors. Synovate saw worldwide revenue up 25.9%, with rapid expansion in EMEA (excluding Western Europe) and in Asia Pacific. More
UK-based online fieldwork company The iD Factor has announced a series of deals with local panel providers, giving its clients access to a network of panels in 41 countries on five continents. More
Research Now has followed up news of multiple UK appointments with the announcement of a new San Francisco office, the expansion of its existing US office in New York, and four senior hires. More
Nintendo and Sony are left as the only two global players in the handheld games market, according to analysis from technology specialist In-Stat. In the past year the Nokia N-Gage, Tapwave Zodiac, and Gizmondo have all been taken off the market. In-Stat expects Nintendo's DS to retake top spot from the Sony PSP. More
Ipsos Australia has announced it is in discussions with the country's Radio and TV industries to trial its MediaCell smart phone technology for audience measurement. The system is already in trials in the US and UK. More
Global consumer confidence remains at 2005 levels, with consumers still cautious about spending, according to ACNielsen's Global Consumer Confidence Index. The most confident respondents were found in India, Norway and Denmark. More
TNS has announced its unaudited interim results for the six months to 30 June. Unspectacular overall revenue growth of 4.5% (underlying growth 3.0%) reflects a decline in US custom business, while the rest of the group achieved organic revenue growth of almost 6%. More
Live video transmission of focus groups is taking off, with one third of end clients in a survey by FocusVision Worldwide saying they use it on a majority of their qual projects. Well over 400 focus facilities are installed with the technology worldwide. More
TNS has today announced the launch of a Global Interactive business unit, led by Arno Hummerston as MD, and bringing together three co-ordinated areas – commercial, development and Computer Assisted Web Interviewing (CAWI) support. More
David L. Calhoun, previously Vice Chairman of General Electric Company (GE), was announced today as the new Chairman and CEO of VNU, based in New York. He succeeds interim CEO Rob Ruijter, who will revert to concentrating on his role as CFO. More
Harris Interactive has released its financial results for the fiscal fourth quarter (Q4) and fiscal year ended June 30, 2006. Revenue for Q4 was up 11% year-on-year to a record $60.0m and for the fiscal year up 10% to $216m. Net earnings leapt almost 500% to $9.5m or $0.15 per share. More
WPP Group has reported half yearly results. Headline profit before tax rose over 24% to $566m (£316m) and like-for-like revenue was up a respectable 5% year-on-year. The Group's Information, Insight and Consultancy companies performed well although slightly behind other sectors on some key measures. More
Ipsos has reported an excellent first half for 2006. Revenues are up 26.7% to Euros 407.7m, due mostly to organic growth of 8.6%, while the acquisition and integration of MORI, Understanding Unlimited and Camelford Graham contributed most of a 'scope of consolidation' rise of 14.1%. More
ACNielsen has hired Yvonne Lum and Joel Chan as Directors of Client Services for its Customized Research team in Hong Kong. Lum specializes in the retailing industry in general, while Chan will focus on FMCG. More
Two recent reports from ABI Research discuss the rapid expansion of the market for RFID, the tagging technology that promises a mass of detailed data for retail and other sectors. The agency has reduced its market forecast for 2007, and highlights particular problems establishing standards for RFID in China. More
Yahoo! has recruited comScore Media Metrix President and CEO Peter Daboll as its new Chief of Insights and Head of Global Market Research. The role involves drawing together all the Internet giant's internal and external data sources. More
GfK's first half sales rose 54.6% to Euros 534.4m and adjusted operating income was up 76.3% to Euros 63.8m. Organic sales growth was a healthy 6.2%, ahead of the industry as a whole. The company has also extended the contract of its CEO Professor Dr. Klaus L. Wübbenhorst to 2012, ahead of schedule. More
A group of big-spending advertisers will insist on audited ratings from their online media from mid-2007 and measurement certified numbers by 2008, the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) announced yesterday. More
Synovate has announced a restructure to reflect its recent growth. Smaller business unit groupings will replace the current regional structure; functions such as IT, HR and Operations will work more globally; and senior management will be grouped in more focused leadership teams. More
VNU has named Michael Marchesano to lead its Project Forward business transformation program, a major three-year initiative to reduce costs and enhance its margins and competitive position. Five leaders for specific initiatives within the program have also been named. More
Global top twenty agency Opinion Research Corporation has been bought by consumer and business database and marketing firm infoUSA Inc., for $12 per share in cash, valuing the research company at around $134.3 million, including the assumption of debt. More
TNS has renewed its partnership with CNN and TIME magazine, supplying an up to the minute public opinion barometer on the issues of the day, from twelve Asia Pacific countries, via methods including its 6thdimension access panels. More
Greenfield Online Inc. and its European subsidiary Ciao have announced the establishment of an Indian panel. 24,000 panellists are already recruited and is planned to reach a target of 75,000 respondents by the end of the year. More
TNS has promoted Gary Lembit to Managing Director of its Auckland office, further aligning its New Zealand and Australian operations. Lembit moved to the office earlier this year from TNS Australia where he was National Director of Finance and Business Services. More
MR software and predictive analytics giant SPSS has announced record results for the quarter and six months ended June 30. Second quarter revenues were $63.5m, up 9% from $58.1m in the second quarter of 2005. New license revenues were up 20% to $29.3m. More
MR software and panel provider GMI has announced a worldwide restructuring, gearing up for further growth following its recent closing of $35 million in venture capital. The moves include senior promotions for Dr. Larry Schack in the US and Dietmar Walter in London, and a new Asian leadership team chaired by Tatt Chen. More
At an EGM on Friday, VNU changed its legal name, formally converted to a private company and welcomed new board members including Lord Hollick, following shareholder approval. Today the firm has named R. Ford Dallmeyer as the new legal chief for its MI Group. More
ESOMAR has revealed top line results from its 2005 Global Market Research Report, showing global MR turnover up 4.3% to $23 billion in 2005, with Europe cornering 45% of the global market. Meanwhile, online research's share of data collection revenue has grown from 11% in 2004 to a staggering 20% in 2005. More
ACNielsen announced yesterday that it has formed a new global unit, ACNielsen Loyalty. The unit will be headed by Tom Markert, currently Senior VP and CMO of VNU MI and ACNielsen; and Laurence Michael, currently Senior VP, Global Retailer Services Marketing. More
Technology specialist Forrester Research has announced results for the second quarter, ended June 30, with total revenues were $48.5million, up nearly 24% from $39.2m for the second quarter of last year. The firm also published results from a report on Asian adoption of broadband and other technologies. More
Mandy Pooler and Lucy Gill have joined Rosi Ware in charge of developing WPP's research division, Kantar. The two new arrivals replace Fiona McAnena, who has joined PepsiCo in a senior innovation role. More
Synovate has hired Mark Poolman to establish and head up a dedicated national customer loyalty research unit in Australia. As Executive Director, he will report jointly to Brent Stewart, CEO of Synovate in Australia and Frances Li, Asia Pacific Director of the Synovate Loyalty practice. More
TNS has announced the acquisition of FutureView, a segmentation and positioning tool. The tool measures and classifies consumers according to how 'future influential' they are. Its developer, Malcolm Law, joins TNS as part of the deal. More
Hours before its shares ceased trading on the Euronext Amsterdam exchange, VNU yesterday announced plans to change its financing structure, including the raising of new funds, and the proposed addition of five members to its supervisory board. The five include former NOP boss Lord Hollick. More
The worldwide qualitative fieldwork market passed the equivalent of half a million focus group sessions for the first time in 2005 according to the Focus Group Index 2005, compiled by FocusVision Worldwide. The firm says that around $2.44 billion was spent on groups and depths. More
Synovate has announced an expansion of its media research services and the promotion of Asia Pacific boss Steve Garton to lead a new global group, based in London. In addition, Craig Harvey joins from Publicis as Director, Media Research - Asia Pacific. More
TNS' UK share price looks more stable today after a dramatic fall on Thursday and Friday last week. The drop followed a warning on full year operating margin and comments by Chief Executive David Lowden, who blamed problems on the 'unacceptable' performance of the American custom business. More
TNS has today announced the appointment of Murray Campbell, former TNS New Zealand MD, to head up the company's Polling and Social-Government research sector across its ALM region. Campbell is the third man from TNS NZ to win recent promotion to a regional role. More
Research and ratings supplier Morningstar has bought Aspect Huntley, the Sydney, Aus-based market and financial research group and owner of the publications IFA and Investor Weekly, for $AUS 30 million ($US 22 million). More
The various agencies within WPP's GroupM have combined to launch Connections, an exclusive consumer-led research and communications planning tool. Connections promises to help marketers and planners to analyze and evaluate the full range of media and communications options available to brands. More
One year after the acquisition of NOP World, GfK held its AGM today and reported healthy business growth in the first quarter of 2006. Dividend payments increased once again and revenue rose sharply as have orders for 2006 to date. More
Mobile phone and mobile data markets continue to expand and diversify, giving rise to a large number of published reports and top line results releases. Here DRNO covers a few, from cellphone feature requirements to MR opportunities, to the challenges facing corporate Blackberry managers. More
Online panel specialist Ciao has announced the opening of a new base of operations in Sydney, on July 3; and has appointed Chris Herbert, formerly Business Group Director at GfK Australia, as its Research Director and David Fernandez as its Director of Client Development. More
It's hard to find anyone over the age of fifteen in Hong Kong that doesn't own a mobile phone, according to the latest findings from Nielsen Media's Media Index and Panorama. The survey looks at media habits, lifestyles, attitudes and product consumption across Asia Pacific. More
TNS Australia has promoted Darren Kemp to National Director – Consumer. He has been the agency's Regional Business Development Director for a year, following eight years working on the client side for Diageo. More
A new report from Datamonitor estimates the potential value of the global market for contactless payments to be US$724 billion. The technology is gaining momentum in the USA and in some markets across Asia-Pacific, with rapid future growth forecast in Europe. More
Nielsen Media Research has announced that it will provide integrated, all-electronic ratings for television regardless of the platform on which it is viewed, under the 'Anytime Anywhere Media Measurement' initiative (A2/M2). More
VNU has held its 2006 Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Amsterdam, and announced the appointment of new Supervisory Board members and an interim CEO, Rob Ruijter. Ruijter, who also continues with his current responsibilities as the group's CFO, takes the CEO role from Rob van den Bergh, who stepped down from the Board. More
Global online provider Lightspeed Research is offering researchers more effective access to children (under 12) and young people (ages 13-17) online, using a new pre-approved system. The company secures parents'/guardians' permission and works to ESOMAR and COPPA guidelines. More
Valcon has set a date for the delisting of MR and media giant VNU, of which it now owns around 99% of shares. 10 July will be the last day that shares can be traded on the Exchange. More
Harris Interactive has announced a reorganisation of its UK operations including the closing of facilities in Macclesfield and Stockport, and the loss of between ten and fifteen jobs. The company also announced the resignation of its UK Managing Director Aled Morris. More
Sue Elms has stepped up to lead Millward Brown's Global Media Practice, with the title of Executive Vice President. She joins from Carat Insight where she spent five years as MD, a role now filled by her former Deputy Mark Greenstreet. More
Online audience measurement firm comScore Networks has launched qSearch Retail(TM), a tool to measure the impact of Web search behaviour on consumer spending online and across retail channels, including in-store, catalog and phone purchases. More
MR is at the heart of the transformation of Wal-Mart, the world's biggest retailer, according to a speech by President and CEO Lee Scott at a shareholders' meeting last Friday. The 'Wal-Mart Out Front' initiative rests on five 'pillars' of which the first is an MR-based broadening of its customer appeal. More
Online panel and software company GMI (Global Market Insite, Inc.) announced today that it has raised a further $35m to fund its expansion, leaving it 'well-positioned to reinvent the market research industry' according to Chairman and CEO Rob Monster. More
Online fieldwork and panel specialist Research Now has opened an office in Melbourne, Australia, and appointed Brad Wilson to lead it. The firm already has an office in Sydney, and an Australian research-only panel giving access to over 100,000 household members. More
B2b specialist Kadence Asia Pacific has appointed Stacy Foong as Project Manager, responsible for co-ordinating both qual and quant projects across the Asia Pacific region. More
TNS is to launch its 6thdimension online access panels in Malaysia and Thailand. The panels, which will be introduced in August and September this year, will cover the major cities in each country. More
With the World Cup still 16 days away, MR companies are already rolling out related statistics and web site launches. Pulse Train has a World Cup stats system showcasing its Pulsar Web software; Research Now and NPD have released results on shirt purchase; and FIRM has launched a Confirmit-based World Cup predictions site. More
Private equity consortium Valcon has declared its offer for VNU unconditional, and intends to take the group private as soon as possible. Only 78.7% of VNU's share capital was tendered or committed by the deadline last Friday, missing even the revised target of 80% set just over two weeks ago. More
VNU's acquisition by the Valcon consortium looks likely to go ahead after Knight Vinke Asset Management (KVAM), hitherto the loudest opponent of the deal, said it would tender its shares at the new bid price, before the deadline for acceptance passed this afternoon. More
Havas Chairman Vincent Bolloré has further raised his stock in Synovate's parent company Aegis, and now has around 29% of the firm, following Aegis' rejection of his two nominations for non-executive directors for its Board. More
Synovate is planning further acquisitions, with Internet panel companies and analytics & modelling specialists among the possible targets. Global CEO Adrian Chedore talks exclusively to DRNO about buying companies, keeping people, and how a fast-growing top ten agency can stay 'small'. More
Synovate Healthcare has announced the extension of its Tandem Global Oncology Monitor into China, Korea and Australia. The Monitor is already established in Japan. More
B2b specialist Kadence has hired former McKinsey consultant John Sweeney as Global Account Director for IT & Telecoms. Sweeney was previously Head of the IT & Telecoms Practice for Competitive Intelligence & Consulting (CIC) and established CIC New York in 2004. More
Ipsos has announced revenues of Euros 188 million for the first quarter of 2006, a 31% increase on the first quarter of 2005. This represents the company's strongest quarterly growth in the past five years – and it includes organic growth of just over 9%. More
Top Australian agency The Leading Edge has announced a buoyant start to 2006 with 16 new staff added and 14 promotions since the beginning of the year. More
ACNielsen Global Services has launched Global Track in-sights, a multi-country reporting capability accessible via its Answers(TM) on-line platform. The service promises easy viewing and distribution of data throughout client companies. More
TNS Media Intelligence (TNS MI) has announced the introduction of AdScope(TM), an all-digital ad identification and retrieval service which seamlessly integrates ad occurrence and expenditure data for each creative. More
GfK has appointed four senior executives to its HealthCare Asia division, which is being formed from the consolidation of recent acquisitions SoHealthAsia and SMA (acquired with NOP). Scott Davies, Alan John and Keren Priyadarshini all become Directors and Clive Marshall, Managing Director China. More
Australian consultancy The Leading Edge (TLE) has developed a blueprint for the use of mobile phone blogging in research. TLE says the method will result in 'in the moment' consumer insights 'as they occur'. More
comScore Networks has announced the launch of comScore World Metrix, the first true estimate of global online audience size and behaviour based on activity from the company's global online panel. More
The Valcon consortium has raised its bid for VNU to an offer price of Euros 29.50 per Ordinary Share, and Euros 21.00 per Preferred Share. Valcon has also extended the shareholder deadline from tomorrow (5th May) to 19th May, and lowered the acceptance level threshold for the Ordinary Shares to 80% from the previous 95%. More
Online Testing eXchange (OTX) is this week launching a new Home Entertainment Monitor in the UK, France, Germany, Australia, Japan and the USA. The weekly tracker aims to give DVD marketers and planners accurate and timely data to define their key audience, forecast sales, and optimise marketing plans. More
MR software companies SPSS and FIRM have both announced strong results for the first quarter of 2006. SPSS has net revenues of $62.2m, up 8% on Q1 of 2005, while new license revenues rose faster, up 15% to $29.9m. FIRM's revenue was $4.8m, representing a rise of 29% at constant currencies. More
Global group GfK has confirmed its upbeat preliminary announcement from 28th February regarding results for 2005, announcing 'the most successful year in the company's history' with sales up by over 40% to Euros 937.3m, 6.5% organic growth and margin improving to 13.3%. More
Online competitive intelligence service Hitwise has announced an upgrade to its online audience targeting system, Lifestyle V2.0. The new release promises marketers easier identification of top performing and niche sites that attract their most desirable customers, as well as faster visitor profiling. More
WPP has published its first quarter trading update showing total group revenues up by over 23% and by 18% in constant currency terms. Revenue for the group's Information, Insight & Consultancy operations grew less than for other divisions, by just under 10%, but showed good organic growth and reached £214m. More
Mobile phones could soon overtake PCs as the most widely used means of accessing the Internet, according to the Ipsos 'Face of the Web' study. Internet access via the mobile phone actually outpaces wireless access from a notebook PC in many of areas of the world. More
TNS has appointed R Ravi Shankar, its Senior VP in India, as Co-Regional Champion to lead its Stakeholder Management practice - TRI*M across TNS Asia Pacific, Latin America and Middle-East & Africa (ALM). More
Survey Sampling International has appointed Pete Cape, founder of TNS Interactive, to head up a new unit to be known as the Knowledge Department, Internet Sampling. In addition, the company is to open its first Asia Pacific office, in China, and has made two key hires for it. More
The Australian Minister for Communications, IT and the Arts has given the go-ahead for a national Do Not Call Register similar to that in operation in the US. Senator the Hon Helen Coonan said the scheme would protect consumers from nuisance telemarketing phone calls. 'Legitimate' MR calls will be among a number of exempt categories. More
Following the dropping of the separate Bloomerce name last week, Survey Sampling International (SSI) has a new logo and web site backed by a promotional campaign to support its global expansion. More
VNU shareholder Knight Vinke Asset Management (KVAM) has issued a statement saying it intends to reject yesterday's recommended offer for VNU of Euros 28.75 per share, and will encourage others to do likewise. More
Millward Brown Optimor, the research group's specialist financial and ROI arm, has announced a new ranking, the BRANDZ(tm) Top 100 Most Powerful Brands study. Combining consumer research with publicly available financial data, the study gives Microsoft the no.1 spot, followed by GE and Coca-Cola. More
Australia and Asia-based research process outsourcing company Pulse Group has hired several new executives to boost its project management team and support an expanding client base, with entry into China planned. More
Australian agency Sensory Solutions has relocated to larger new premises at Northmead in the centre of Sydney, following a year of activity building its team, infrastructure and range of methodologies. The latter include new tools for pricing research and the analysis of children as consumers. More
Estimated advertising spend across the three core media - television, newspapers and magazines - reached a record $US68.6bn across 12 key Asia Pacific markets in 2005, according to the latest data from Nielsen Media Research. Meanwhile Asian business leaders' Internet usage is increasing but so is print media use, according to Ipsos Media's ABRS. More
Colmar Brunton is launching an Asia Pacific company with an office in Singapore, reports the AMSRS . Karen Stanton, previously Group Account Director in the company's Sydney office, heads up the new area as Asia Pacific Managing Director. More
Ross McComish has been appointed head of Roy Morgan's business interests in New Zealand. More
TNS has this week announced the expansion of its Asia Pacific network to include New Caledonia and French Polynesia. The addition of the two new offices in Noumea and Papeete are the result of the extension of an existing relationship between TNS and SARL MBA Consultants. More
Ipsos has once again reported a sharp increase in revenues, up 18.8% on the year to Euros 717.9m in 2005. Organic growth at constant exchange rates was 8.6%, beating other major MR groups, and operating profit up 25.5% to Euros 63.9m. More
TNS has launched a year long series of staff development initiatives with a 5 day event held recently in Malaysia, attended by nearly 250 TNS employees drawn from across the Asia Pacific, the Middle-East and Africa. More
TNS has today launched a new NPD research offering called InnoSuite - Launch Maximiser, which provides companies with accurate, predicated, sales and volume forecasts on new product concepts before they are launched. More
Media investment manager MindShare and research BPO company Pulse Group are joining forces to launch mPulse, a Pan-Asian online research panel study to provide insights into Asian consumer and media behaviour. More
Global agency TNS has announced a realignment of its regional operations, which it says recognises the growth potential of emerging markets. The group's business across Middle East and Africa and Latin America will be linked with the high growth markets of Asia Pacific. More
ACNielsen has added responsibility for Europe to the Asia Pacific role of its Executive Director, Corporate & Marketing Communications, Lisa Lee. The move promises closer alignment for the firm's global branding and marketing strategy. More
Two of VNU's major shareholders could scupper the US$10.3 billion private equity buyout backed by the group's Board earlier this week. Fund manager Fidelity International, which owns 15% of VNU, said it was 'unlikely to support this offer', while FT reports suggest 2% holder KVAM is 'actively looking' for a Chief Executive to run VNU. More
VNU, parent of ACNielsen and Nielsen Media Research, has announced that it has agreed to a public offer from a private-equity consortium including AlpInvest Partners, valuing the company's equity at approximately EUR 7.5 bn in cash, or EUR 28.75 per common share. The option of breaking the company up has been rejected. More
VNU has announced 'better-than-expected results' for 2005. The Media Measurement & Information division (MMI) showed 11% organic growth, led by a strong Nielsen Media Research (NMR). Group-wide, organic growth was only 5%. VNU says favourable settlement of tax audits 'more than offset' the $55m cost of the recent IRI settlement. More
Top Australian agency The Leading Edge has another new Chief Executive. Ellen Baron moves from the Sydney office to head up the team in Melbourne, replacing Dominic Lefebvre who will move to Singapore to lead the new Asia Gateway office. More
TNS has announced results for the year ended 31 December 2005. Revenue is up 5.7% (adjusted 4.1%) to £999.0m and adjusted operating profit up 9.5% to £112.6m. Strong growth across syndicated services and in custom business in continental Europe and emerging markets contrasted with 'challenging conditions' in the US and UK. More
Online intelligence provider Hitwise has acquired HitDynamics, a technology platform used by agencies and web site marketers to implement search marketing campaigns and track the success of their PPC, search engine optimization and affiliate marketing campaigns. More
MR recruiter Elizabeth Norman International (ENI) has announced a number of changes to its office structure in Australasia, including the appointment of a new Managing Director and new larger offices in Australia, and enhanced SE Asian coverage. More
Nielsen Media Research has declined its option to work with Arbitron in developing the latter's PPM technology as the primary measurement tool for US media ratings currency. Nielsen has spent millions of dollars on assessing the technology since signing an agreement in 2000, but will now pursue a multi-stranded 'portfolio strategy'. More
Top Australian agency The Leading Edge (TLE) has announced that long-time leader Derek Leddie is handing on his role as the company's CEO jointly to Mark Sundquist and Toby Hill, while taking up a new role as Head of the Business Intelligence Group at parent company Photon. He will continue as a Director of TLE. More
GfK's preliminary results, published today, confirm the company's upbeat forecast from a week ago and reveal what the group calls 'a year of extraordinary success'. Total sales of 935.4m euros, up 39%, include 198.0m euros for NOP World companies and 737.4m euros for the rest of the group. Organic growth was 6.5%. More
Synovate has formed a new speciality practice, Synovate Loyalty, combining its own customer satisfaction research expertise with that of the specialist agency Symmetrics Marketing Corporation, which it acquired in March 2004. More
WPP has reported strong revenue growth for 2005, with organic growth healthy. Overall revenue was up 25% to $9.8 billion and like-for-like revenue up 5.5%. The group's information, insight & consultancy revenues - which include MR agencies such as Millward Brown and Research International - rose more than 7% on a constant currency basis. More
GfK Australia has announced an expansion of its IT tracking services during the first half of 2006, including three new product categories and plans to track IT retail activities in New Zealand, starting in March 2006. More
Online intelligence provider Hitwise has launched a Client Advisory Board, consisting of users from the US, UK and Australia who will contribute to its product development plans. More
VNU and IRI have settled their ten-year antitrust case, with VNU agreeing to pay IRI US$55m. The case was recently valued at around $650m but was on appeal following judgement in favor of VNU and its co-defendants. Both sides appear to have preferred the settlement to the possibility of the case rumbling on for a number of years more. More
GfK Asia has released its pan-Asian Consumer Electronics Data Summary for 2005. The study, based on an analysis of products sold in 21,000 stores, highlights a huge growth in LCD TV sales and DVD recorders, and a decline in sales of video camcorders. More
A group of VNU shareholders is pressing the Dutch company to break itself into three divisions and sell each separately rather than agree to the proposed 7.3bn Euro buyout deal with private-equity firms, according to reports today in the Wall Street Journal. More
Less than one in five Americans is expecting a romantic Valentine's day, according to research by QuestionPro. Meanwhile, NetRatings says half of Australians are planning to buy a Valentine's gift, and Hitwise finds that Brits are opting for Tesco flowers, backed up by romantic poetry downloaded for free. More
Survey Sampling International (SSI) is introducing Australia Random Digit (RDD) telephone samples to provide Australian researchers with easy access to a comprehensive telephone sampling frame. The samples are designed to provide fewer diallings and faster survey completion. More
Shara Evans, who founded Australian telecoms MR firm Telsyte, has left to set up her own telecoms research company, Market Clarity. She is joined at the new firm by Research Manager Richard Chirgwin, who previously provided consulting services for Telsyte. More
Incoming TNS Chief Executive David Lowden has announced a new focus for the company's future strategy, based on 'knowledge of the client's business and where the client wants to go', rather than mere response to research requests. There are new roles for Stephen Factor and Mike Penford and a new three-region global structure. More
A new Netherlands firm, SmartCoding, is offering coding services for multilingual research projects. The company, which has entered a strategic partnership with MR outsourcing firm Pulse, promises to save time and reduce errors by directly coding verbatim answers in any language - without the need for intermediate translation. More
WPP's CEO Martin Sorrell has predicted further consolidation in the MR industry, and indicated that WPP still has an eye on Synovate as well as on VNU's companies. He stated that WPP is likely to make medium-sized acquisitions in future, and that 'there are plenty of things to play for'. More
Consumers' confidence in their local economies, job prospects and personal finances is on the rise across the world, according to the latest twice-yearly ACNielsen Consumer Confidence Index. Overall, confidence is highest in India and New Zealand, and lowest in Portugal. More
TNS Media Intelligence is forecasting a 5.4% increase in US advertising spend this year, well up on the estimated 3% in 2005. Meanwhile in Asia Pacific, Nielsen Media Research reports that ad spending grew by 14% last year, with the market in China surging by 21%. More
US consumers' confidence in the economy has risen for the fourth consecutive month, according to the latest survey from BIGresearch. However, a recent Ipsos survey records a drop in confidence. To help you make sense of such differences - and to bring you the confidence picture worldwide - we've introduced a new Consumer Confidence section. More
Following last week's appointment of Donald Brydon as Chair and David Lowden as CEO, TNS has added Pedro Ros to its board of directors. Ros will take on the newly created role of MD for Global Clients and Sectors, which includes responsibilities for the company's custom business. More
Research process outsourcing (RPO) provider Pulse Group has announced the launch of its first European office, in Amsterdam. Pulse has offices in Sydney, Australia and an international RPO centre in Malaysia. More
Global telecoms industry revenue will reach $1.2 trillion by the end of 2006, with growth in wireless leading the way, according to Insight Research. Meanwhile, a study from the Leichtman Research Group finds that US broadband providers acquired a record 2.6m new subscribers in the third quarter of 2005. More
Microsoft Chair Bill Gates is the world's most admired business leader, according to a study of 600 global business influentials conducted by Burson-Marsteller together with the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU). He is closely followed by rival Steve Jobs of Apple, while Virgin's Richard Branson takes fifth place, the highest non-US leader. More
Australian TV ratings company OzTAM has awarded its new Gold Standard accreditation to six suppliers of TV audience measurement software packages. The organisation is also set to provide data users with details of viewers' education background, to help them better analyse TV ratings. More
More than three quarters of market researchers worldwide are planning to increase their use of online research in the next six months, according to the Greenfield/Ciao Online Research Barometer. Fifty per cent of European researchers say they have replaced face-to-face studies with online research over the last year. More
VNU has announced a major program to co-ordinate the business units of its Marketing Information (MI) group and centralise marketing, IT and NPD functions. Steven M. Schmidt becomes President and CEO of the group, which includes ACNielsen, BASES, Spectra, Claritas and ACNielsen HCI. More
MR trade body ESOMAR is working with the World Federation of Advertisers (WFA) on next year's World Research Conference, taking place in Shanghai in June. The event, entitled Worldwide Multi Media Measurement (WM3), will focus on how to develop a consumer-centric vision of cross-media consumption. More
MrWeb has launched a new section dedicated to market research in Asia. Content includes a round-up of recent Asian news, quick links to Asian job ads, features by MR specialists, and statistics about the industry - both for Asia as a whole and for the major economies in the region. More
Online research specialist Research Now has reported a surge in trading since it floated on London's Alternative Investment Market (AIM) in August. The company, which recently opened US and Australian offices, expects turnover for the year to 31 October to be more than five times the previous year's £701,000. More
Australia's Roy Morgan Research has launched a new survey to measure what the country's top 1% is reading. Results from these high-earning senior executives and directors show high levels of newspaper readership, even among heavy web users. More
VNU's CEO Rob van den Bergh is stepping down, following the announcement that the company's planned takeover of IMS Health has been terminated due to strong resistance from VNU shareholders. Under the termination agreement, VNU will reimburse IMS $15 million for out-of-pocket costs. More
Nielsen//NetRatings is introducing AdRelevance - its online ad measurement tool - to Australia. The service, already available in the US and Europe, will now track 250 Australian web sites and 4,000 URLs to gather information about who is advertising, where and how, and how much they are spending. More
The US-based Yankee Group has introduced a five-year projection and analysis of the business and consumer wireless markets. The Global Wireless/Mobile Premium Forecast provides data for unique users in 23 nations across North America, Latin America, EMEA and Asia Pacific, using data from the Group's Mobile User and Video-Capable Device Surveys. More
'You have to be in Asia, be outsourcing, and using the Internet if you want to be in the future of MR' according to TNS Chairman Tony Cowling, speaking at the BMRA's annual conference yesterday. Other speakers predicted the demise of the phone interview and the death of the medium-sized firm. More
The GfK Group has announced results for the third quarter of 2005. The integration of NOP World is said to be proceeding according to plan, and the group has already achieved 95.6% of its order volume forecast for 2005. Sales for the first 9 months are up 28.8% vs Q1-3 2004 to EUR 627.5m. More
TNS is to incorporate its Middle East and Africa (MEA) operations into its Asia Pacific network to create a new combined Asia Pacific-Middle East and Africa (AP-MEA) region. Asia Pacific MD James Hall will oversee the new area, while regional MD Stuart Campbell-Morris will continue to lead the MEA business. More
US high-tech specialist Current Analysis has launched a new service - Asia Pacific Solutions - to provide telecoms research and market intelligence in Asia. The service will initially cover China, Japan, India, and Singapore, and additional countries will be added in the coming months. More
The UK's CreationVideo is producing a DVD resource for BBC World, based on qualitative research with viewers from across the globe. The DVD, which includes video footage of depth interviews with viewers, will be used to introduce staff and advertisers to BBC World and its audience. More
US online specialist GMI has launched new panels of physicians, nurses and chronically ill patients. It has also entered an agreement with Sawtooth Software to sell Sawtooth products in Asia and South America, and to share its online panel with Sawtooth. GMI has also made four new Director-level appointments. More
Australia Post has picked Research International (RI) to monitor its delivery of letters using radio frequency identification device (RFID) technology, together with more traditional end-to-end measures. The company has been using RFID to measure its international mail services for the past two years. More
Recent studies from NPD and Packaged Facts find US consumers eating more takeaway meals and using fewer fresh products, while also becoming increasingly concerned about food safety. Meanwhile, dietary concerns are spreading to Australia, where a TNS study finds 67% of women overweight, and a third of teenagers underweight. More
Dan Foreman, formerly Planning Director at ad agency WFCA, has been poached to spearhead the launch of FocusVision Europe. The US-based company, which specialises in video recording technologies for market research, opened its first European office in London in July. More
Australian MR firm Colmar Brunton has signed an agreement with Perception Research Services (PRS) in the US, allowing it to use PRS eye-tracking technology with clients across Australia. The technology observes the eye's movement as it scans ads or web sites - objectively measuring what is truly 'eye-catching'. More
One in ten of the world's population now shops online, according to a new global survey from ACNielsen. In separate studies, the National Retail Federation (NRF) predicts a 5% increase for US spending this holiday season, and GQ magazine finds US men increasingly succumbing to the pleasures of shopping. More
The newly created Synovate Motoresearch division in Australia is to launch Synovate24, an automated customer loyalty tool for car dealers. The service uses technology to monitor customer feedback the day after a transaction, and provides dealers with an immediate analysis of customer satisfaction. More
UK-based RPCushing has forged a partnership with fellow MR recruitment consultancy Market Search in Australia to help clients looking for overseas opportunities. The companies will advertise each other's vacancies, and will provide candidates with information to facilitate relocation. More
Synovate has announced the launch of a new Motoresearch division in Australia, with Peter Riley as Director. Meanwhile, Global Insight Inc's Automotive Group is opening offices in Tokyo and Shanghai to expand its business across Asia. More
'... the finance guys have taken over' according to Christian Majgaard, former Senior Director of Lego, in the final keynote address at this week's ESOMAR Congress. Majgaard called for a change to CEOs' salary structure in order to bring marketing research 'back into the boardroom'. More
ESOMAR wound up the 58th Congress in Cannes today and announced the winners of its awards. Speakers from The Leading Edge agency and Carlton & United Brewers, Australia, won the Best Paper Overall Award, while employees of Brainjuicer, Maritz and LG Electronics were also recognised. More
In his award-winning ESOMAR paper, John Kearon, CEO & Chief Juicer of BrainJuicer, explains his attempts to apply academic thinking on 'research markets' and the 'wisdom of crowds' to concept testing. The results, while still inconclusive, threaten conventional MR techniques - suggesting that a diverse, non-target group can predict success as well as a target sample. More
Online MR solutions company GMI (Global Market Insite, Inc.) has announced the acquisition of three companies -- Seattle-based NetReflector, Insight in Shanghai, China, and MI Pro AS in Drobak, Norway, which will operate as wholly owned subsidiaries of GMI. GMI has also formed a new strategic alliance with ARO Sistemas in Sao Paolo, Brazil. More
Speakers from ACNielsen and the Asia Foundation told today's session at the ESOMAR Congress about the far-reaching implications of research to help voter education in Afghanistan. Other papers looked at MR's role in rebuilding democracy in the UK, and regenerating a South African township. More
ESOMAR's 2005 Congress, Making a Difference - The Impact of Powerful Research - opened today in Cannes, attended by 1000+ market and social professionals from 75 countries worldwide. The Congress also heralded ESOMAR's rebrand, and its renewed commitment to improving the image of MR - a theme touched on by several of the day's speakers. More
This morning's main session at ESOMAR Congress gave delegates an update on major companies' attempts to put customers' views and needs at the heart of their business. Some like it hot - watching consumers in their kitchens - while others take a cool look at customer loyalty stats. DRNO News Editor Tessa Russell reports live from Cannes. More
Online fieldwork and panel specialist Research Now has announced the launch of an Australian online panel with access to 60,000 household members. The panel will be managed locally from new Research Now offices in Sydney and Brisbane, headed up by Australian Jason Buchanan. More
The Australian Market & Social Research Society (AMSRS) is launching its first Research Effectiveness Awards as part of the organisation's IMPACT: conference next month. The awards are designed to illustrate the contribution of research to business success. Conference papers will also address the impact of research in the real world. More
Australian online agency i-Link Research Solutions will for the first time offer an online participant research panel for MR and social research, via an alliance with Qualified Opinions Research Panel. More
TNS has announced a commitment to raise US$387,000 by the end of 2007 to fund a pre-school educational project in Cambodia, supported by UNICEF, the United Nation's Children's Fund. The 'Imagine...' initiative kicked off today with a 'Walk to Work' day. More
A group of MR agencies have joined forces to produce Asia Research, a quarterly print publication covering MR in the region. Sponsors include Kadence Asia, Citigate DVL Smith, SoHealthAsia, Asia Pacific Research, Hankook Research, Firestar Research, Opinion Research Taiwan and Indochina Research. More
Synovate has achieved 17.9% revenue growth for first half of this year, compared with 14.8% for its parent Aegis Group as a whole. Similarly at VNU, the research division outperforms the rest of the company. Other company results vary, but all point to growth in the MR sector. More
Carat, part of the Aegis Group, has increased its 2005 forecast of world ad spend growth to 5.2% -highest in China (18%) and Central Europe (11.4%) and lowest in Germany (1%). Its predictions for increased online ad spend are echoed by a new report from Roy Morgan in Australia. More
Market research and media communications group Aegis has acquired Market Equity, an Australian MR business, in a deal worth up to £11.7 million. Market Equity will now become part of Synovate, the Group's MR network, which has offices in 46 countries. More
GMI has appointed Philip Winnen, formerly of Market Tools Ltd, as MD for Asia Pacific Sales, based in Sydney, and sales professional Daniel Naimey as Director of Business Development, based in Seattle. Also joining the Seattle office is Mark Schneider, the company's new In-House Counsel. More
100,000 New Zealanders – representing almost 8% of the country's households – have signed up as members of SmileCity's online panel, run by TNS. The company says that even traditionally hard-to-reach consumers, such as young Asian males, are willingly participating in research. More
Inquisite Inc, a US-based provider of web survey technology, has appointed Pathway Consultants to market and sell Inquisite products in Australia and New Zealand. More
The number of Australians using Internet banking increased 26% to 5.5m in the twelve months to May 2005, according to new research from ACNielsen. This growth comes despite concerns about ID theft, which are also reflected in a new US poll from Experian and Gallup. More
Michelle Costello has joined Ipsos Australia in the new position of Director of Qualitative Research. Her previous career includes spells at Dangar Research Group, Eureka Strategic Research and The Market Intelligence Co. More
Nielsen//NetRatings has opened a Brisbane office to complement its Sydney headquarters and its research and development centre in Melbourne. Greg Chamberlain, newly appointed Business Development Manager, will head the new office. More
Four fifths of consumers in Europe, the Pacific and North America think that 'private label' or supermarket own-brands are a good alternative to other brands, according to ACNielsen's latest study. In developing markets, where own-label products are less well established, consumers are more likely to view them as inferior. More
Research leaders from six continents have accepted a number of amendments from US association CASRO at a meeting to discuss the ISO draft international standard for market, opinion and social research. Amended areas include information sharing and the primacy of national laws. More
J.D. Power-LMC, the company's automotive forecasting division, has formed an alliance with Automotive Resources Asia (ARA). The two firms will initially focus on sales, production and powertrain forecasts for Asia, within J.D. Power's existing frameworks. More
Australia is the winner and Turkey the loser, while the US is let down by its politics and France fails in the hospitality stakes. This is the global perception of the brand appeal of 25 countries, according to the second quarterly Anholt-GMI Nation Brands Index (NBI) report. More
Travyn Rhall has been appointed as Chief Client Service Officer for ACNielsen Asia Pacific, in addition to his current responsibilities as MD for customised research in the region. More
Nielsen NetRatings has appointed Andrew Reid as Managing Director, Australia. He will be based in Sydney and report to Forrest Didier, MD of the company's Asia Pacific Latin America group. More
Australian pollster and researcher Gary Morgan plans to use Haoma, a gold mining company majority owned by his family, to get a 'backdoor listing' for the Roy Morgan Research Centre on the country's Stock Exchange, the ASX. The major independent MR player will use the listing to fund expansion worldwide. More
Lynton Crosby, who directed the UK Conservative Party's general election campaign, is opening a UK office of his Australian-based research and consulting firm CrosbyTextor. The UK operation will be led by George Bridges MBE, former Chair of the Conservative Party's Research Department. More
Australian consumers are significantly less confident than they were a year ago, according to the latest survey from polling firm Roy Morgan. The main driver of the decrease is pessimism about personal finances with 30% (up 6%) saying they are now worse off than they were last year. More
The MR landscape is to undergo a seismic shift as VNU, the world's biggest research provider, buys IMS Health, the next biggest in the US, in a transaction valued at 5.8 billion Euros ($7.0 billion). VNU's CEO is confident that the deal will quickly lead to major cost savings and new revenues. More
Food Science Australia and Sydney-based consumer agency Sensory Solutions have announced a partnership to offer enhanced tools, standards and training for market research for the country's food industry. 4247 More
Millward Brown has become a licensed member of the Walker Global Network in Asia Pacific. Under the licensing arrangement Millward Brown will offer stakeholder relationship measurement and management products developed and provided by stakeholder research specialist Walker. More
Asian-based research process outsourcing company the Pulse Group has launched an online community panel of businesses and consumers. The company hopes the new panel, Planet Pulse, will help clients reap the benefits of online research in the fast-growing Asia-Pacific region. More
WPP, parent company of Millward Brown, Research International, The Kantar Group and The Henley Centre among many other companies worldwide, has reported robust revenues for the first five months of the year. Noting that revenue per head had increased, WPP's Chairman Philip Lader thanked the company's 84,000 staff worldwide for their 'outstanding efforts'. More
Today's young Asian is 'consumption-crazy, aspirational, and driven' according to a new survey from Synovate, which looks at the spending habits, media consumption, favourite brands and aspirations of Asians aged eight to 24. More
Roy Morgan Research is bring to Australia and NZ a US-developed system that claims to revolutionise ad testing by providing 'natural exposure' to adverts, avoiding the more artificial results achieved from normal test viewing conditions. More
Australia's Association of Market Research Organisations (AMRO) has changed its name to reflect its broadening role. The country's professional (individual) membership organisation the AMSRS added the word 'Social' to its name last year, and AMRO has followed suit, becoming AMSRO. More
Australian consumers are currently the most pessimistic in Asia, according to a global study by ACNielsen. 43% said they felt the economy would deteriorate in the coming year compared to just 28% across the region – and 34% felt the strength of the economy had deteriorated over the past six months. More
Online survey specialist FIRM has announced that its Confirmit software will power 'Asia's largest online panel', the new AIP mega panel of up to 1 million active respondents. More
Melbourne-based Insight Marketing Systems (IMS) will open an office in the USA to service North American customers for its 'Research Reporter' application. Emmons Patzer joins from Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMS) to head up the operation. More
Ipsos has appointed Jasmine Hoye as an Account Manager in its Agribusiness, Natural Resources & Environment Division in Australia. She was previously an AM at Millward Brown. More
The value of the online research market is set to triple in three years, reaching $4 billion by 2008 and introducing a large number of smaller users, according to a new study conducted for solutions provider GMI by Simon Chadwick of Cambiar. More
Daily Research News has appointed a full-time News Editor, who will start in June. Tessa Russell joins from Which? magazine where she has worked for the last eight years, most recently as an Assistant Editor leading the food and health team. More
Ipsos has announced results for the first quarter of 2005, with revenues up 12.9% including organic growth of 8.2%. All regions and business lines contributed, with Asia Pacific and Middle East, and advertising research particularly strong. More
With the recent high profile of religious issues in schools in France, the UK and elsewhere, major agency Roy Morgan has found Australians overwhelmingly in favour of teaching religion in Government schools, according to its latest 'Single Source Survey'. However, there is a slight downward trend in support. More
Online survey & reporting software provider FIRM has released first quarter results, showing revenue up 34% on the year to $3.9m in Q1 2005. During the quarter, FIRM added two new modules to its flagship package Confirmit: conjoint-based product and ad optimizer Confirmit IdeaMap, and multi-mode survey system Confirmit CAPI. More
'We would like to knit our automotive quality studies together as a global study... the auto companies weren't ready for it yet. Maybe they were products before their time. Actually, some other companies have tried and have bent their pick a little bit'. CEO Steve Goodall on J.D. Power's global future with McGraw-Hill – the concluding part of our exclusive interview. More
Nielsen//NetRatings has developed a service for telecoms providers enabling them to measure and analyse mobile content usage. Three major carriers are already using or trialling the system – Optus, Hutchison 3 and Telstra. More
'I think the industry is ultimately making a bet on hydrogen' 'The US will move like the European or Western European markets... where c.50% are diesel engines' 'Asia ... will drive more and more future product development' - J.D.Power CEO Steve Goodall on what's in store for automotive, in part 2 of our exclusive interview. More
ESOMAR will be holding its 58th Annual Congress in the glamorous setting of Cannes from 18 – 21 September 2005, with around 1,000 MR and marketing professionals in attendance. This year's theme is 'Making a difference. The impact of powerful research'. More
Bob Chua, formerly MD of Sales, International at online MR solutions provider Global Market Insite (GMI), has left to head up a new company, Pulse Group, with GMI's backing. Pulse Group is headquartered in Sydney, Aus and offers Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) for the MR industry. More
NOP World Financial has appointed quallie Hannah Nutley as Associate Director. Nutley worked as a Project Director for Added Value in Sydney, Melbourne and London, and then as a freelance researcher. More
Online MR solutions provider GMI has appointed Dietmar Walter, previously of Gartner, as its MD for Europe. Walter has worked as a Global Account Manager for Gartner for the last four years. GMI has also recently announced the stepping-up of its 20-country omnibus service from monthly to weekly. More
Following success in Australia, Starfish Research & Strategy has launched its proprietary sponsorship research tool SponsorMap™ in London this month. The tool caters for all categories of sponsorship including broadcast, sport, event, cause and personalities, and offers modules for tracking, pre-testing and event research. More
Technology researcher IDC has appointed Eva Au as the new Managing Director of its Asia/Pacific business. She was previously MD, Asia of legal and information publishing brand LexisNexis. More
The latest round of the Ipsos Face of The Web study paints a picture of the global take-off of a broad range of Internet activities beyond simple browsing. Seven in ten Internet users in the 12 countries surveyed have purchased and half have banked online; two thirds have sent digital pictures or videos; and one in ten has already downloaded a feature length movie. More
NetRatings has announced the appointment of Forrest L. Didier as MD of its Asia Pacific - Latin America region, effective 2 May. A Nielsen employee for 23 years, Didier played a key role in developing the company's Internet measurement business in the early days of ACNielsen eRatings.com. More
Specialist international B2B research consultancy Kadence Asia Pacific has launched KadBUS®, described as 'the first Pan-Asian business omnibus'. Decision-makers from up to 3,000 SMEs across the region will be interviewed on a quarterly basis. More
Internet audience specialist Nielsen//NetRatings has enhanced its Market Intelligence system for New Zealand. Expanded demographics about site visitors now includes geographic location and online purchasing behaviour. More
Ipsos is launching a new Global Public Affairs unit, consolidating the Group's offering in the sector. The move follows similar global consolidation for the ASI (advertising) and Loyalty business streams in 2001 and 2004 respectively. More
Speakers and panellists from companies including Saatchi & Saatchi, Coca-Cola, IBM, MasterCard and Motorola will discuss their experiences of working in emerging and developing markets, at the ESOMAR Global Forum in New York in May. More
Fewer US consumers are now confident about the strength of their economy, according to the BIGResearch Executive Briefing for April. Domestic issues are the main worries. Looking longer-term, separate research from Ipsos-Insight suggests that many consumers around the world have written off public pension sources as their retirement mainstay. More
German-owned GfK has won the bidding for NOP World, acquiring it from United Business Media for £383 million (c.EUR 550m) in cash. The transaction remains subject to approval of the competition authorities in the United States and in Germany, but GfK says approval is expected at the end of May. More
GfK has announced 'a year of extraordinary success' with sales up 12.8% to EUR 671.7m and a margin of 13.6%, putting the Group 'top of the market research sector in terms of profitability'. EBIT including income from participations increased by 31.2% to EUR 91.1m and the dividend by around 43% to EUR 0.30. More
Greenfield Online has announced the completed acquisition of fellow online survey specialist Ciao AG for cash plus shares to a total value of c.$150 million. The move creates a major new global force in Internet panel research. More
VNU has announced a number of new services and initiatives at the Consumer 360 event in the USA. They include CBI, a proprietary integrated data solution for CPG companies; new methodologies with the ambitious goal of 'tracking retail sales across all outlets', globally; two new consumer insights services based on Homescan®; and a tracking service and consumer panel for ethnic consumers. More
IMSA, the International Mystery Shopping Alliance, has added another member this week. Hoed Mystery Shopping is one of the leading agencies in the field in Australia and New Zealand. More
The average Australian child is spending no more than 10% of its free time playing outdoors at home, according to research by Newspoll for detergent company Omo, which (surprise surprise) wants parents to be 'less anxious about letting their kids get dirty'. The company has declared Sunday April 3rd 'National Dirt is Good Day'. More
Ipsos has announced its results for the calendar year 2004, showing impressive revenue growth of 7.5% at constant scope and exchange rates. Consolidated revenues for the year were Euros 605.6m and operating profit was up 8% to Euros 54.7m – equivalent to a rise of 16% at constant exchange rates. More
Colmar Brunton New Zealand (CB NZ), the country's fastest-growing agency, is to merge with Millward Brown New Zealand. Colmar Brunton Australia has issued a separate statement saying it is not involved in any way with the merger, is committed to employee ownership and has already rejected offers from multinational groups. More
Aegis Group plc has announced strong preliminary results for 2004, acknowledging a good contribution from its market research arm, Synovate, which almost doubled revenues in the EMEA region and added 24.4% to turnover worldwide. Organic growth at 8.3% is well above the estimated industry average of 4.25%. More
Synovate has acquired Sydney-based AZTEC Information Systems. AZTEC supplies market research services to retailers, manufacturers and brand owners based on grocery, liquor and pharmacy retailers' EPOS or 'scan' data in Australia and New Zealand. More
TNS has announced its results for the year ended 31 December 2004, the first full year since the acquisition of NFO WorldGroup, Inc. (NFO) in July 2003. Revenue increased 17.4% to £945.3m and underlying revenue up 4.1%. Operating profit is up 28% to £102.0m while operating margin increased 0.9% to 10.8%. More
The number of people globally with broadband Internet access grew by 24% last year according to Ipsos-Insight's annual 'Face of the Web' study. A majority of US users now have high-speed connections, and growth in France, the UK and urban Brazil has been particularly pronounced this year. More
The GfK Group has announced record growth in its preliminary results for the financial year 2004. Sales increased by 12.7% from EUR 595.3 to EUR 671.0m, well ahead of its own forecast. Highlights include 10% plus organic growth for the Retail and Technology division and the Asia & Pacific and Central & Eastern Europe regions. More
The Australian Market & Social Research Society (AMSRS) will celebrate its 50th anniversary with its 2005 National Conference at Sydney Convention & Exhibition Centre in Darling Harbour from 9 - 11 October. 'Impact 2005' will examine the effect the profession has had on Australian communities, government and the private sector. More
San Antonio, USA-based marketing and MR group Harte-Hanks, Inc. has acquired its established Australian partner Communiqué Direct, exercising an option acquired in June 2003. Financial terms have not been disclosed. More
The last ten years in New Zealand have been 'fabulous' and life has been rapidly improving, according to results from Nielsen Media Research. Could this be connected to a separate Nielsen survey revealing that they and their neighbours in Aus get more sleep than anyone else in the AsiaPac region? More
In addition to the US appointments announced earlier this week, Research International has announced senior staff changes in Asia Pacific. Miriam Rustam joins as General Manager of the Indonesian office, while Sunando Das and Gillem Lawson become Regional Directors and Rosalynn Tang Deputy MD in Singapore. More
Nielsen//NetRatings has extended its Market Intelligence monitor to cover Australian web sites in two new categories, 'Business and Finance' and Sport; and has released the first results from the service. More
Australian MR software provider Insight Marketing Systems (IMS) has announced the opening of an office in London, to improve services to European customers of its Research Reporter system. Jonathan Rabson joins the company from E-Tabs to head up the office as European Director. More
Millward Brown has announced several promotions and appointments in its e-Perspectives newsletter, including Burt Leiman as MD for Greenfield Consulting Group and Monica Garcia as Head of the new Business Development Unit at Millward Brown Mexico. More
More than eight out of ten Japanese households used the Internet in 2004, while the US market, thought by some to be at or nearing saturation point, broke through a two-year plateau with a 27% online population increase, according to Ipsos-Insight's Face of the Web study. More
Trevor Richards' new UK role for TNS will be as Joint Global Leader of Brand and Advertising Research. Richards, who has over twenty years of MR experience, returns from Sydney where he was Regional Director for Australia and New Zealand. More
VNU has today announced that the US District Court for the Southern District of New York has dismissed with prejudice all remaining claims in the antitrust case against its ACNielsen business unit by Information Resources Inc. (IRI). More
Synovate has appointed Sue Phillips in the new role of Regional Director – Qualitative Research for the Asia Pacific region. Phillips has been running her own UK-based consultancy, Eureka! Research, for the past ten years having previously worked for Schlackmans, Pegram Walters and New Solutions. More
Millions of Australians have visited charity web sites in the aftermath of the tsunami, according to Nielsen//NetRatings. Oxfam and World Vision saw the number of unique browsers visiting their Australian sites increase by over 500 percent in the week commencing 26th December. More
TNS, much in the news of late, has issued an optimistic trading update ahead of its full year results announcement at the beginning of March. The company expects to deliver underlying revenue growth and margin improvement in line with previous guidance. More
TNS has this week released the results of its Global Corporate Reputation Study 2005. The study, which was conducted in the last quarter of 2004, used TRI*M, TNS' business solution for Stakeholder Management, to measure perceptions across 40 countries, surveying more than 36,000 members of the general public. More
Nielsen//NetRatings has this week announced the appointment of Andrew Eckford as Senior Analyst for Australia effective immediately. Andrew will be in charge of the largest online behaviour database in Australia. More
Employees in Australia and New Zealand are optimistic about 2005, with around four in five feeling that their current job is safe and two thirds that they could find another job quickly if they did lose it, according to the latest poll by Roy Morgan. More
Asia is just as much in the grip of fast food culture as the US or Europe, according to the latest from AC Nielsen – in fact there are three Asian economies where a higher proportion eat take-aways than in the US. More
Nielsen//NetRatings has announced the further extension of its Market Intelligence Internet measurement rollout in Australia, this time to news and weather Web sites. ninemsn's National Nine News and Fairfax Digital's Sydney Morning Herald online publication top the rankings. More
TNS has appointed Stephen Jenke as the new Regional Director of Australia and New Zealand, replacing Trevor Richards who returns to TNS Head Office in London to take up a new role. More
Internet measurement specialist Nielsen//NetRatings has launched three new categories for its audited census-based Internet measurement product, Market Intelligence, within Australia. Results for the three - entertainment, IT, and telecommunications & mobile markets - are available for November. More
ACNielsen has announced two senior appointments in Australia. Paul Richmond, currently MD of ACNielsen Vietnam, becomes MD for Australia while Mr Travyn Rhall, previously MD of Customised Research Services in Australia becomes regional MD for Customised Research Services in Asia Pacific. More
TNS has won a four-way pitch to monitor and evaluate the communications performance and brand health for Tourism Australia. The three-year contract will cover key markets across America, Europe and Asia Pacific. More
The Australian Social & Market Research Society (AMSRS) has announced that its outgoing National President John Sergeant has been awarded the NSW Consumer Advocate Award for his contributions to the protection of consumer privacy. More
Independent business information consultancy The Gist (Asia Pacific) Pty Ltd has been appointed the Australian member of Global Market Research (Global), and international network of agencies working in 28 countries. More
Survey Sampling International (SSI) is continuing its international expansion with the development of a SurveySpot Internet panel in Australia. SSI will work with Stephen Jenke, MD of Information Research Management (IRM) Pty. Ltd., a specialist consultancy in the deployment of online survey software and systems integration. More
TGI has announced the winners of its own 'Olympics', measuring nations' general performance in terms of health, food and sports. Japan, China and Australia take the overall medals with France and Germany also among the individual medals. More
FIRM, the company behind Confirmit online survey & reporting software, has announced that it is preparing for a listing on the Oslo Stock Exchange (OSE). The Initial Public Offering (IPO) is expected to take place in 2005, depending on market conditions. More
Technology specialist Forrester Research has appointed veteran IBM executive Charles Chang to the position of President, Forrester Asia Pacific. Chang was previously founder and MD of US-Asia Pacific technology investment consultants Twin Cypress Group. More
B2b specialist Kadence Business Research has announced the opening of an office in Singapore, with Piers Lee as MD of the newly formed Kadence Asia Pacific and Paul Benning, formerly a Project Director at Synovate Business Consulting, heading up the Desk Research and Market Analysis team. More
It's a good time for market research staff recruitment specialists to celebrate, with record numbers of vacancies around (more than 1,000 ads posted on MrWeb since August 1st). Elizabeth Norman International, with offices in London, Manchester and Sydney, recently marked its 15th Birthday with parties on both sides of the world. More
Ipsos has announced the acquisition of Japan Statistics and Research Co Ltd (JSR). The global group already has a major presence in the market via Ipsos Novaction, specialists in forecasting, modelling and consulting, and combined revenues of the two companies will place it in Japan's Top 5 survey-based MR companies. More
Roy Morgan International, the US division of Roy Morgan Research, has recently announced the purchase of US-based advertising and communications researchers Mapes and Ross. Roy Morgan is Australia's largest independent research organisation. More
Synovate has appointed Mike Sherman in the newly-created role of Executive Director - Consumer Insights, with a special focus on the Hong Kong, Mainland China and Korea markets. More
Australian research consultancy The Leading Edge is moving into a purposely-designed work space, reflecting the company's strong business growth in Victoria since launching in Melbourne only 15 months ago. More
Australian research consultancy The Leading Edge (TLE) has recently joined the newly listed Photon Group Ltd (PGA), a group of specialist marketing services companies which includes direct marketing, PR, design, advertising, retail marketing and merchandising. More
TNS has released interim results for the first half of 2004, showing the effect of the acquisition of NFO. Turnover (including joint ventures) is up 46.1% on the first half of 2003, to £446.0m, while operating profit rises 58.7% to £40.9m. More
Vast numbers in Asia Pacific used the Internet to follow results in the Olympics, according to Nielsen//NetRatings. Australia, New Zealand and the People's Republic of China were especially keen. More
According to the latest figures from TGI, mobile phone ownership levels in Sweden are considerably higher than any other country, at 88% - Great Britain is second with 78% and Japan third with 74%. The study looked at 15 markets. More
Australian agency Market Equity has been named as Western Australia's 'Small Business of the Year'. The independent MR company won the high-profile Telstra WA Small Business of the Year Award as well as the AMP Business Award for businesses with between 50 and 100 employees. More
MMR Food & Drink Research has recruited Chris Marketo as a Research Director for its rapidly growing US arm. The firm is based in Oxford, UK with North American headquarters in White Plains, NY. More
Millward Brown has recently appointed Yuji Hirahara as President of its Japanese subsidiary, complementing other recent senior-level hires in the region. Shishir Varma, who worked previously for MB in China, has been appointed Joint MD of the company, under Mr Hirahara. More
IDC has released preliminary figures showing that the Australian market for PCs reached record levels in the second quarter of 2004. 791,079 units were shipped in the quarter (Desktop and Notebook PCs), representing a solid 8.1% increase from the first quarter of the year. More
The European chapter of the worldwide Mystery Shopping Providers Association is hosting a conference on 'Understanding and Valuing Mystery Shopping' in Paris in September. More
Internet audience specialist Nielsen//NetRatings has this week launched a new audited census-based Internet measurement product – Market Intelligence. The launch results from product consolidation following the recent acquisition of RedSheriff. More
The AGB Group and Nielsen Media Research International have today announced a 50/50 joint venture that will offer television ratings in 30 countries. AGB Group's TV audience measurement services will merge with those wholly owned by Nielsen Media Research International. The deal does not include Nielsen's US TV ratings service. More
The Greeks may have invented the Olympics, but according to figures from TGI they are the globe's most reluctant sporting participants. Only 1% of Greeks claim to play two or more sports, whereas at the other end of the table figures are 59% in urban China and 70% in the USA. The report also gives detailed figures for watching sport on TV. More
Synovate Healthcare has announced several key management appointments, including Bob Douglas as MD – Europe and Asia, Stuart Bartlett as Regional Director Asia Pacific and Louisa Miles in the new role of Global Training Manager. More
Synovate has released data from the Pan Asia Pacific Cross Media Survey (Synovate PAX) for Q2 2003 to Q1 2004. The survey tracks media, prosperity and influence by talking to affluent Asians in eleven markets across the region. More
Thirty-six per cent of the software installed on computers worldwide in 2003 was pirated, according to a study released recently by the Business Software Alliance (BSA). This represents a loss of nearly $29 billion to the major software manufacturers who are its members. More
Internet MR application provider Global Market Insite (GMI) has announced the promotion of Bob Chua to MD of Sales, International. He was previously responsible for managing sales in Asia, and now adds Europe to his responsibilities as well as spearheading the global launch of the new GMI Omnibus. More
As the World Travel & Tourism Council predicts robust growth for the global travel industry during 2004, the latest figures from TGI reveal that while the majority of consumers love the idea of foreign travel, the top holiday hotspots are generally those which are closest to home. More
MrWeb's Career Clinic has been running since 2001, with a series of leading MR recruitment professionals answering questions on how to get into, ahead in and occasionally out of market research. This week the Clinic is relaunched with more than 60 of the more interesting questions divided into easy-to-browse topics and a team of experts ready to answer your questions. More
SPSS has announced the launch of a new product, Text Analysis for Surveys, which aims to provide an efficient way of mining key information from open ended responses and is claimed by one user at least as the 'Holy Grail' of survey text analysis. More
While hot weather in Europe turns many people's attention to the need to work on their tan, Asian women are redoubling their efforts to lighten their skin. Skin-whitening products are increasingly popular across the Asian region, according to new data from Synovate. More
The barbecue season in Britain has extended beyond the traditional summer months, according to food and grocery specialist IGD, with many consumers now barbecuing between March and November. In London and the Midlands IGD found people who barbecue all year round, and overall a slight majority of Britons (51%) now barbecue at home at some time of the year. More
Shipments of VoIP (Voice-over IP or Internet calling) PBX phones in the US are expected to grow at a compounded rate of more than 20% over the next five years, according to a new report from Insight Research. However, VoIP phones in the enterprise will not represent the majority of the installed PBX base until 2009. More
As reported in Research News, the monthly newsletter of the Market Research Society of Australia, this month sees the launch of the new AS4752 in Sydney on 17 June by Standards Australia. The country joins the UK, Spain and France as the fourth nation to introduce an official quality standard for its market and social research industry. More
With online questionnaires growing in importance, industry commentators are advising researchers to brush up their (sometimes rusty) self-completion survey techniques. Aussie researcher Philip Derham has analysed responses to open-ended questions in a number of paper and Web-based surveys and drawn some interesting conclusions. More
Abacus, a division of DoubleClick Inc., a data and research provider to the direct marketing industry, has announced the formation of Abacus Australia, to be based in Sydney with an office in Melbourne. More
Automotive specialist R. L. Polk & Co. has appointed Steve Flinker as Managing Director of its Australian company. He will be based in Melbourne and will report directly to Kevin McCann, Senior Vice President, Asia-Pacific. More
Ciao AG has announced the expansion of its network of proprietary and partner access panels to cover 7 million survey respondents in 37 countries worldwide. Hungary, Ireland, Switzerland, Canada, New Zealand and Taiwan have been added to the Ciao Global Network, bringing the number of approved local panel providers to twenty-two. More
Retail specialist ESA, recently revealed as the fastest growing of the top 20 UK agencies in the BMRA table with a 35% year-on-year turnover increase, has appointed Malcolm McKessar as Operations Manager and Linda Pini as Field Manager. More
Australian research consultancy The Leading Edge has appointed Rebecca Harrison as a senior consultant. Harrison has relocated to Sydney from Spain, where she directed the Barcelona office of an international agency. More
More than half the adult Australian population (51%) now own shares either directly or through a managed fund, according to the annual Share Ownership Study conducted for the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX) by Millward Brown Australia. More
TNS Australia has announced the formation of an exclusive partnership with consultant Chi Chiem - one of the foremost exponents of strategic choice modelling techniques in the Asia Pacific region. More
Synovate has released data from its Pan Asia Pacific Cross Media Survey (Synovate PAX) for the final quarter of 2003. The survey tracks media, prosperity and influence in eleven markets across the Asia Pacific region. More
The homes of Hollywood and Bollywood top the list of 15 movie-going nations covered by the latest TGI data. Thirty-two per cent of Americans and twenty-eight per cent of Indians have been to the cinema at least once in the last month. Around 4% of all Americans went at least four times in the last month - representing around 8.3 million movie fanatics. More
The Australian Labor Party has held a lead in the opinion polls for a while, but until now more people thought the governing Liberal-National Coalition would actually win an election. This weekend, for the first time, Roy Morgan Research's poll showed more people think the ALP will win. More
Ipsos-RSL has announced results from its first Asian Business Readership Survey (ABRS) in three years. The survey provides planners with an understanding of 234,000 top business executives at the largest and most influential companies in the region. More
Synovate has promoted Audrey Tan, currently MD of the Singapore office, to the new role of Executive Director - International Research. She will be based in Hong Kong and will report directly to Asia Pacific CEO Tim Balbirnie. More
Trouble - of rather different sorts - for audience measurement providers on both sides of the Atlantic. The UK's radio audience research body RAJAR is being sued for £66m, while in the US Nielsen Media Research has been criticised by News Corporation over its imminent launch of People Meter technology in New York. More
Automotive specialist R. L. Polk & Co. has appointed Kevin McCann, formerly a regional MD at Volkswagen Group, as Senior Vice President, Asia-Pacific. He will be based in Beijing and will report directly to Chairman, President and CEO, Stephen Polk. More
GfK has announced its preliminary results for 2003, showing an 'outstanding financial year'. Sales increased by 6.4 per cent to EUR 595.1m and EBIT including income from participations by 37.8 per cent to EUR 68.9m. More
Wrap accounts, which enable investors to view all their financial assets on one platform, and which have been popular for some time in the US and Australia, are gaining popularity in the UK. A recent report from Datamonitor estimates that £150bn worth of UK assets could be under wrap administration by 2008. More
Today sees the official launch of a home page for Australian researchers. MrWeb has attracted a significant audience of MR professionals Down Under for most of its 5 years, without much specific targeting, but from today is providing specific feature content, a job search and recruiter index, and directories with a more Australian focus. More
ORC International has announced the opening of an office in Perth, Western Australia, specialising in employee research. More
After 18 months of restructuring and talent search in Australia, Millward Brown's Asia Pacific CEO Andreas Sperling has announced the completion of its new line-up, highlighting four recent senior appointments. According to Sperling, the restructure answers clients' requests for a 'mould-breaking' agency. More
Millward Brown has announced a further enhancement of its Asia Pacific management team, with the appointment of Neerja Wable, previously of IMRB, as Marketing and Business Development Director for the region. More
Global agency Synovate has today announced the acquisition of The Research Business International (TRBI), one of the UK's leading research firms, from a US-based group headed by Maritz Inc. More
Football / Soccer is the world's favourite televised sport, but try guessing which sport comes second, or estimating how many Chinese have attended a live football match in the last 3 months, without the help of Synovate's recent survey of sport watching on 4 continents... More
Almost half the world's adults believe it will be 'less safe' in a generation's time, while just a quarter think it will be safer, according to results presented to a session of the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland this week by TNS / the Gallup International Association (GIA). More
Martin Hamblin GfK Global HealthCare has launched '1st Forecast', a new service for biotech and pharmaceutical companies, to determine the likely market success of a new compound in development. More
The year 2003 was a good one for global and international retailers, according to new research from the grocery industry think-tank IGD. Nine of the top ten groups improved their ratings in its Global Retail League, which is designed to look beyond mere turnover to underlying global capability and strength. More
It's been a busy time for automotive research announcements. This afternoon DRNO provides summaries of four recent stories covering customer loyalty and retention, hybrid and diesel development and the Harris Interactive® Automotive Panel. More
Australian research consultancy The Leading Edge has relocated to a new purpose built work space in Millers Point, New South Wales. In keeping with the company's name and culture, the new offices are state-of-the-art with group rooms featuring simulated supermarket shelves and 360 degree CCTV for observation from anywhere in the building. More
NetRatings has acquired a majority interest in Internet audience measurement specialists RedSheriff. The transaction will help Nielsen//NetRatings to satisfy industry demand for integrated panel-centric and site-centric measurement solutions. More
In case you hadn't noticed, England are rugby union World Champions. The sport has rocketed from eighth place to second equal in popularity, according to research supported by financial services company Zurich and conducted as part of MORI's SportsTracker. In January 2003 just 18% of Britons said they had an interest in rugby: now, it's 27%. For comparison, 45% are interested in football. More
Traditional Christmas cheer from the December edition of HenlEymail, the Henley Centre's electronic newsletter, which reports that the family is alive and well, and growing in importance as a source of emotional sustenance for consumers around the globe. More
Having recently announced the divestiture of Claritas, VNU this week issued a trading update which combines an optimistic assessment of potential for next year with news of widespread cost efficiencies. The latter includes the shedding of almost 700 jobs over the next 3 years in its Marketing Information (MI) group, partly from natural attrition. More
Michael Fox has taken on the role of Director, Advanced Quantitative Techniques (AQT) at Australia's leading research based consultancy, The Leading Edge. More
Bigger than Becks, bigger than Jonny... In a nation of a billion people, Sachin Tendulkar is the most admired celebrity, beating even the Bollywood stars - and cricket is of course the national sporting obsession. In the first of two articles based on a survey by Synovate and Blackstone Market Facts, DRNO looks at sport and celebrity in India. More
VNU has announced a new organizational structure for its largest business group, VNU Marketing Information. Steven Schmidt becomes global CEO for ACNielsen and a new unit, VNU Advisory Services, has been created to develop advanced business solutions for clients. More
Global agency Ipsos has reported significantly improved performance for the first nine months of 2003 – consolidated revenues are 7.3% up on the same period last year, at 400.9m Euros. Organic growth and the impact of newly consolidated companies contributed about evenly to a rise which, excluding negative currency effects, would have been 18.9%. More
Online survey software specialist FIRM have announced a successful first 6 months for their first Asia Pacific partner-reseller, Australian-based Information Research Management Pty Ltd (IRM). IRM was founded in April 2003 and offers Confirmit software, training, consultancy, and support services. More
Web-based survey research and software company Perseus Development Corporation has announced the formation of Perseus-Asia Ltd. The new, Singapore-based corporation will provide local support for existing Asia-Pacific customers and sales support for new business opportunities. More
Renowned Australian agency The Leading Edge has appointed Diane Shelton, who at Telstra was responsible for Australia's largest ever market research budget and marketing department, in the newly created role of Director of its Melbourne Business-to-Business (B2B) division, which was launched in March 2003. More
Australia's Eureka Strategic Research has announced the appointment of two members of staff to the Board, doubling its size - Peter Fairbrother and Jennifer Crawford become Directors and co-owners alongside founders Tom Loncar and MRSA President John Sergeant. More
Jon Wilkinson, Chairman and CEO of Research International, has announced his intention to retire in June 2004. Roger Banks, currently CEO Mainland Europe, will become Group CEO and report in to Kantar CEO Eric Salama. Colin Buckingham moves to the new role of CEO, Global Business while Mark Penn, once President Clinton's pollster, becomes Non-Executive Chairman of the Group. More
Following the recent extension of its agreement with Nielsen Media Research to include Australia and New Zealand, KMR has announced that its TGI Network now covers over 50 countries worldwide, through wholly owned companies and partnerships. More
Ed Laginess, previously Executive VP, Human Resources and Administration at Synovate / Market Facts Inc., has become Millward Brown's first Global Director, Human Resources. More
Ipsos has acquired two Australian agencies, to operate under the existing Ipsos Australia banner. One is the Research Division of the NCS Pearson group, the Australian subsidiary of the British media group Pearson, specialists in data collection, software and systems, the other social research agency Mackay Research. More
The world's businesspeople and analysts see corruption - defined as the abuse of public office for private gain - as rife in most parts of the globe, according to the 2003 'Corruption Perceptions Index' published by Transparency International. Seventy percent of the 133 countries covered score less than half marks, while half the developing countries in the survey score less than 3 out of 10. More
The UK is rapidly becoming a nation of wine drinkers, according to The Drink Pocket Book 2004, published this month. Since 1995, both consumption levels and imports have increased every year, and the volume of wine passed through HM Customs has increased by 55.4%. Brands from the New World and Southern Hemisphere are prominent. More
Viewing figures for Australian Internet users reflect a combination of international interest, domestic concerns and Australian takes on overseas phenomena, according to tables for August released by Web monitoring specialists RedSheriff. More
Synovate has acquired healthcare specialists ISIS Research, based in the UK but with 16 international offices across Europe, Asia and the USA. ISIS will become a key part of the Synovate Healthcare division, which will now be headed up by ISIS Chairman Colin Maitland. More
Synovate have released full year results for Synovate PAX - a survey that tracks 'media, prosperity and influence across Asia Pacific'. Coverage includes purchase of high-end products, business and leisure travel and purchase of financial products, amongst elite consumers. More
Bans on pre-election opinion polls are still in place in many countries, and in some have recently been put in place or increased in scope, according to a recent study conducted by the Foundation for Information in association with ESOMAR and WAPOR. Those maintaining or increasing bans include some EU countries. More
A paper by Research International on 'Managing global brands to meet consumer expectations' has won two of the three main awards from ESOMAR's 2003 Congress in Prague, Czech Republic. Two speakers from GfK Germany won the other award. More
The United Nations is considered to have lost its relevance to solving world problems by a majority of British adults and more than 40 percent in France and Germany, according to a new CNN / TIME poll conducted by TNS. More
Global MR agency Ipsos has announced 'significant growth and an improvement in its margins' in the first half of 2003, with revenue for the 6 months at 264.3m euros, up 8.1% compared with the first half of 2002 despite strong negative currency effects. More
The total value of the worldwide MR market remained flat in 2002 according to ESOMAR's latest global market research study. The 2002 figure of US$16.6bn (Euro 17.6bn) is up in dollar terms but down in Euros due to exchange rate movements. The USA and the EU each accounted for 38% of the total world market in 2002. More
Sales of private label goods, defined as any Consumer Packaged Goods brand that is sold exclusively by a specific retailer or chain, are growing relative to manufacturer brands according to recent research by ACNielsen. More than 95% of Private Label sales are found in Europe and North America but growth is fastest in other regions. More
Net growth of the world's Top 25 research firms, allowing for acquisitions and inflation, has declined from 6.3% in 2000 to 4,1% in 2001 and just 0.7% in 2002 according to the 2003 Honomichl Global 25 report. Their US$10.5bn revenue represents 63% of global commercial research spending, estimated by ESOMAR at $16.6bn. More
Taylor Nelson Sofres plc (TNS) have announced positive interim results for the six months ended 30 June 2003, with steady growth in the market for syndicated and continuous tracking services, but continued pressure in media intelligence and ad hoc customised research. More
Despite sluggish sales in the European consumer electronics sector in early 2003, certain newer technologies are achieving rapid growth, according to a report on the global market for technical durable goods, published by GfK to coincide with a major show in Berlin. More
Australian research consultancy The Leading Edge has become the first research company to be named in the top ten Australian Communications employers, in the benchmark B&T Weekly magazine 'Stop Gap' Employer of the Year Survey 2003. More
Americans may be less likely to travel abroad since September 11th, but according to Harris Interactive® their ideal destinations have not changed much. France has actually recovered from 6th to 4th place in the rankings despite its stance on Iraq. Australia is the no.1 choice for the 7th year running, and the biggest faller this year is Canada. More
Online MR agency Lightspeed Research has announced the launch of the Lightspeed Consumer Panel Web site in Australia. The site signifies the beginning of a planned move into the Asia Pacific market. More
VNU has reported its interim financial statement for the first six months of 2003, showing 'solid underlying results despite weak global economic conditions'. First-half organic growth was led by strong performances from ACNielsen and from the Media Measurement & Information business. More
With the new Premiership 2003/04 football season starting this weekend, traffic to football sites has increased by 33% in the last 12 weeks, now accounting for 0.94% of all Web traffic in the UK, according to Hitwise. The most visited football site is Football365.com, which accounted for 7.26% of football site traffic, and unsurprisingly the most visited club site is Manchester United. More
Temperatures in the UK reached near-record levels yesterday leaving unaccustomed Brits gasping, but some of us are enjoying it, and according to the latest from Datamonitor the sun cream market is recovering from a slump last year. Worldwide sales are also expected to rise. More
Australian research specialist Pricing Decisions has announced the launch of a proprietary technique called 'eValuator', which uses advanced choice modelling methods to understand the value that customers obtain from new and modified products. More
VNU have announced that subsidiary Nielsen Media Research has reached multi-year agreements with divisions of Viacom, Inc. for TV audience measurement services involving all Viacom and CBS television businesses. More
TNS has appointed James Hall as Managing Director, Asia Pacific, with immediate effect. Based in Sydney, Australia, Hall will be responsible for further developing the combined TNS and NFO businesses in Asia Pacific, on both a country and regional level. More
Leading Australian online MR company Whetstone are claiming extraordinary success for an open-ended online discussion technique named 'The Research Confessional'. The system runs open-ended email discussions using a bespoke software package and makes use of a panel of 21,000 people. More
A study sponsored by a US center for mid-and long-term strategic thinking has predicted that the US will continue to lead the IT revolution, while Europe's prioritisation of the protection of existing business will hold it back. The study also looks at the relative strength of Asian economies in IT and the way in which IT may transform the world in the next 20 years. More
Consumers in most countries feel closer to their own culture than they did a few years ago, and more distant from American culture, according to the recent Roper Reports 2003 Worldwide study. Some of the likely causes are short-term and results vary with region, but generally consumers are more likely to be thinking as well as acting local. More
High Profile Australian MR firm The Leading Edge is providing research backing for the Reach Out! Web site, which helps young people get through tough times. A new advertising campaign for Reach Out!, informed by Leading Edge research, will be launched this week across print, radio and online. More
Taylor Nelson Sofres plc has announced the completion of its acquisition of NFO WorldGroup, Inc. (NFO), from The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (Interpublic). The acquisition, which was announced on 14 May 2003, consolidates TNS' position as one of the top three global companies in its industry. More
ESOMAR has been pressing ahead with its 'Quo Vadis project' to promote the convergence of worldwide MR standards, despite recent setbacks in the creation of a Federation of Research Associations. More
Online MR software company FIRM (Future Information Research Management) has announced that founder Bjørn Haugland is to leave the company. More
Once again Tim Henman is a few hours away from a possible Wimbledon semi-final - it would be his fifth - and his official Web site has shot up the rankings in the last week according to data from Hitwise. However, 'though Henman is famously good at the net, he is by no means No.1 on the Web. More
US CPG research giant Information Resources Inc. has announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to be acquired by a newly formed corporation owned by Symphony Technology II-A, L.P. and Tennenbaum Capital Partners, LLC. IRI's Board of Directors has unanimously approved the acquisition. More
In the recent Week of Audience Measurement in Los Angeles, AGB unveiled its latest television audience measurement technology, UNITAM. Radical advances claimed for the technology include measurement of all kinds of TV platforms without requiring embedded codes in the broadcast signal, accurate measurement of time-shifted viewing such as that permitted by TiVo, and simplicity of installation. More
PulseTrain has announced that SPSS MR clients can now analyse their data in Pulsar, the company's end-user survey analysis package. This will allow users to open Quanvert, mrInterview, SAV and other files without requiring any understanding of the original proprietary formats. More
A typical survey will cost over a third more to conduct in the USA or Japan than it does in the UK, France or Germany, according to new research from ESOMAR, the World Association of Research Professionals. The 2003 Research Prices Study invited 407 member companies worldwide to quote for six different types of project. More
The MrWeb site, combining news, jobs, directories, diary and link libraries for market researchers, enjoyed a busiest-ever month in May with record numbers of jobs posted, pages viewed, recruiters advertising and subscribers signed up. On three occasions in the past four weeks, more than 10,000 site pages have been viewed in one day. More
With international career moves growing in popularity in the research community, specialist MR Recruiters Elizabeth Norman International (ENI) will be holding a fact-finding evening for established researchers and planners who are considering a move to Asia or Australia, on 3rd July at the IPA in Belgrave Square, London. More
The Board of MORI, the UK's largest independent MR agency, is entering discussions with a number of potential buyers. The company was the subject of an MBO 3-4 years ago and the decision to invite bids is reportedly in line with the original plan under the venture capital model. A price tag of £100m has been mentioned by the FT, but has not, according to MORI, come from anyone within the company. More
The number of broadband users in Australian homes has grown 150 per cent since April last year, with one million Australians now accessing the Internet by broadband, according to the latest figures from Nielsen//NetRatings. More
Internet research agency RedSheriff has been named as one of the fastest growing technology companies in Australia as cited by Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu in its 2003 Technology Fast 50 programme. More
Weekly book sales dropped by 5% in value the week the Iraq war started, recording the lowest week of revenue for the Australian book industry in 2003, according to the latest data from Nielsen BookScan. More
Nielsen Media Research has recently been awarded a three-year contract to measure radio audiences in Australia. More
In a move to further strengthen its media offer, Australia's leading research consultancy, The Leading Edge, has engaged the skills of top media industry expert, Graeme Uhd. More
In a move set to develop further Australia's leading research-based consultancy, The Leading Edge, the company has appointed UK qualitative research mastermind, Sara Garcia. More
RedSheriff has this week unveiled its new market intelligence capabilities and the results of a demographic survey of more than 60,000 New Zealand Internet users. In Auckland, RedSheriff's Chief Executive Officer, Richard Webb, commented on the progress the New Zealand Internet industry had achieved since the company's unique web measurement methodology was established as the standard by the Online Publisher's Group six months ago. More
E-Tabs has announced its partnership with Insight Marketing Systems (Melbourne, Australia) to market and distribute Research Reporter - market research management and library software - to research buyers in UK and Europe. E-Tabs will be premiering Research Reporter at Esomar's Excellence in Consumer Insights conference in Madrid (30 March - 1 April). More
MrWeb, the publisher of Daily Research News and MRWho, has appointed Michael Kenyon to the new post of Director, US Operations. The move follows a successful year in which the company has consolidated its no.1 position in the UK research job ads market and broadened out into new areas. More
ATR Australia's new regional TAM system was launched last week, providing daily data for five regional markets and twenty three sub markets from a panel of 2,000 homes. More
Nick North, London-based Marketing Director for Roy Morgan International, is to leave the company on February 14 to pursue other interests. Nick North has played an important role in the introduction of Roy Morgan Single Source to the United Kingdom. More
At the Cable and Satellite Broadcasting Association of Asia (CASBAA) convention this week in Singapore when delegates discuss measurement improvements of cable and satellite audiences Taylor Nelson Sofres (TNS) is to highlight the Arbitron encoding technology now being used successfully in TNS's Singapore PeopleMeter system. More
NOP World, the market research division of United Business Media PLC, has recently announced the formation of a new business, RoperNOP Consulting. More
Currently general manager of ATR Australia, Toni Petra, is to take over as chief executive officer from the beginning of next year. More
BookTrack Australia, an ACNielsen Australia and Whitaker joint venture, has announced a change in name to Nielsen BookScan, as parent company, VNU, renames its Media and Entertainment Division under the Nielsen brand worldwide. More
When it comes to major sponsorship events like the World Cup, non-sponsoring companies can choose to take a back seat, or they can apply clever marketing strategies to offset the heavy exposure and endorsement of a competitive brand sponsorship, according to findings from a recent ACNielsen Online study. More
Nielsen Media Research has just announced the appointment of Peter Cornelius to the position of managing director, Nielsen Media Research Australia. More
Lack of job security, a deteriorating global economy, health and the threat of terrorism are all factors keeping consumers in the Asia Pacific region up at night, according to a recent ACNielsen Consumer Confidence Poll conducted in July this year. More
The latest edition of Research News from the Market Research Society of Australia reports that the next Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) survey of the domestic market research industry will go into field in August. More
Forrester Research and amrinteractive and are set to introduce Forrester's business and consumer Technographics into Australia. This was previously only available in the United States and Europe. More
An industry group representing New Zealand's Internet publishers, advertisers and agencies have announced the selection of Red Sheriff and Phoenix for their new Internet ratings and audience measurement figures. More
Nielsen//NetRatings has this week acquired, from AMR Interactive, both the Australian home and work measurement panels and existing Jupiter Media Metrix client contracts for Internet Audience Measurement. More
New Zealand has experienced a surge in business use of the Internet over the last two years or so. This is according to a new survey commissioned by the Ministry of Economic Development. More
Pauline Farrelly, who until a month ago was working at the Market Research Society, has now moved to New Zealand to take up her new role as international marketing manager for In Touch Research. More
Sending and receiving e-mail was the dominant online activity in 12 countries over the past six months, with Australians leading the way, according to the Nielsen//NetRatings First Quarter 2002 Global Internet Trends report. More
Trevor Richards has just been appointed as Managing Director, Taylor Nelson Sofres Australia. Trevor joined TNS down under at the end of last month from the business in Britain where he has successfully managed a number of TNS UK custom research divisions. More
Packaged grocery inflation in Australia settled at a fairly benign 3.5 percent in March 2002, down from 5 percent at the end of 2001.This is according to the latest findings from a new ACNielsen study into grocery prices down under. More
The Market Research Society of Australia (MRSA) has announced it is to hold the inaugural meeting of its new Independent Research Group (IRG) during the first week of May. The group has been set up in response to the reported needs of independent researchers. More
The GfK Group has announced three further expansionary moves in recent weeks. This includes the takeover of Informark in Australian, increasing the participation in the Indian joint venture, ORG-GfK Marketing Services, to 40% and the acquisition of a 35% stake in M2A in France. More
Australia's overall 2001 advertising economy has been depressed by a decline in major category advertising post September 11. This is according to the latest annual advertising expenditure figures released by ACNielsen Media International. More
Over 90% of senior executives in the Australian direct mail industry believe that the country's new Privacy Act will impact on their businesses to some extent. This is according to the detailed findings of the first ACNielsen MailTrack survey of Australian direct mail online released this week. More
Almost two thirds of Australians think the world economy is heading for recession. This is the headline finding from a new Asia Pacific online survey on consumer confidence from ACNielsen. More
It will be no surprise that J K Rowling's 'Harry Potter & the Philosopher's Stone' made No.1 Best Selling Title and Children's Title in Australia in 2001, and that positions 2, 3 and 4 were also dominated by the other three Potter titles, according to BookTrack's Australia's inaugural annual Top 5000 bestseller chart. More
As of today you can register for a free, regular email with details of market research *events* of relevance to you - conferences, seminars, courses, speaker meetings, training, interest groups and others. Select the types of event you want and choose from weekly, fortnightly or monthly emails. Register at www.mrweb.com/input/evt-not.htm or read more details first... More
ATR Australia has recently been selected to provide television audience measurement services for the regional free to air television markets of Queensland, Northern NSW, Southern NSW (including ACT), Victoria and Tasmania. More
Book sales down under have rocketed in the lead up to Christmas. The buying rush has meant that the value of book sales has risen by 23% compared to the corresponding week in 2000. These are the latest figures to be revealed from ACNielsen BookTrack this week. More
Millward Brown is to bring together its Asian and JANZ (Japan, Australia and New Zealand) regions under one management team to better co-ordinate business development in this part of the world. The new region will be known as Millward Brown Asia Pacific, and the consolidation process begins in January next year. More
Latest BookTrack figures show that Australian sales of Peter Carey's "True History of the Kelly Gang" have gone through the roof since the book won the world-renowned Booker Prize, reporting five times as many sales as before the prize was announced. More
Sales of packaged groceries in Australia increased over the last month, in the wake of the September terrorist attacks on the US and the collapse of Ansett, according to ACNielsen's latest Scantrack retail measurement information. More
RedSheriff, the Australian interactive measurement and research specialist, has recently released the results of its first Online Advertising Market Report - The Banner and Beyond. More
ACNielsen Media International has been awarded a contract by The Australian Suburban Newspapers Association to conduct readership surveys over the next two years. More
New research from ACNielsen.consult has revealed that, despite the relative infancy of the Australian Internet b2b marketplace, total trade volume for online exchanges amounted to A$120m for 2000/01. Detailed findings have just been released in its latest iB2B report. More
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