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
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