TNS Grows in Two Directions

Taylor Nelson Sofres has announced two more additions to its portfolio. It has just completed the acquisition of the broadcast division of BMC News, along with the purchase of the American specialist Elrick & Lavidge Marketing Research (E&L).

The BMC acquisition has proceeded to its final conclusion following a green light from the UK's Office of Fair Trading. This means that the activities of BMC's broadcast division will be combined with the group's existing media intelligence activities in the UK. In consequence, the new division will represent a strong force in broadcast monitoring research.

The E&L acquisition, however, represents a very different kettle of fish. The new addition to the US family will be run as part of TNS Intersearch, and will continue under the remit of servicing consumer, financial services, IT and telecoms clients. It has also built something of a reputation for its work in mystery shopping research in the States.

Commenting on this acquisition, Mike Kirkham, chief executive of Taylor Nelson Sofres, said 'This move adds further growth potential to our US customised business, which grew significantly ahead of the market last year, against a difficult economic backdrop. We will benefit from the quality of the E&L team and their strong client relationships in many of our specialist sectors, while realising administrative cost savings by merging the business with TNS Intersearch.'

Bruce Shandler, head of TNS market research activities in North America, added 'This acquisition will further expand our coverage of the US market and adds mystery shopping to our portfolio of services. At the same time, E&L's clients will benefit from our dedicated focus on market research and the access they are gaining to the Taylor Nelson Sofres global network, our range of branded solutions and Internet research skills.'

All articles 2006-22 written and edited by Mel Crowther and/or Nick Thomas unless otherwise stated.

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