Bidstack (BIDS) the in-game advertising group, announced on Thursday it acquired Minimised Media, or Pubguard, the advertising safety and fraud detection platform.
Pubguard’s software technology automatically reviews advertisements to identify offensive, malicious, illegal ad content and malware which can be blocked at a clients' discretion.
Bidstack said the software is well known and well respected in the digital advertising industry and will be used to protect all of its gaming inventories.
£300,000 worth of Bidstack shares were issued to Minimised Media directors and Mercia Asset Management as consideration for the acquisition.
James Draper, CEO of Bidstack, commented, "As custodians of studio director's artwork the prevention of fraudulent advertising is a priority for us.”
“Pubguard brings a number of technical and commercial upsides to Bidstack. First, we are protecting gamers against fake adverts that, for example, could redirect them to adult content. Second, Pubguard brings the group technology and a brand that is respected in the gaming and digital media space.”
He added: "As we have said previously, our intention is to grow Bidstack to become a significant media owner in the video games market. We stated Q3 would be an important period for us and I believe the purchase of Pubguard, our first venture into growth by acquisition, shows our commitment towards commercial innovation.”
Brand safety and ad fraud have been hot topics in the advertising industry for a number of years, the company said.
According to a recent Brand Safety report, 65% of advertisers are present in non-brand safe environments and there have been numerous calls to tackle these challenges from industry leaders.
Bidstack believes the acquisition provides a ready-made solution to enhance the Bidstack platform and save the Company several months of development time and resources.
Justin Wenczka, CEO of Minimised Media said, "Due to high levels of user engagement we've seen gaming brands targeted by fraudsters so it makes sense for us to focus on an area of great need with the fantastic team at Bidstack.”
“Gaming is part of our company culture so we know the huge potential of unlocking multi-platform ad spaces and the need for increased safety measures to protect its sensitive demographics.”
He added: “Bidstack has a tremendous focus and comprises of some of the best talent in the industry and we're looking forward to achieving great things together moving forward."
Directors at Minimised Media have a 1 year lock up period and Mercia Asset Management have a 6 month lock up period.
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