Octopus today announced that it has made a £2 million (approximately $3.1 million) investment into Affectv, the UK’s leading audience technology company that is transforming the way advertisers approach targeted online media campaigns. The funding from Octopus will be used to support the continued growth of the company as it looks to develop its products and expand its sales and technology teams.
The Affectv technology enables advertisers to be more targeted with their digital advertising. To date most advertisers target their audience online based on what people have previously just browsed or searched for on the internet. Affectv’s solution now enables them to target potential customers based on what information they have actively shared online, which is a much clearer signal of their interest and engagement, enabling companies to achieve more efficient advertising campaigns.
Working in partnership with some of the world’s leading media agencies, Affectv has already achieved significant traction in its market with its technology securing several blue-chip companies among its customers.
Frederic Lardieg, a member of the ventures team at Octopus, stated: “Affectv has developed a really innovative and scalable solution for the online advertising industry. The technology enables companies to develop a sophisticated advertising campaign that can target and access potential new customers based on their social interactions online. The team is impressive and has already proven the value of their technology in its ability to change the way companies approach online advertising. This, coupled with the innovative products that Affectv currently has in its pipeline, makes it a really exciting opportunity. We are looking forward to working with the team as the business enters its next phase of growth.”
Headquartered in the UK, Affectv is now looking to expand into internationally supported by a buoyant online advertising market. For example, the online display advertising market in Europe is expected to grow by 60% over the next three years to €7.7 billion in 2016 from €4.7 billion in 2012, according to Forrester’s latest report. In the UK alone, display advertising across the internet and mobile is currently a £1 billion market currently.
By Lolita A. Alford