Merger Expands Nielsen's TV and Internet Analytics Services
NEW YORK, April 7, 2008 /PRNewswire/ -- The Nielsen Company today
announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire IAG
Research, Inc. for a purchase price of $225 million. IAG is a privately
held company based in New York that measures consumer engagement with
television programs, national commercials and product placements.
The acquisition will be effected through a merger of IAG with a
wholly-owned subsidiary of Nielsen in which IAG stockholders will receive
cash for their IAG shares. The transaction is subject to Hart-Scott-Rodino
review and other typical closing conditions. Nielsen currently intends to
finance the transaction through the issuance of notes, existing facilities
and cash on hand.
Nielsen said it expects to complete the acquisition in the second
quarter of 2008. The executive team of IAG has agreed to join Nielsen
following the merger.
IAG Research conducts research with viewers to measure the
effectiveness of advertising and program engagement across television and
the Internet. Its clients include major advertisers, advertising agencies,
Internet providers, telecommunications services, television and cable
networks and other content providers.
"IAG will add a new dimension to Nielsen's media business and will be
the cornerstone for a new analytics practice that will provide our clients
with even greater insights and clarity," said David L. Calhoun, chairman
and CEO of The Nielsen Company. "We are excited by the energy the IAG team
will bring to the multiple opportunities they will have at Nielsen.
Overlaying their perspective with the vast array of industries and
technologies we touch gives us an opportunity to bring greater clarity and
creativity to our work on behalf of clients."
"We are excited to be joining The Nielsen Company, where IAG will be
able to enhance the services it already supplies to clients" said IAG
co-founders and co-CEO's Alan Gould and Ken Orkin. "By working within
Nielsen we will also be able to make the company's services available to a
wider base of clients. In an increasingly fragmented media landscape, we
believe strongly that advertisers and media companies need the insight that
Nielsen and IAG can provide together."
About The Nielsen Company
The Nielsen Company is a global information and media company with
leading market positions in marketing information (ACNielsen), media
information (Nielsen Media Research), online intelligence (NetRatings and
BuzzMetrics), mobile measurement, trade shows and business publications
(Billboard, The Hollywood Reporter, Adweek). The privately held company is
active in more than 100 countries, with headquarters in Haarlem, the
Netherlands and New York, USA. For more information, please visit,
http://www.nielsen.com.
About IAG Research
IAG Research measures the effectiveness of television advertising,
product placement as well as viewer engagement with TV and the Internet.
IAG Research's suite of measurement products are used by such industry
leaders as American Express, Toyota, General Motors, Ford Motor Company,
Chrysler LLC, Procter & Gamble, Verizon, Sprint, Warner Brothers, VISA,
Merck & Co., Paramount Pictures and major networks such as ABC, CBS, NBC,
FOX, ESPN, and TNT/TBS and MTV. IAG had over $35 million in annual revenue
and positive operating income in 2007, on an unaudited basis. For more
information, please visit, http://www.iagr.net.
SOURCE The Nielsen Company
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