ProSiebenSat.1 strengthens ad tech play with Kairon acquisition

German broadcaster ProSiebenSat.1 has strengthened its move into the ad tech market by acquiring e-commerce marketing outfit Kairon.

Cocomore AG-owned Kairon aggregates the advertising environments and data of over 80 online shops, an activity known as retail media. Advertisers can tailor and target their messages to what the shoppers are actually interested in buying.

The company, with headquarters in Frankfurt, will be part of ProSiebenSat.1’s Advertising Platform Solutions unit, where the company is bundling all of its ad-tech activities.

Kairon enables its clients to place adverts in the combined advertising space within participating retailers, with ads being shown at the point when consumers have signaled an intention to purchase products. The company provides interest-based real-time targeting and is particularly active in the healthcare market, according to ProSiebenSat.1.

In addition to targeting purchasers within fast-moving consumer goods, consumer electronics and pet-care stores, Kairon also enables TV branding campaigns to be extended into retail environments.

The move signals a stronger thrust by ProSiebenSat.1 into ad tech and also into retail, where it owns point-of-sale advertising outfit Marktguru and has a data partnership with Retail Media Group (RMG) to offer targeting based on data from RMG’s retail partner network.

The broadcaster’s Advertising Platform Solutions business has been brought together with its SevenVentures investment arm and digital platforms including Maxdome and the 7TV app in a reorganisation late last year.

ProSiebenSat.1 has been investing heavily in advanced advertising technologies and platforms, recently acquiring a majority stake in social advertising outfit Esome and developing the pan-European EBX advanced advertising platform.