New York, USA – Tech giant Microsoft has announced that it will be acquiring Xandr, the advertising and analytics division of multinational telecommunications company AT&T. Said acquisition is built on a decade-long relationship between the two companies, including its predecessor companies, and Microsoft for delivering global digital media solutions for advertisers. In fact, Microsoft had recently partnered with Xandr this year as its global media space monetization partner.
With Xandr, Microsoft aims to accelerate the delivery of digital advertising solutions for the open web by combining Microsoft’s audience understanding, technology and global advertising customer base with Xandr’s large-scale, data-driven platforms for advertising.
Some of these platforms include first-party data-centered buying platform Xandr Invest, full funnel marketing offering Xandr Monetize, and native ad buying solution Microsoft Audience Network.
Mike Welch, executive vice president and general manager at Xandr said, “Microsoft’s shared vision of empowering a free and open web and championing an open industry alternative via a global advertising marketplace makes it a great fit for Xandr. We look forward to using our innovative platform to help accelerate Microsoft’s digital advertising and retail media capabilities.”
Microsoft and Xandr both said that they share visions and complementary strengths to empower the open web, where everyone can thrive and do so in a way that is consistent with their commitment to strong data governance and consumer privacy practices.
Mikhail Parakhin, president of web experiences at Microsoft, commented, “With Xandr’s talent and technology, Microsoft can accelerate the delivery of its digital advertising and retail media solutions, shaping tomorrow’s digital ad marketplace into one that respects consumer privacy preferences, understands publishers’ relationships with consumers and helps advertisers meet their goals.”
