Dentsu Aegis Buys Gravity Media to Foster Multicultural Marketing

Dentsu Aegis, which has been on a buying spree since the beginning of the year, has purchased Gravity Media, the network's first multicultural acquisition in the U.S. The purchase of Gravity owner Findr Group will serve as the pillar of Dentsu Aegis' dedicated multicultural offering, helping enhance its existing capabilities across multicultural strategy, creative and social and digital media. "As with everything we do, we have to follow the consumer," said Rob Horler, CEO of Dentsu Aegis Network U.S., via email. "With 40% of the U.S. population projected to identify as multicultural within the next five years according to the latest Census data, the acquisition of Gravity will extend our ability to meet clients' needs for stronger and more digitally led multicultural marketing to reach their consumers." Through the deal, Gravity CEO and co-founder Yuriy Boykiv will continue to lead the agency while reporting to Mr. Horler. Financial terms of the acquisition were not disclosed. Some of Gravity's clients include Comcast, Edward Jones, Inter Milan, Christofle, 9/11 Memorial Museum, Western Union and the American Board of Physician Specialties. At the end of May, Gravity announced its development of a data-management platform to help marketers target specific ethnic audiences, like Venezuelan consumers rather than general Hispanic consumers, as well as sub-segments within each group, such as soccer fans or hip-hop lovers. The Audience M tool took about 18 months to develop. Since the beginning of the year, Dentsu Aegis Network has acquired Gyro, Liveposter, Cardinal Path, Accordant, Merkle and, most recently, C2C Outdoor. Last month, Dentsu Aegis hired IBM digital leader and former Leo Burnett veteran Patrick Venetucci as the agency holding company's first president of operations and integration. The network's portfolio already includes agencies such as Carat, Dentsu, 360i, iProspect and McGarryBowen. Dentsu Aegis agencies operate under one profit-and-loss sheet in the U.S.

Dentsu Aegis Buys Gravity Media to Foster Multicultural Marketing

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