News distribution and analysis firm Cision has acquired Brighton-based social media listening firm Brandwatch in a £325 million deal.
Described as a global leader in digital consumer intelligence, Brandwatch uses machine learning to help thousands of top brands derive insight from the voices of the billions of people using social media.
US-headquartered Cision, which is listed in New York, has a media contact database of approximately a million journalists and media outlets and over 75,000 customers.
It said the strategic move will combine two leaders in their respective industries, with customers benefiting from complementary capabilities including PR, marketing and digital customer engagement.
“The continued digital shift and widespread adoption of social media is rapidly and fundamentally changing how brands and organizations engage with their customers,” said Abel Clark, CEO of Cision.
“This is driving the imperative that PR, marketing, social and customer care teams fully incorporate the unique insights now available into consumer-led strategies. Together, Cision and Brandwatch will help our clients to more deeply understand, connect and engage with their customers at scale across every channel.”
Giles Palmer, founder and CEO of Brandwatch – which has offices around the world – added: “We have always built Brandwatch with ambition.
“Now is the time to take the next step – joining a company of significant scale to create a business and a suite of products that can have an important global impact. We are excited to join Abel and the Cision team to supercharge our work and bring even more value to our customers.”