You are on page 1of 24

Q4

2014

QUARTERLY NEWSLETTER
In This Issue
Company Summaries
2
Venture Capital Market Update
3
Dstillery
Dstillery Leads Industry as #1 in Inventory Quality
4

Dstillery Named No. 12 on Crains NY Business Best Places to Work in New York City- 2014
5
MediaMath
MediaMath Snaps Up Second Acquisition in a Month
6

MediaMath Expands Mobile Ad Offering Through Apple iAd Integration
7

MediaMath Unveils TerminalOne App Featuring Nielsen Online Campaign Ratings Data
7

MediaMath and Integral Ad Science Join Forces to Improve Advertising Performance and

Drive Marketer ROI
8

MediaMath Expands Global Operations with New Office in Madrid
9
Integral Ad Science
Integral Ad Science Forms Strategic Partnership with Yahoo! Japan
10

TubeMogul Strikes Deal with Integral Ad Science to improve ad viewability
11

Integral Ad Science Hires Dave Marquard, Former Googler, IBMer, to Lead Publisher Products
11

Forbes: Americas Most Promising Companies
12
Skyword
Skyword Is On Fire - News Hub Names Skyword One of Hottest Companies in Boston
13
Localytics
Former Constant Contact Executive Joins Localytics as Chief Marketing Officer
14
Pixability
Pixability and L2 Measure Luxury Fashion Brands YouTube Competency in Joint Study
16
Qualia
Qualia Partners with Places to Prove That Mobile Campaigns Influence Consumers Path to Purchase

In The Physical World
18

Qualia Recognized by SmartCEO and Stevie Awards for Innovation and Growth
19

Qualia Named Finalist for Red Herring 100 Global Awards
19
CraveLabs
CraveLabs and Promoboxx Partner to Deliver Targeted Hyperlocal Mobile Advertising
21
LISNR
Our picks for Cincinnati startups to watch in 2015
23

Dear Friends,
Progress Ventures (PV) portfolio companies have benefitted greatly from a rising tide of venture capital activity, particularly within the digital
marketing sector, over the course of 2014. We have summarized some accomplishments by each company, provided our thoughts on current
trends in the venture capital market, and gathered a relevant collection of media coverage in the pages that follow.

Fund 1
Dstillery ranked No. 1 in inventory quality due to its commitment to protect audiences from digital advertising fraud. The company was

also named No. 12 on Crains NY Best Places to Work in New York City.

MediaMath integrated its services with Apples iAd platform, giving marketers access to over 250,000 apps on Apple devices, and has

partnered with Integral Ad Science in an effort to improve media quality and effectiveness. MediaMath also released a new T1 app,
which provides marketers with access to Nielsons Online Campaign Ratings data. The company acquired Rare Crowds, a programmatic
ad tech vendor, in late 2014 and opened a new office in Madrid in early 2015.

Integral Ad Science formed partnerships with Yahoo! JAPAN and TubeMogul, and was ranked No. 15 in Forbes 2015 List of

Americas Most Promising Companies.

Fund 2
Skyword was named one of Bostons 50 Hottest Companies for 2014 by BostInno.
Simpli.fi is now integrated with 14 significant exchanges across mobile, video, and display inventories. Its focus remained on servicing
local programmatic media buyers during 2014, and anticipates its growth trends to continue into 2015.

Localytics announced former Constant Contact VP Josh Todd as Chief Marketing Officer, and reported record numbers of engaged

app users in December 2014.

Trust Metrics announced the transition of CEO Andrew Lerner out of the company and the addition of Jeremy Davis as new CEO. The

company continues to perform well, posting revenues and profit aligned with last years forecasting.

Pixability partnered with L2 to measure the YouTube competency of luxury fashion brands.
Qualia partnered with Placed to better understand consumers path-to-purchase. Qualia received recognition in the Red Herring 100
Global Awards, SmartCEO Future 50 Awards, and Stevie Awards for Women in Business.

Fund 3
CraveLabs and Promoboxx have partnered to deliver targeted, hyperlocal mobile ads using integrated techology.
LISNR was named a Cincinnati startup to watch in 2015 by the Cincinnati Business Courier.

Venture Capital Market Update


Venture capital saw significant growth across a number of metrics in 2014. Invested capital reached $48.3 billion across 4,356 deals (which
remarkably averages over $10M invested per deal) an all time high since 2000, according to a report by PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP (PwC)
and the National Venture Capital Association (NVCA). Additionally, venture funds raised $5.6 billion in 2014, the highest level since 2007 and
a 69% increase over the annual total from 2013, according to the NVCA. Exits have likely been the source of this growth with just as impressive
numbers logged for the year. 2014 saw 115 venture backed IPOs (cumulatively valued at $15 billion), and 455 acquisitions of venture backed
companies (cumulatively valued at $46 billion) to represent that M&A deals drive 80% of exits by count and 75% of exits by value.

Progress Ventures Update


As you may have noticed with the delivery of this newsletter, we have completed the re-design of our brand. This will soon play out across
all forms of our communication with the market, including our web site. This is the result of an effort to bring an indepence to the Progress
Ventures brand, from its origins within our investment banking practice (Progress Partners). Our new brand is a reflection of the current
and active role our investing and investment management plays to mature and realize value from the entrepreneurs and start-ups we support.
We have built Progress Ventures to invest funds where we see opportunity, access, and potential. In support of our approach, a report by
Cambridge Associates (CA) from the fourth quarter of 2014 looked closely at the performance of sector focused funds vs. generalist funds.
We were happy to see, mirroring our own past research, that CA found a 33% premium on the performance of specialist funds from 2001
2010 over generalist funds. Further, the competitive advantages CA listed for specialist funds: sourcing/portfolio company selection, postacquisition value add, and exiting investments strongly resonates with our model and thesis for the firm.
This is no guarantee, and our success is not dictated by any reports or metrics that study the past, but we feel better about our place in the
market than we every have before. Our active portfolio of 11 companies and 12 investments are in various phases of growth and we will
continue to support them all. Not only to continue growth, but to make sure we bring them every opportunity to see the best exit for our
investors. In 2014, out of the 11 companies, 5 raised new rounds of financing at a markup to the prior round, and we anticipate a couple more
rounds of financing in the portfolio in 2015. While we cannot predict the exact impact on our funds, we do see continued consolidation in the
media and marketing technology landscape and would not be surprised by an exit in the portfolio, be that M&A or an IPO.
Parallel to our brand re-design, and carrying momentum from the first two funds weve invested, is the launch of our third fund. We are actively
raising capital to continue our investing into emerging marketing and media technologies, and welcome any Qualified Investors to learn more
about the fund. Interested individuals should reach out to Sam for further information.
As always, thank you for your support and interest in our firm. We hope youve had a strong 2014 and wish you the best for 2015.

Nick MacShane
General Partner
nick@progressventures.com

Sam Thompson
General Partner
sam@progressventures.com

TOM PHILLIPS | DSTILLERY CEO

Dstillery Leads Industry as #1 in Inventory


Quality
Dstillery Press Release, Published in MarketWired

| October 9, 2014

http://mwne.ws/1oCjF8Z

Dstillery (formerly Media6Degrees) is at the forefront of


advertising technology, pioneering new ways to create
brand value for marketers by extracting signals from the
complete customer journey and activating them across all
screens. The company is building on five years of leading
the data revolution in marketing to drive even greater
impact for each of its brand. They work with over 400
top-tier brands, and have been recognized as one of Forbes
Top 100 Most Promising Companies in America and
Crains Best Places to Work in New York.
For more information, visit: http://www.dstillery.com

Dstillery, the pioneer in cross-device audience targeting for brands,


today released its quarterly IQR (Inventory Quality Report), with
detailed findings from two independent third parties, Integral Ad

Science (IAS) and White Ops. The report revealed that Dstillery
continues to significantly outperform the industry in inventory

quality, even surpassing results for direct publishers. The company


has once again proven its commitment to quality, with over 97%

of inventory demonstrated to be bot-free across its full suite of


campaigns. Advertising fraud has grown to be an insidious problem
for the industry, with the Interactive Advertising Bureau estimating
that $11 billion is wasted by marketers on fake inventory every year.

We are, and intend to remain, the most aggressive company in the

exchange ecosystem in rooting out the bad stuff and buying only
the best impressions for our marketers, said Tom Phillips, CEO of
Dstillery. While we are not surprised by the results, we welcome
the ongoing validation from IAS and White Ops as they are the

most reputable sources in the market today. Since we implemented


our patented anti-fraud protections in 2012, we continue to outpace
others and are repeatedly told by our supply partners that nobody
takes inventory quality as seriously as we do.

According to the report, Dstillery maintained less than 3% of ad fraud

numerical rankings online at crainsnewyork.com Friday, Dec. 5 and

across the companys impressions spanning across all campaigns. In

in Crains New York Business print edition Monday, Dec. 8. The data

comparison, industry data from the IAS Q2 Report shows that direct

was supplied by contracted independent research firm Best Companies

publishers experienced a rate of 3.5% of total impressions categorized

Group, which is responsible for the entire registration and survey

as high risk of being bot or non-human traffic; networks saw a rate of

process, analysis of the data and final rankings.

10.5% and exchanges experienced a rate of 16.5%.


Organizations making the list were honored at an event on Dec. 5.
Digital advertising fraud remains an ongoing problem for our
industry and we applaud Dstillery for proactively taking steps to

An alphabetical listing of the 100 companies named as Best Places to

curtail its impact, said Scott Knoll, CEO of Integral Ad Science.

Work in New York City, appeared on Crains New York Business website

Such vigilance is necessary to ensure that advertisements arent being

crainsnewyork.com Wednesday, Oct. 1.

served to bots, which costs advertisers, and erodes their confidence in


the effectiveness of digital.

To be considered for participation, companies had to meet the following


eligibility requirements:

Digital ad fraud is a pervasive problem that cant be solved unless

Be a for-profit business or not-for-profit organization

all of the players take a stand and take action, said White Ops CEO,

Be a publicly or privately-held business

Michael Tiffany. The competitive industry numbers that Dstillery

Have a facility in New York City

has been able to achieve when it comes to combating ad fraud are

Have a minimum of 25 full-time or part-time employees working

impressive and a model for others to follow..

in New York City (Manhattan, Bronx, Brooklyn, Staten Island and


Queens)

Dstillery Named No. 12 on Crains NY Business


Best Places to Work in New York City- 2014:
Marks 3rd Consecutive Year of Recognition
Dstillery Press Release, Published in MarketWired

| December 8, 2014

http://mwne.ws/1yIPM9F

Be in business a minimum of one year

Companies from across the city entered the two-part survey process
to determine the Best Places to Work in New York City. The first part
(25% of the ranking) consisted of evaluating each nominated companys
workplace policies, practices, philosophy, systems and demographics.
The second part (75% of the ranking) involved an employee survey to
measure the employee experience. The combined scores determined

Dstillery was recently named as one of the Best Places to Work in New

the top companies and the final ranking.

York City. Crains New York Business, the Human Resource Association
of New York, the Society of Human Resource Management and Best
Companies Group created this seventh annual program.
This survey and awards program was designed to identify, recognize
and honor the best employers in New York City, benefiting the citys
economy, workforce and businesses.
This years list is comprised of 100 companies, up from 75 in 2013.
Recognized as one of the top technology companies among the 34
featured in 2014, this is the third consecutive year Dstillery has made
the list.
Crains New York Business reported, published and promoted the

JOE ZAWADZKI | MediaMath CEO

MediaMath Snaps Up Second Acquisition


in a Month
MediaMath Press Release, Published in PR Newswire

Based in New York with 12 locations across five

| November 12, 2014

http://prn.to/1Db5vh3

continents, MediaMath develops digital marketing


technology and offers deep industry expertise, enabling
marketers to connect with consumers individually and
at scale across the entirety of the worlds digital media.
MediaMaths TerminalOne Marketing Operating System

In an effort to improve advertising media quality for consumers and


brands alike, MediaMath has partnered with Integral Ad Science,
the leading global provider of actionable advertising intelligence for
buyers and sellers of digital media.

enables marketers to customize their own technology

MediaMath clients can now take advantage of Integrals pre-bid

infrastructure and leverage their data and industry data

targeting solution, Bid Expert, as well as its TRAQ (TRue Advertising

in the planning, execution, optimization and analysis of

Quality) media quality score within the TerminalOne Marketing

digital marketing programs, resulting in smarter decisions


that grow their business. Powering the operations for

Operating System to improve brand safety, viewability, fraud


detection, and overall media quality. This partnership will further
enable marketers to control the quality and maximize the value of

thousands of marketers, including those representing 55

every impression to help ensure the greatest impact. Coupled with

percent of the Fortune 100, TerminalOne enables its users

MediaMaths market-leading campaign management tools and

to drive transformative business results across the entire

intelligent machine-learning algorithms, media quality data from Bid

digital ecosystem.
For more information, visit http://www.mediamath.com

Expert will reinforce marketers ability to optimize towards desired


business outcomes and combat those who perpetrate the exploitation
of digital advertising.
Like MediaMath, Integral is committed to creating an online
environment that yields greater results and control to marketers,
said Greg Williams, Co-Founder and SVP OPEN Partnerships for
MediaMath. By combining our own proprietary tools and processes
with those of Integral Ad Science, and focusing on measurably superior

outcomes, we can identify and avoid fraud and other undesirable

Ari Buchalter, chief operating officer at MediaMath, said: With

activity. We look forward to collaborating with Integral even further

marketing budgets rapidly shifting towards programmatic, and

to enable marketers to see the maximum potential of their advertising

the continued rapid growth of mobile, iAd brings a powerful

investment.

combination of global scale, unique and rich data, and a high-quality


user experience.

Leaders in the space, MediaMath and Integral are dedicated to


evolving an ecosystem that provides value and transparency to

Jeff Allen, vice president of eCommerce at American retail company

all participants. Beyond providing tools to help marketers ensure

L.L. Bean, one of the first businesses to leverage iAd via MediaMath,

high-quality environments for their advertising, both are strongly

added: MediaMath continues to innovate and stay ahead of the

committed to continuing to educate the industry on best practices for

curve through strategic partnerships and product innovation, and

mitigating risk, optimizing performance, understanding the truths

their integration with Apples iAd platform is no exception.

around factors like viewability, fraud, and delivering the actionable


data and insights that marketers demand.

The rich targeting data, expansive reach across mobile devices, and
high-impact ad units allows us to further engage our target audiences

We are excited that MediaMath has integrated our media quality

and even expand to new demographics.

targeting segments, reinforcing an outcomes-oriented approach


to improving campaign performance and budget efficiency, said

Last week Apple announced that it had partnered with automated

Michael Iantosca, Chief Revenue Officer, Integral Ad Science. Now,

advertising company Rubicon Project in a move that suggests the

MediaMath customers can take an even more intelligent approach to

tech giant is getting serious about its ad business.

buying with the addition of our granular and dynamic scores of media
inventory.

MediaMath Expands Mobile Ad Offering


Through Apple iAd Integration

MediaMath Unveils TerminalOne App Featuring


Nielsen Online Campaign Ratings Data
MediaMath Press Release, Published in PRNewswire

| December 2, 2014

http://prn.to/1Db75j2
By Laura Bracher, Published in M&M Global

| November 25, 2014

http://bit.ly/1Db5SIr

MediaMath, creator of the TerminalOne Marketing Operating System


(T1), today released a new T1 app, which enables access to Nielsens

Digital marketing specialist MediaMath has announced the

Online Campaign Ratings data on campaign performance and the

integration of its services with Apples iAd platform to offer

ability for marketers to incorporate this data into all programmatic

marketers the ability to run ad campaigns within more than 250,000

efforts within a single interface.

apps on Apple devices globally.


Comparable to Nielsen TV ratings, Nielsen Online Campaign Ratings
MediaMath clients which incorporate iAd into their digital

provide marketers with greater insight into the efficacy and reach of

marketing efforts will be able to engage consumers with rich ad

their campaigns, allow them to measure the performance of their

experiences across a wide range of mobile devices, according to

online and mobile audiences, and more strategically align campaigns

MediaMath.

across screens for greater ROI.

Advertisers will be able to use Apples targeting data or automatically


find the best audiences for a given ad using insights from billions of
Apple transactions.

Through the MediaMath app, T1 users can:

Access daily unique reach, frequency, and TV metrics like GRPs


to measure the on-target performance of online audiences across
both video and display campaigns

Identify and measure the audience exposed to any online


campaigns regardless of campaign size or duration with
demographic and geographic data (i.e., gender, age, and location)

Verify which strategies are most effective and thus, reallocate


spend to maximize budget.

For additional information about the app, please visit the OPEN
App Marketplace.

Nielsen has been a trusted source for marketers for decades and with
Online Campaign Ratings, they are setting a new industry standard for
digital marketing, said Greg Williams, Co-Founder and SVP OPEN
Partnerships of MediaMath. By aligning with them to enable access
to Nielsen Online Campaign Ratings data through the MediaMath T1
app, were not only simplifying campaign measurement, but ensuring
greater consistency in how marketers measure, evaluate, and optimize
marketing performance.
The MediaMath app also enables marketers to consolidate their
workflow into one platform. Users can seamlessly tag their creative
and generate Nielsen Online Campaign Ratings reports from a
centralized location, eliminating the need to toggle back and forth
between two systems.
We aim to offer flexibility and choice by making Online Campaign
Ratings available through a number of ad platforms, said Andrew
Feigenson, Managing Director, Digital, Nielsen. Were pleased to
continue working with MediaMath to provide the market solutions
that help advertisers better reach their key customers.
MediaMath will continue to expand its relationship with Nielsen, with
plans to offer its Online Brand Effect (OBE) optimization solution,
as well as open up access to standard and custom syndicated data
segments through Nielsen Audience Measurement Segments, offering
both syndicated and custom precision marketing solutions.

Join Forces to Improve Advertising


Performance and Drive Marketer ROI
MediaMath Press Release, Published in PR Newswire

| January 20, 2015

http://prn.to/1Db5vh3

In an effort to improve advertising media quality for consumers and


brands alike, MediaMath has partnered with Integral Ad Science,
the leading global provider of actionable advertising intelligence for
buyers and sellers of digital media.
MediaMath clients can now take advantage of Integrals pre-bid
targeting solution, Bid Expert, as well as its TRAQ (TRue Advertising
Quality) media quality score within the TerminalOne Marketing
Operating System to improve brand safety, viewability, fraud
detection, and overall media quality. This partnership will further
enable marketers to control the quality and maximize the value of
every impression to help ensure the greatest impact. Coupled with
MediaMaths market-leading campaign management tools and
intelligent machine-learning algorithms, media quality data from Bid
Expert will reinforce marketers ability to optimize towards desired
business outcomes and combat those who perpetrate the exploitation
of digital advertising.
Like MediaMath, Integral is committed to creating an online
environment that yields greater results and control to marketers,
said Greg Williams, Co-Founder and SVP OPEN Partnerships for
MediaMath. By combining our own proprietary tools and processes
with those of Integral Ad Science, and focusing on measurably superior
outcomes, we can identify and avoid fraud and other undesirable
activity. We look forward to collaborating with Integral even further
to enable marketers to see the maximum potential of their advertising
investment.
Leaders in the space, MediaMath and Integral are dedicated to
evolving an ecosystem that provides value and transparency to
all participants. Beyond providing tools to help marketers ensure
high-quality environments for their advertising, both are strongly
committed to continuing to educate the industry on best practices for
mitigating risk, optimizing performance, understanding the truths

MediaMath and Integral Ad Science

around factors like viewability, fraud, and delivering the actionable


data and insights that marketers demand.

We are excited that MediaMath has integrated our media quality

Im excited to join MediaMath as the company expands further into

targeting segments, reinforcing an outcomes-oriented approach

the region, Gonzalo commented, Renowned in the industry as a

to improving campaign performance and budget efficiency, said

leader in programmatic technology, MediaMath empowers marketers

Michael Iantosca, Chief Revenue Officer, Integral Ad Science. Now,

by delivering goal-based marketing to meet the specific needs of their

MediaMath customers can take an even more intelligent approach to

business. I look forward to accelerating our growth and building

buying with the addition of our granular and dynamic scores of media

excellent business relationships in Spain.

inventory.
Jose Luis Valdivielso, COO at Affiperf Spain and Latam, commented,
MediaMaths expansion is testament to the growth of the Spanish

MediaMath Expands Global Operations


with New Office in Madrid
MediaMath Press Release, Published in PR Newswire

| October 16, 2014

http://prn.to/1Db7IZJ

digital advertising market. We look forward to working more closely


with the team and the local support they will provide.
The news follows the recent appointment of Richard Beattie as Senior
Vice President Commercial, EMEA at MediaMath, as well as office
openings in France, Japan and Sydney.

MediaMath, the creator of the TerminalOne Marketing Operating


System for digital marketers, today announced the opening of a new
office in Madrid, Spain, further building on MediaMaths established
presence in EMEA.
This latest expansion is fueled by the regions growing demand
for programmatic technology, as well as requests from global and
domestic clients for on-the-ground expertise in Spain.
MediaMath also announced the appointment of Gonzalo Garcia as
Country Manager, Spain. Garcia brings a wealth of experience gained
from his extensive digital career spanning more than 15 years and
comes to this role from programmatic trading company Targetopia,
where he was Managing Director. Prior to Targetopia, he led global
trading desk, Affiperf, as Chief Operations Officer, Spain. Garcia will
be responsible for bolstering MediaMaths presence across the region,
and developing deeper relationships with current and prospective
clients.
Dave Reed, Managing Director EMEA at MediaMath, commented:
Spain is a significant focus for MediaMath and the opening of a new
office in Madrid demonstrates our deep commitment to the market.
With programmatic investment in Spain poised for significant growth,
Gonzalos insight and experience of the advertising industry and
agency trading desks in particular will be invaluable to our clients. We
are delighted to welcome him to the team.

SCOTT KNOLL | Integral Ad Science CEO

Integral Ad Science Forms Strategic


Partnership with Yahoo! Japan
Integral Ad Science Press Release

Integral Ad Science is a technology company focused

| November 13, 2014

http://bit.ly/1CsfH6z

on ensuring safe, quality media environments for


online advertisers. Employing the industrys only media
valuation platform, Integral Ad Science evaluates the
media environment and establishes a TRAQ Score (True
Advertising Quality), a first-of-its kind, quantifiable

Integral Ad Science, the leading global provider of actionable


advertising intelligence for buyers and sellers of digital media, today
announced that it is entering the Japanese market, providing brand
safety measurements through a strategic partnership with Yahoo!
JAPAN.

measure of media quality that ultimately benefits every


media buyer, seller, publisher and trading platform. TRAQ

Following successful launches in many other international markets,

score supports an advertisers ability to plan, execute

Integral Ad Science is thrilled to formally launch our operations in the

and target their audience in an environment that reflects


their brand image and drives ROI, while simultaneously

Japanese market, said Bryan St. John, SVP International, of Integral


Ad Science. Partnering with Yahoo! JAPAN allows us to properly
cater to the local market and customize the product to its specific

setting benchmarks for publishers who wish to improve

needs. We are pleased to be working with Yahoo! JAPAN and relying

the quality of their media, content and design. Integral

on their local expertise

is headquartered in New York with operations in San


Francisco, Chicago, London, Tokyo, Singapore and Sydney.
For more information, visit http://integralads.com

Integral has invested significant resources to develop a localized brand


safety product, in collaboration with Yahoo! JAPAN, specifically for
the Japanese market that takes into account the languages complexity.
Yahoo! JAPAN will be able to apply this solution to the Yahoo! JAPAN
Premium DSP and as applied, the offering will continue to grow more
robust through machine learning, human verification, and other
proprietary methods.

10

Integral Ad Science is a recognized industry leader for its innovations


in the brand safety capabilities that well be applying, said Osamu

Dolan added: Integral Ad Sciences TRAQ can empower brand

Aranami, Corporate Officer, President of Marketing Solutions

advertisers to verify that they are placing ads on quality media and

Company of Yahoo! JAPAN. Were excited to team up with them

optimize their campaigns based on several page environment and ad

given the need in the Japanese marketplace for this technology and

exposure attributes combined.

the benefits it will provide to the marketers working with us.


The Integral Ads technology will supplement TubeMoguls own
On the heels of this partnership announcement, Integral will open an

viewability software, launched last year, as well as TubeMoguls brand

office in Q1 2015 in Tokyo, making its full suite of products available

safety technology.

to the Japanese market.


TubeMoguls clients will be able to see their TRAQ Video score

TubeMogul Strikes Deal with Integral Ad


Science to improve ad viewability
Integral Ad Science Press Release

| November 26, 2014

http://bit.ly/1xYWsfO

alongside TubeMogul metrics, providing side-by-side verification


across open exchange inventory as well as inventory purchase directly
from publishers.
Video branding via programmatic technology works well when
brands run their campaigns in a single platform and advertisers are
provided with all the right tools to verify and boost performance, said

TubeMogul, the leading software company for digital branding,

TubeMogul South East Asia Managing Director Phu Truong. Brands

announced a partnership with Integral Ad Science to provide

want independent verification of their digital video advertising

TubeMoguls clients across Asia-Pacific with independent verification

performance and this technology alliance delivers that.

on the placement and performance of their digital video advertising.


The alliance in Asia-Pacific is aimed at enabling brand advertisers
to verify placement and measure if consumers are actually viewing
online video ads. TubeMogul is the first programmatic video ad-

Integral Ad Science Hires Dave Marquard,


Former Googler, IBMer, to Lead Publisher
Products

buying provider to integrate Integrals reporting and optimization


data into its platform.

IntegralAds Press Release

| December 16, 2014

http://bit.ly/1yVon4s

The Integral Ads platform is used by brands and agencies to verify


the effectiveness of their video campaigns and better optimize their
overall media strategy. Integrals TRAQ Video Score provides an
impression-level score based on brand safety, ad viewability, fraud,

Integral Ad Science, the leading global provider of actionable


advertising intelligence for buyers and sellers of digital media, today
announced that Dave Marquard, a veteran in product management,

professionalism, and other video metrics.

has been brought on to spearhead the companys added focus on

Advertisers across the world are seeking solutions that enable

Products. Based in New York City, Marquard reports to David Hahn,

them to secure high quality media placements and viewable, fraud


free impressions, said Integral Ads Asia-Pacific Managing Director
Stephen Dolan. We have partnered with TubeMogul in the AsiaPacific region because they have the same commitment to boosting
view rates for video ads, and their programmatic platform has an
excellent track record with brand advertisers.

publisher analytics as Director of Product Management, Publisher


SVP of Product Management and Customer Service.
Integral Ad Sciences long-standing relationship with top advertisers
arms us with the knowledge and data needed to help publishers
understand and improve upon the metrics that they are being
evaluated on, said Dave Marquard, Director of Product Management,

11

Publisher Products, Integral Ad Science. We are excited to provide


discrepancy-free media quality metrics, including viewability, fraud
and TRAQ, on all sides of the campaign.
Given the increasing market focus on the value of private exchanges
and premium reserved buys, Integral will enable publishers to provide
guarantees and forecasts using media quality as a benchmark. Existing
integrations with premium publishers has verified market need. In
his new role, Marquard will oversee this initiative, uniting the buyers
and sellers of media with one singular system of measurement, across
private and public marketplaces.
Daves experience is perfect to direct our advancements in this space,
said Scott Knoll, CEO of Integral Ad Science. As we continue to fill
out his team with engineers, client services managers, and account
executives, we are confident that we will be disruptive in the market.
Previously a product manager on Googles mobile ad platforms,
Marquard has also held leadership roles at leading Internet technology
and enterprise software firms, including IBM and Lombardi Software.
Marquard was an endowed scholar in engineering at Duke University,
and received an MBA from Dukes Fuqua School of Business.

Forbes: Americas Most Promising


Companies
Integral Ad News

| January 21, 2015

http://bit.ly/18kwiy8

In Forbes 2015 List of Americas Most Promising Companies Integral


Ad Science comes in #15 of 100 companies:
Integral Ad Science is a technology vendor that enables digital buyers
and sellers to assess the quality of digital media, across channels and
screens, and provides tools for optimization. Founded by Bryan St.
John, Helene Monat, Will Luttrell, and Kent Wakeford, the firm is now
headed by CEO Scott Knoll. in 2015 the company will continue its
international expansion, including regions like Europe and Asia.

12

TOM GERACE | Skyword CEO

Skyword Is On FireNews Hub Names


Skyword One of Hottest Companies in
Boston
Skyword Press Release

| December 8, 2014

http://bit.ly/1xZ1CbH

Skyword delivers all that marketers need to reach and


engage their audiences with quality, original content
designed to succeed in search and social media. Quality
content is essential for reaching and engaging consumers

Skyword has been named one of Bostons 50 hottest companies by


BostInno for 2014. We accept the award for best in marketing and
advertising in the city alongside our peers clypd, Havas Media, Fisku,
and DataXu.

today, but the creation process is messy, inconsistent and


immeasurable. The Skyword Platform makes it easy to
produce, optimize, and promote content at any scale to
create meaningful, lasting relationships with customers.
Skyword also provides access to a community of thousands
of professional writers, and its content strategy and

BostInno announced the winners of the 3rd annual 50 on Fire awards


in celebration on Thursday, December 4, 2014, at the John Joseph
Moakley Courthouse. The event honors those driving innovation
in Boston and beyond by recognizing the years 50 most luminary,
disruptive, and newsworthy people and organizations across
industries.

editorial teams can help ensure the ongoing success of


clients content programs. Skyword is a privately held,
privately funded company headquartered in Boston,
Massachusetts. Investors include Allen & Company,
Progress Ventures, Cox Media Group, and American

Skyword has seen extraordinary growth in 2014, acquiring video


marketplace and technology solution Vidaao, , securing $11 million
in new funding, opening offices in Palo Alto and New York City, and
launching a new brand to tighten its grip on the industry as the clear
leader for content marketing technology and services.

Public Media Group.


For more information, visit http://www.skyword.com.

Were so excited that BostInno has recognized Skywords extraordinary


work this year. Its particularly gratifying to be honored by our peers in
Bostons innovation economy, Skyword CEO Tom Gerace said. Were
grateful and excited to continue to accelerate through 2015.

13

RAJ AGGARWAL | Localytics CEO

Former Constant Contact Executive Joins


Localytics as Chief Marketing Officer
Localytics Press Release

Localytics is the leading marketing and analytics platform

| October 30, 2014

http://bit.ly/103zcD0

for mobile and web apps. Localytics works with some of


the worlds most well-known brands, like eBay, Salesforce,
Microsoft and The New York Times, helping them create
great experiences for their customers and maximizing
profitability, engagement, lifetime value and loyalty.

Company Also Adds Leaders from LogMeIn, ExactTarget


and Brightcove to Executive Team
Localytics, the leading app marketing and analytics platform,
announced the addition of Josh Todd as chief marketing officer.

Localytics provides analytics and marketing for more than

Formerly vice president of customer acquisition and marketing for

1 billion devices across more than 20,000 apps. Localytics

Constant Contact, he will oversee global marketing, branding and

headquarters are located in Boston, MA.

advertising for the company.

For more information, visit http://www.localytics.com

Josh brings 18 years of experience to Localytics. Most recently, he was


the architect of the successful, high-volume customer growth strategy
for Constant Contact, helping to grow the company from 50,000
customers to over 600,000. He was also the general manager of website
strategy for the company, where he led the evolution of their digital
strategy from a single product focus to a multi-product suite. He also
spent time at Staples, where he applied in-depth consumer knowledge
and new technology investments to help grow their customer base.
Josh is a great example of a marketing leader who fuses a data-driven
approach with smart technology decisions, all while focused on a
great customer experience, notes Raj Aggarwal, CEO and co-founder
of Localytics. For Localytics, he will grow our team and global
marketing strategy with the same focus. His extensive knowledge

14

of marketing and data in todays digital world will help us develop

over to new devices or upgrading their operating system.

the most comprehensive solution for app marketing and mobile


engagement.

Meanwhile the Localytics Q4 App Launches Index found that apps


are opened more than 10 times per month, consistent with Q3. By

In addition to Josh, Localytics has added Lou Orfanos, vice president

comparison, the average number of app launches per month recorded

of product to their executive team. Previously vice president of product

in early 2013 was 8.6 and in 2012 was 7.

for LogMeIn, Lou led the team and vision that turned join.me into the
worlds leading collaboration tool and the companys fastest growing

Media and entertainment apps performed the best for overall app

product. For Localytics, he will define and drive the companys product

stickiness in Q4 peaking at 26 percent, a 4 percent increase over Q3.

roadmap as it adds features, like the recent addition of Profiles, to its

Localytics defines app stickiness as the average of an apps engagement

closed loop approach to app marketing and analytics.

and retention. Business productivity and technology apps experienced


the most improvement over the course of 2014, starting at just 15

Rounding out the executive team is the addition of Craig Herman VP

percent and increasing app stickiness to 23 percent by the end of the

of strategic enterprise accounts (formerly regional VP of enterprise

year.

sales at ExactTarget, a Salesforce.com Company) and Justin Khaksar,


general manager, vice president of Sales for EMEA (formerly VP of

Travel and leisure apps experienced the biggest increase in the volume

media, EMEA at Brightcove).

of launches, growing from 10 per month in Q3 up to 12 per month


in Q4 reflecting the seasons Q4 travel trends. Meanwhile, media

Josh, Lou, Craig and Justin represent the best talent in the market.

and entertainment apps remained consistently high at 12 launches

Their knowledge and experience will help us continue to scale as we

per month, on a par with Q3. By contrast, games apps had the lowest

close 2014 and plan for another year of rapid growth, said Aggarwal.

number of launches per month, just fewer than eight.

The four new executive team members represent a small fraction of

The high volume of new device launches and increased marketing

Localytics employee growth this year, which entered 2014 with 60

campaigns in Q4 presents both opportunity and risk for app

employees and now has 150 total employees globally. Localytics has

engagement, said Raj Aggarwal, CEO of Localytics, an app marketing

also tripled its revenue since this time last year.

and analytics platform. The winners were apps that invested in


understanding their users behaviors and then delivered personalized

App Engagement Peaked in December

interactions and content. This type of smart marketing forges positive


app habits, ensuring the loyalty of users even as they upgrade to a
new iOS or start using a new device.

Localytics Press Release

| January 14, 2015

http://bit.ly/18pwyfq

The Localytics Indexes provide marketers with a benchmark against


which to measure and refine their app engagement strategies. They are

Users Launched Apps 10x Per Month on Average, Especially


Media, Entertainment & Travel Apps

compiled through the continuous analysis of 28,000 apps across more


than 1.5 billion devices.

The percentage of engaged app users those who use the same app
10+ times in a month soared from 25 percent in Q3 to an all-time
high of 30 percent in December 2014, according to the Localytics Q4
App Stickiness Index. But user retention the percentage of users
returning to an app within a three-month window declined, ending
the year at 12 percent, as some people abandoned apps when switching

15

BETTINA HEIN | Pixability CEO

Pixability and L2 Measure Luxury Fashion


Brands YouTube Competency in Joint
Study
Pixability Press Release

| December 18, 2014

http://bit.ly/1yJ3toT

Pixability is a YouTube-certified marketing and advertising

Pixability, a YouTube ad buying and video marketing platform, and

software company that works with brands, e-commerce

L2, a member-based business intelligence firm, have teamed up to

firms, agencies, and innovative organizations to drive


business and awareness with online video and YouTube.
Using its powerful, proprietary, cloud-based video

produce the first comprehensive report of luxury fashion brands


YouTube competency. The joint study, Insight Report: Fashion
and YouTube, presents an analysis of the entire fashion ecosystem
on YouTube, revealing: the top fashion brand performers and best

marketing software and online video and community

performing videos; missed opportunities in discoverability, search,

analytics databases, Pixabilitys certified and seasoned

subscribership, and path to purchase; and a comparison of the fashion

team of YouTube professionals has worked with more than


500 customers, 10,000 YouTube channels, and 2.5 million
business and brand videos. Pixabilitys complimentary

and beauty industries on YouTube.


Fashion-related content on YouTube has accumulated a total of more
than 15 billion views. Some of the reports key findings include:

Online Video Grader (onlinevideograder.com) provides


any organization with immediate metrics and analysis

The average fashion brand underperforms benchmarks set by leading

of YouTube, web video, video search, and social video

fashion outlets, including FashionTV and StyleHaul, which attract

effectiveness.
For more information, visit http://www.pixability.com/

almost 500,000 subscribers each.


Though 95 percent of fashion brands have an official presence on
YouTube, only three brands can claim more than 100,000 channel
subscribers.

16

Only 25 percent of fashion brands have produced a piece of live


content that has generated more than 1 million views. Chanel became
the first fashion brand to surpass 100 million views in July 2014.
While nearly 80 percent of official brand channels appear on the first
page of YouTube search results for brand queries, less than half deliver
content that reaches the top three results, and less than one-fifth own
the top spot.
A data-driven YouTube marketing strategy yields precise targeting
and high performance to uniquely reach consumers at every stage of
the marketing funnel, said Andreas Goeldi, Chief Technology Officer
at Pixability. Though we have seen fashion brands make strides on
YouTube, generating a 200 percent increase in video views since 2013,
most fail to fully optimize their YouTube presence with a sophisticated
strategy.
For a comprehensive look at all major findings and best practices
contained in Insight Report: Fashion and YouTube, download the full
report here. The joint study accompanies L2s sixth annual Digital IQ:
Fashion report which was released to members on December 11.

17

KATHY LEAKE | Qualia CEO & Founder

Qualia Partners with Placed To Prove That


Mobile Campaigns Influence a Consumers
Path to Purchase In The Physical World
Qualia Press Release

| October 28, 2014

http://bit.ly/1Cv68nB

Qualia, formerly known as LocalResponse, an intent

Qualia, a pioneer and leader in discovering and delivering on

targeting pioneer, empowers brand marketers with the

consumers ever-evolving, real-time expressions of intent, has signed

ability to identify and respond to real-time declarations

an agreement to access Placeds location technology. With Placed

of intent expressed over social media. Their IQ engine

Attribution, and Qualias proprietary understanding of consumer

creates a composite of multiple social signals from a

intent, Qualia clients can now benefit from understanding the actions

consumer and overlays our targeting capabilities to reach a

consumers take in the physical world after viewing a mobile ad.

marketers most qualified audience. Their technology then


retargets that consumer across any or all of their devices

Placed Attribution connects the digital and physical worlds to quantify

(mobile, tablet, laptop, desktop) and platforms (web, app)

the impact mobile advertising has on understanding consumers

with any type of IAB- standard creative. In market since

offline behaviors. Leveraging the Place Graph which measures

2011, Qualia is led by Kathy Leake, CEO (co-founder

over 200MM locations a day from nearly a quarter million opted-in

Media6Degrees) and Niels Meersschaert, CTO (co-founder

panelists, Placed has the most complete view of where people go in the

of Magnetic) who are committed to defining the next

physical world and offers marketers the ability to directly tie mobile

generation of Intent targeting. Qualia is headquartered

ad exposure to consumers offline behaviors and attribute that to an

in NYC and has offices in Chicago, Los Angeles and San

in-store visit.

Francisco.
For additional information, visit www.qualia-media.com.

Kathy Leake, CEO and co-founder of Qualia, said: Traditional


methods of targeting in digital advertising were, and still are, an
approximation. Here at Qualia, we know that where you reach a
consumer in their intent path means everything. By combining
Placeds technology with our Intent Quality Decision Engine, we

18

can prove the value of targeting audiences, based on their expressions

Qualia has been recognized as part of the SmartCEO Future

of intent, and measure success vis-a-vis driving people into physical

50 2014 Awards. The program recognizes 50 fast-growth, mid-

retail locations like banks, dealerships, gas stations, hotels, theaters,

sized companies in the region, five large Blue Chip companies

QSRs, etc. This is the holy-grail of all marketing, and for the first time

and five small emerging growth companies. These companies

we can prove how digital campaigns influence changes in consumer

represent the future of the regions economy and embody the

behavior at the brick-and-mortar level.

entrepreneurial spirit critical for leadership and success.


Kathy Leake has been named a Finalist in the Female Executive of

We were drawn to Qualia at first because of their deep mobile

the Year Business Services category in the 11th Annual Stevie

heritage, said David Shim, Founder & CEO, Placed. As I started

Awards for Women in Business which honor women executives,

to learn more about Qualias targeting capabilities, and how their

entrepreneurs, employees and the companies they run.

technology decodes consumer intent across-devices to influence a


purchase, the opportunity for Placed Attribution to quantify in-store

These recent accolades continue to demonstrate Qualias innovation

visits was clear for all parties.

and market leadership. Over the past few years, Qualia was named:

Qualia Recognized by SmartCEO and


Stevie Awards for Innovation and Growth
Qualia Press Release

| November 3, 2014

2014; #568 in 2013)


Folio Magazines Top Women in Media (CEO Kathy Leake)

Red Herrings Top 100 North America for 2014

TechCrunch 40 People Who Are Living Proof You Can Make It In


Silicon Valley After 40 (CEO Kathy Leake)

http://bit.ly/1Cv7ChE


Qualia a pioneer and leader in discovering and delivering on
consumers ever-evolving, real-time expressions of intent has been

Future 50 Awards and Stevie Awards for Women in Business.

Forbes Americas Most Promising Companies (Ranked #67 in


2013)

recognized by the industry for its innovation, vision and consistent


growth with a number of recent accolades including SmartCEOs

Inc. 500 Fastest Growing Companies in America (Ranked #204 in

Forbes Top 11 Women Who Started Amazing Companies (CEO


Kathy Leake)

Business Insiders 28 Most Powerful Women In Mobile


Advertising (CEO Kathy Leake)

Founded in 2011, Qualia has experienced tremendous growth, more


than doubling in size and seeing a 326 percent revenue and 41 percent
increase in customers between 2012 and 2013.
According to Kathy Leake, CEO and co-founder of Qualia, I am truly

Qualia Named Finalist for Red Herring


100 Global Awards

excited to see the industry recognize the vision we have at Qualia.

| November 6, 2014

The shifts in consumers online behavior and the rapid pace in which

Qualia Press Release

theyre expressing themselves publicly across apps, e-commerce and

http://bit.ly/1H6wnFg

social networking sites, marketers need to innovate and embrace


new ways of thinking in order to truly understand todays always-

Today, the Red Herring editorial team announced the finalists in

on consumer. We have created a way for marketers to leverage these

Red Herring 100 Global awards program, recognizing this years

intent signals to discover new audiences that could not be reached via

most audacious and far-reaching private technology companies and

traditional methods of targeting.

entrepreneurs from across the globe. Included in this illustrious set of


global companies is Qualia, who was recognized as a Red Herring Top

Recent industry awards include:

100 North America winner earlier this year!


The 2014 Red Herring 100 Global finalists represent over 1,000

19

companies from more than 40 nations, and are comprised of past


Red Herring Asia, Europe and North America Top 100 winners. All
Global finalists are judged on a range of qualitative and quantitative
metrics, including but not limited to, technology innovation, financial
performance, growth criterion, managements execution standards,
potential globalization of the strategy, and market share improvement.
The Global finalists are invited to present their winning strategies at the
Red Herring Global forum in Los Angeles, Nov. 18 to 20. The Global
Top 100 winners will be announced at a special awards ceremony on
Nov. 20 at the event.

20

JEFFREY PEDEN | CraveLabs CEO & Founder

CraveLabs and PromoBoxx partner to


deliver targeted hyperlocal advertising for
Fortune 500 brands and their retailers
CraveLabs Press Release

| October 28, 2014

http://bit.ly/1p1rRjl

CraveLabs is a mobile advertising technology company

First to market with automated, hyperlocal mobile ads for top

providing programmatic creative, real-time bidding (RTB),

manufacturing brands and their independent retailers, CraveLabs and

and intelligent, hyperlocal targeting to clients ranging


from small, local businesses to the Fortune 500. The
companys SaaS platform, DropIn (www.dropin.io), brings

Promoboxx announce their partnership and technology integration.


Over the past year, the two Boston-based companies have worked
together to integrate CraveLabs proprietary mobile advertising

unparalleled efficiency and price/performance to mobile

technology into Promoboxxs brand-to-retailer digital marketing

advertisers targeting local audiences

platform. For both companies, working together has uncovered new

For more information, visit http://www.cravelabs.com

channels for growth. This integration has enabled top manufacturing


brands to reward their retailers with local mobile ad dollars and reach
more nearby customers across the US.
Promoboxx has a great opportunity to unlock digital ad spends by
reinventing the challenged co-op marketing space with their software
platform, says CraveLabs CEO and co-founder, Jeffrey Peden. Were
excited to have them as our first enterprise partner, facilitating retailer
adoption of mobile advertising as part of the retailers more traditional
marketing mix.

CraveLabs has deep expertise in mobile advertising and has developed

21

software that simplifies the targeted mobile ad buying process for


customers. With customizable ad units, hyperlocal level targeting,
and performance that exceeds the best in the industry, CraveLabs
software fit well with Promoboxxs product offering.
We were looking for a strategic partner and leader in the local mobile
advertising space to execute the hyperlocal ad buys for our clients. In
addition, CraveLabs is the only one who can provide this service in a
scalable API and has allowed us to go to a world class local mobile ad
strategy in just a few months, says Ben Carcio, CEO and co-founder
of Promoboxx.
Promoboxxs Brand-to-Retail Digital Marketing Platform helps
manufacturing brands make their independent retailers better
marketers. With the launch of their retailer incentive program, Match,
retailers are now rewarded for their digital marketing actions (i.e.
campaign activation or social share) with local ad dollars. Retailers are
currently redeeming Match ad dollars for local mobile advertisements,
which are powered by CraveLabs proprietary technology.
More and more of our brand clients are asking for mobile advertising
to be included in their retail marketing campaigns, Carcio adds. 2015
is going to be a big year for both Promoboxx and CraveLabs as brand
and retailer demand for mobile advertising continues to grow.

22

RODNEY WILLIAMS | LISNR CEO & Founder

Our picks for Cincinnati startups to watch


in 2015

Written by Andy Brownfield, Published in Cincinnati Business Reporter | Dec. 31, 2014
http://bit.ly/1yZbiaq (exerpt)

When Huffington Post speculates about whether your city could be


the next Silicon Valley, youre probably doing something right.
LISNR is a mobile application that enhances experiences
by uniquely engaging fans while their experiencing the
things that they love. LISNR turns audio into an interactive
platform, delivering mobile experiences to smartphones
based on LISNR enabled audio in the surrounding
environment. Currently, LISNR provides musicians with a

It takes a lot more than a couple of mentions in national media to


make a tech hub, though. The tireless work of countless people and
organizations goes on throughout the year to boost the startups that
are creating the success that earns that national buzz groups like
the Brandery, CincyTech, Cintrifuse, Queen City Angels, the HCDC
Business Center and far too many more to name.

new way to engage with their fans and provides advertisers


a new way to partner with musicians through their music.
In just over a year, LISNR has secured game changing
programs for the nations top CPG, music, and media
entities.
For more information, visit http://lisnr.com/

But all of those groups exist to support one thing: startups. There are
a lot of young companies doing good things in Cincinnati, and this
list is by no means comprehensive, but here are some startups worth
keeping an eye on in 2015. Heres my list:
Lisnr is another startup that raised big money in 2014 $3.5 million
in a Series A round led by Progress Ventures and joined by CincyTech.
The company embeds inaudible tones in music that unlock special
content when heard by a compatible device. But CEO Rodney Williams
said there is much more that the technology is capable of. It could turn
into a whole new way of transmitting data between devices. Thats why
it joined a program run by Techstars and advertising agency R/GA in
2014.

23

B o s t o n O f f i c e : O n e B r o a d w a y, 1 4 t h F l o o r, C a m b r i d g e , M A 0 2 1 4 2 , P h o n e : ( 6 1 7 ) 4 0 1 - 2 7 0 0
Ne w York O f f i c e : 2 4 5 Park Ave nu e, 2 7t h Flo or, Ne w York, NY 10167, Phone: (212) 6 0 9 -6 9 1 4
24

You might also like