Global digital communication company Dentsu Aegis Network has announced the purchase of Covario’s search and content marketing agency for an undisclosed sum.
Once the deal has been completed Covario will take on the iProspect moniker, a transition that is being heralded as a significant step by Nigel Morris, CEO of Dentsu Aegis Network Americas and EMEA.
“This acquisition represents another important development for Dentsu Aegis Network in the US,” he said. “We have a very clear strategy for the capabilities and agencies we bring into our operating model.
“As points of engagement and transaction come closer together, it is crucial for our clients to have a dominant position in all key areas of the consumer journey.”
SEO software will continue unchanged
The move from Covario to iProspect is expected to occur over the coming months. However, Dentsu has stated that it intends to keep the firm’s standalone SEO unit as an independent business.
Additionally, Michael Gullaksen and Jeff Johnson, co-CEOs of Covario, are to be given key senior executive positions in the new combined organisation as Dentsu seeks to have them complement the existing iProspect management team.
One member of that team in Jeremy Cornfeldt, president of iProspect US, commented on the what its new San Diego-headquartered West Coast presence will give clients.
“With marketers looking to search, social and mobile as core tenets of their advertising strategies, the combination of iProspect and Covario creates a uniquely powerful and compelling offer fit for today’s market demands.”
Dentsu Aegis hopes to close the acquisition in its entirety during the fourth quarter of this year.