M&C Saatchi Acquires Inside Mobile

Representing further consolidation in the mobile marketing space, M&C Saatchi has agreed to acquire London-based outfit Inside Mobile, and will rebrand it M&C Mobile.

M&C offers integrated advertising services across 16 markets, but had no dedicated mobile operation prior to the acquisition. Commenting on the purchase, the company’s worldwide CEO, Moray MacLennan, said it believes the mobile space shows significant potential. “The growth of mobile marketing will be dramatic over the next five years, and be central to many of our clients communication plans,” he said, adding, “The acquisition will strengthen our differentiation from the older networks.”

Inside Mobile clients currently include Reebok International, Yahoo! Europe, AB-InBev-Becks and Sky, but co-founder James Hilton – who will continue to run the operation – said the integration should help accelerate its growth further, and help expand its global prospects.

As interest in mobile advertising picks up, agency networks and larger ad sellers have been snapping up companies in the space. Google agreed to acquire AdMob back in November, and Apple acquired Quattro in January.

Meanwhile on the advertiser side, agencies have been ramping up their mobile operations and growing their staff dedicated to the practice. This week, for example, R/GA appointed eight new staff to its mobile and social media department in response to growing client demand.

Elsewhere this week, location-based mobile marketing provider Placecast also announced it has secured new investment to help build out its products further, and mobile marketer Vibes media acquired text-message ad server Zeep Mobile. Though both of those firms focus primarily on SMS-based marketing rather than the mobile web-based ads offered by AdMob and Quattro, the investment demonstrates continued interest in the mobile channel.