OpenX Acquires Supply Side Platform LiftDNA

Anthony Ha

Anthony Ha is a writer at TechCrunch, where he covers media, advertising, and random startups. Previously, he worked as a staff tech writer at Adweek, a senior editor at the tech blog VentureBeat, and a local government reporter at the Hollister Free Lance, where he won awards from the California Newspaper Publishers Association for breaking news coverage and writing.... → Learn More

Monday, February 27th, 2012
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Ad tech company OpenX just announced that it’s acquiring startup LiftDNA.

The startup offers a supply side platform, which publishers use to automate and optimize the sale of their ad inventory. Combined with OpenX’s ad server and ad exchange technology, CEO Tim Cadogan tells me that the company will be able to offer the first “full revenue stack,” allowing publishers to manage all of their ad revenue in one place.

“That is very important because today the industry is fragmented and publishers have to piece together solutions themselves which is difficult and results in reduced revenue,” Cadogan says. “Providing a unified solution addresses these problems head on and makes publishers more money. We are the first to be able to deliver this unified platform to publishers.”

OpenX will be offering LiftDNA as a standalone product — called, predictably, LiftDNA by OpenX. Still, Cadogan says that by integrating the new offering with OpenX’s ad exchange, the company will open more inventory for real-time buyers, and that by integrating LiftDNA with OpenX’s ad server, it can make optimization decisions more quickly.

The financial terms of the deal are not being disclosed. LiftDNA raised a $1 million angel round in February 2011 led by Ben Franklin Technology Partners.

OpenX recently announced that in the fourth quarter of last year, it achieved an annualized revenue run rate of $100 million and that it’s profitable. The company’s investors include Accel Partners, DAG Ventures, Index Ventures, AOL Ventures (AOL is, of course, the owner of TechCrunch), SAP Ventures, Mitsui & Co., and Presidio Ventures.


Company: OpenX
Website: openx.com
Launch Date: May 1, 2008
Funding: $73M

OpenX is a global leader in digital and mobile advertising technology. OpenX’s vision is to unleash the full economic potential of digital media companies. OpenX solutions provide a unique Software as a Service platform by combining ad serving, an ad exchange, a Supply Side Platform, and content valuation. OpenX Technologies, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of OpenX Software Ltd., is based in Los Angeles and is backed by leading investors including Accel Partners, Index Ventures, SAP Ventures, and Samsung Venture...

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Tim Cadogan is the chief executive officer of OpenX. OpenX is the world’s leading independent provider of digital advertising technology that enables businesses to manage and maximize their ad revenue. OpenX products, including OpenX Enterprise and OpenX Market, provide a comprehensive revenue generation platform by combining ad serving with a unique ad exchange. OpenX ad serving products are used by more than 200,000 websites in more than 100 countries and serve more than 350 billion ads monthly. OpenX Market...

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