Opera buys mobile ad network AdVine

African expansion for world’s largest mobile advertising platform

Opera Mediaworks acquires AdVine

San Mateo, Calif. and Cape Town – December 2, 2014

Global and local advertisers can now reach millions of consumers in Africa, following Opera Mediaworks’ acquisition of AdVine, South Africa’s leading premier mobile-advertising network.

Brands interested in reaching mobile consumers in the region will have access to Opera Mediaworks’ rich-media and video campaign platform, the world’s largest independent mobile advertising platform.

Explosion in African mobile-data usage

Sub-Saharan Africa is one of the fastest growing mobile markets in the world with over 600 million mobile phone subscriptions that are predicted to increase to over 930 million by the end of 2019*. With the acquisition, both companies will work strategically with advertisers interested in reaching mobile consumers on smartphones and tablets, a rapidly expanding market in the region.

“Africa is positioned to become the ‘mobile continent’ with experts predicting an explosion in mobile data usage over the next five years,” says Mahi de Silva, CEO of Opera Mediaworks. “We are particularly excited about the hundreds of millions of African and global consumers who will be glued to the African Cup of Nations in 2015.”

Opera Mediaworks will play an integral part in helping advertisers reach their audiences across a broad portfolio of popular mobile apps and websites. These include the award-winning Opera Mini browser and the Opera Max data-savings app for Android.

“Mobile web usage in Africa is one of the highest globally and the continent's dynamic mobile industry remains an incredible place of growth,” says Sarah Utermark, CEO, AdVine. “We’re excited to be able offer unrivaled reach to brands looking to tap into the burgeoning African market as part of Opera Mediaworks’ global mobile advertising platform.”

Serving the mobile market in Africa

Opera Mediaworks and AdVine have a long-standing relationship, monetizing Opera’s owned and operated mobile-ad inventory in the region. To better serve this market, Opera Mediaworks plans to significantly expand its investments in people and resources across the continent.

Opera Software has extensive experience and traction serving the mobile market in Africa through its mobile browsers and traffic management products. The company’s commercial relationships across more than 30 operator partners in the region including various Vodacom, MTN, Airtel and Orange subsidiaries.

About Opera Mediaworks

Opera Mediaworks is the first mobile ad platform built for brands, delivering breakthrough marketing at scale. Our technology powers the biggest publishers in the world, enabling marketers to convey the highest quality ad experiences to more people in more places when it matters most. Our exclusive Instant-PlayTM HD video technology and award-winning rich media touches, engages and creates deep interaction with consumers in the most popular mobile apps and sites around the globe. We work with over 90% of the AdAge Top 100 advertisers and 18 of the top 25 global publishers. A fully-owned subsidiary of Opera Software, Opera Mediaworks is headquartered in San Mateo, California, with offices worldwide. To learn more, visit www.operamediaworks.com.

* Source: ERICSSON MOBILITY REPORT, June 2014.