Opera’s mobile ad network Opera Mediaworks has acquired South Africa’s AdVine, the country’s leading premier mobile-advertising network on its African expansion, a move expected to help its global and local customers reach millions of consumers in Africa.
“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 say the move will help advertisers reach their audiences across a broad portfolio of popular mobile apps and websites coupled with its extensive experience and traction serving the mobile market in Africa through its mobile browsers and traffic management products. Opera has commercial relationships with more than 30 operator partners in the region including various Vodacom, MTN, Airtel and Orange subsidiaries.
“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.”
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.
With over 600m mobile phone subscriptions, Sub-Saharan Africa is one of the fastest growing mobile markets in the world, the acquisition will help Opera’s advertisers reach them on their smartphones and tablets.