By Anne D'Innocenzio, Retail Writer
NEW YORK (AP) --Walmart says it's buying San Francisco-based ad tech startup Polymorph Labs as it looks to better compete with rival online juggernaut Amazon in targeting shoppers online.
The world's largest retailer has been quietly building its own advertising business with a unit called Walmart Media Group, though that business is still smaller than Amazon's.
Amazon's total ad revenue in the U.S. was $3.3 billion, or nearly 4% of the total digital ad spending pie in 2017, according to research firm eMarketer. The firm expects Amazon's ad revenue to hit $19.2 billion, or 11.2%, by 2021. No numbers are available for Walmart.
Walmart Inc. said Thursday (4/11) Polymorph's technology will make advertising with the discounter easier for thousands of brands while delivering more relevant digital ads to consumers faster.
Terms of the deal weren't disclosed.
Polymorph's technology platform, which includes a high-speed ad server, will enable Walmart advertisers to quickly select audience segments based on shopping behavior. For example, brands that advertise could quickly identify cat food buyers versus dog food buyers, and then measure whether their ads influenced a sale.
"We can help brands understand if someone saw their ad on Walmart's platform or across the internet, and then purchased the product in-store or online," wrote Stefanie Jay, vice president and general manager of Walmart Media Group, in a corporate blog post. "No one else can do this at scale like Walmart."
Ubisoft shares jump following reports of Tencent, Guillemot family considering buyout
Shares of Ubisoft jumped more than 30% Friday, following reports that Tencent and the Guillemot family are considering a buyout of the video game maker.
Bloomberg news reported that Tencent and Guillemot family — minority stakeholders in Ubisoft — have been discussing ways to stabilize the company after it lost more than half its market value this year. Shares surged 33.5% to about $15.57 Friday, according to FactSet.
Ubisoft declined to comment. Tencent did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
France-based Ubisoft is the publisher behind the well-known franchise "Assassin's Creed." Ubisoft's shares fell last month to their lowest point in more than a decade after its latest title "Star Wars Outlaws" underperformed and the company announced that it would delay the latest "Assassin's Creed" game.
Yves Guillemot, Ubisoft's CEO, said in a statement last week that the company's "second quarter performance fell short of our expectations."
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