GroupM to buy majority stake in Netbooster Asia

MANILA, Philippines - GroupM, WPP’s global media investment management arm, has agreed to acquire a majority stake in NB Agency Asia Holding Ltd. (Netbooster Asia), the Hong Kong holding company of digital marketing agencies in the Philippines and Indonesia, subject to regulatory approval.

Founded in 2007 and based in Manila and Jakarta, Netbooster Asia is a digital marketing agency offering media, production, and creative services. The agency employs around 110 people and clients include Unilever, L’Oreal, Del Monte, Globe, BDO, Wyeth and Intel.

This acquisition will see Netbooster rebrand itself in the Philippines as Movent and be consolidated into GroupM’s digital offering in Indonesia.

Manuel P. Quiogue, GroupM Philippines CEO, said of the planned acquisition: “Between our agencies, we earned 4A’s title Media Agency of the Year for four consecutive years, purely on our capabilities in mainstream media. As more and more brands reach out to consumers online, our agencies have been hard at work, extending our strengths to Digital services. With Netbooster Asia’s expertise and resources, we can soon integrate our clients’ marketing efforts through-the-line, with greater insight, creativity and efficiency than any other network.”

Netbooster Asia president Sebastien Caudron added: “Netbooster has created the blueprint for digital strategy in South East Asia, making it one of the leading agencies for Internet marketing. Over the last few years, Netbooster Asia has been successfully integrating all digital expertise in a one-stop shop. Joining forces with GroupM will enhance our competitive advantage by providing innovative, effective and efficient digital media

Solutions an exciting development for existing and future clients.”

Netbooster Asia’s unaudited revenues for the year ended Dec. 31, 2011 were approximately $2.4 million, with gross assets at the same date of approximately $2.4 million.