Indian mobile ad tech startup InMobi has acquired US based ad firm AerServ for approximately $90 million (around Rs 574 crore). The deal is reportedly part cash and part stock deal. The deal comes amid Inmobi’s declining fortunes, which has casted apprehension over whether this unicorn firm will live up to its once tall expectations. The expectations from InMobi were especially high, considering that it was the first Indian startup to achieve the Unicorn status – much before Flipkart and Snapdeal achieved the coveted status.
According to the latest corporate filings, the Singapore based firm reported drop of $280 million in revenue in 2016-17 from $283 million reported in the last financial year. It also posted hefty loss of $12.7 million in the financial year ended 31 March 2017. All these unflattering numbers completely stand against the billion-dollar revenue that CEO Naveen Tewari had once promised to its investors.
However, the company claims that it is not all gloom and doom as far as its financial fortunes are concerned. The startup claims that it has been EBITDA profitable since June 2016 and also to be the first Indian unicorn to achieve this landmark.
The startup mainly makes income from targeted advertisements on mobile apps of their partner publishers. It grabs profit every time any consumer clicks an ad on their mobile phones.
InMobi Hopes Latest Acquisition will Turn the Tide for Company
InMobi is hoping that the AerServ’s acquisition will help to increase its monetization revenue for all its global publishers, according to a statement issued by the company. It further added that video and programmatic business will add nearly 35% to company’s overall revenue following the acquisition. The company also claimed that the latest acquisition will help to create a product and tech hub in Los Angeles.
InMobi, which was formerly known as mKhoj, has till date made quite a few successful acquisitions. This includes U.K based Metaflow Solutions and the U.S based MMTG Labs and Sprout.