You & Mr Jones Expands Global Brandtech Portfolio with Acquisition of Mobile Marketing Company, Mobkoi – Bringing London-Based Company to the U.S.

Mobkoi guarantees brand safety at scale through direct relationships with premium publishers and has a successful track record creating and placing mobile campaigns for top-tier brands, such as Bally, Bentley, Canon, GE, Maserati, Montblanc, Mulberry & Nespresso. 

You & Mr Jones announces that the global brandtech group has acquired a majority stake in leading premium mobile marketing specialist, Mobkoi.

The company has an impressive 3-year track record in creating and delivering tailor-made mobile marketing campaigns to guarantee high-quality placement at scale. At a time of growing concern amongst leading brand owners about where their mobile and online advertising actually appears, Mobkoi’s direct relationships with premium publishers – such as the BBC, the Financial Times, Forbes, GQ and Vogue – ensure clients do not have to compromise on the quality, relevance or safety of environment for their campaigns. Instead, they can be 100 percent confident about where, and in what context, their brands will appear – for maximum commercial and brand impact. Mobkoi works with more than 1,000 publishers in 35 markets.

A one-stop shop for mobile marketing – with a strong emphasis on mobile video – the company’s integrated service not only provides bespoke media planning and buying, but also offers custom creative solutions, and optimized campaign delivery. Founded in 2014 by brothers Quentin and Guillaume Le Pape, Mobkoi has grown from its base in London to include offices in France and Germany. The company works with a growing portfolio of more than 100 premium brands including Bally, Bentley, Canon, GE, Maserati, Montblanc, Mulberry and Nespresso.

As part of the acquisition by You & Mr Jones, Mobkoi will expand its operations to the U.S. – launching an office in New York City – as well as opening offices in Dubai, Singapore and Sydney.

This latest acquisition comes after 18 months of prolific activity by You & Mr Jones, the world’s first brandtech group. It has completed three additional acquisitions (Mofilm, fifty-five and theAmplify), launched two startups (Mosaic and Blood), and invested in 13 tech companies (including Niantic, Pixlee, Mashable, Beeswax, Gfycat, Automat, Jivox, Partnered, Zappar, Mic Network and Crossing Minds).

Among group and partner companies there have already been some remarkable success stories, perhaps the most notable being the exceptional performance of Pokémon GO (Niantic), culminating in a recent BAFTA triumph. Group company theAmplify won Technology of the Year at the 4A’s Partner Awards 2017 for the groundbreaking influencer chatbot it created with partner company Automat for Cover Girl. Alongside this, theAmplify delivered a brilliant male influencer campaign for Unilever’s Axe, and Automat created an AI-powered Facebook Messenger bot for L’Oréal. Meanwhile, Gfycat was named a “Startup to Watch” in Advertising Age’s A-List Creativity Awards 2017.

There have also been some significant talent additions to Jones’ technology group’s senior team; following the arrival of former R/GA stars George Prest and Drew Burdon, former BBH Global Head of Strategy and NY Chairman, Emma Cookson joined as a You & Mr Jones partner and Microsoft’s former global CMO, Mich Mathews-Spradlin, joined the You & Mr Jones board.

About the Founders:

Quentin Le Pape, CEO & Co-founder, Mobkoi, said: “Today we pride ourselves on being a true partner to brands, at a time where there is a real disconnect between ad tech and brand marketers. After 3 years of hyper-growth we are thrilled to be part of You & Mr Jones. We share the same core values and a distinct vision when it comes to using technology to build brands. Collaborating with group companies such as Mofilm and fifty-five together with launching the NY office will be our immediate priorities.”

Guillaume Le Pape, COO & Co-founder, Mobkoi, said: “In May 2014, we started building a team of incredibly talented people, joining us from a variety of media branches, including publishing, ad tech, and agencies. Today Mobkoi is a unique model, which truly masters the art of premium brand-building on mobile, leveraging the finest mobile-first technologies. Technology is a fantastic and limitless tool, especially when it comes to mobile – the most personal device of all!”

David Jones, Founder, You & Mr Jones said: “The growth in mobile continues to be explosive. Mobkoi has built an extremely impressive business that combines the power of storytelling with the latest in mobile technology. Importantly, the company also helps luxury and premium brands address the key issue of brand safety and ensure that their content is appearing in the environments where it deserves to be. We’re excited to partner with Quentin and Guillaume and to be a catalyst for Mobkoi’s global expansion.”

For more information visit http://www.mobkoi.com/

About MOBKOI:
Launched in May 2014 by brothers Quentin and Guillaume Le Pape, MOBKOI are specialists in ultra-premium mobile marketing.

MOBKOI creates unique, bespoke mobile campaigns to deliver client messages to premium audiences. Offering 100% direct inventory on some of the world’s most exclusive and trusted global and local publishers, MOBKOI guarantees brand visibility and safety. Using the Celtra platform, MOBKOI delivers innovative, cutting-edge mobile marketing formats and functionality including Vertical Video, Gyroscope and soon to be launched 360° videos, as well as providing non-intrusive, full-screen placements such as the interscroller. MOBKOI’s in-house studio develops the finest rich media, video and display brand experiences and the company offers complete transparency and optimisation with reporting per publisher, format, mobile device, OS and market.

To date, MOBKOI has delivered over 250 campaigns for 85 clients and operates in 35 markets with over 1,000 publishers.

For more information go to www.mobkoi.com, www.linkedin.com/company/mobkoi or follow @MOBKOI_UK

About You & Mr Jones
You & Mr Jones is the world’s first Brandtech group. Its mission is to help businesses build brands better, faster, and cheaper using technology.

It was founded in June 2015 by former Havas Global CEO and Facebook Client Council founding member David Jones. You & Mr Jones sits at the intersection of the dramatic growth in mobile, a tech revolution that has empowered people to create, produce and share unprecedented amounts of content, the impending revolution in AI, AR, and VR and frustrated global companies looking for brand and tech-literate partners.

Group clients include Airbnb, Netflix, Facebook, Accenture, Unilever, Google, Sony, Coca-Cola, Coty, Richemont, Emirates, Mastercard, Diageo, Danone, Samsung, AXA, Orange, Renault, Ferrero, Lacoste, BNP Paribas, Europcar, and Total.

You & Mr Jones is headquartered in New York and has offices in 12 cities including San Francisco, London, Bangalore, Sao Paulo, Los Angeles, Shanghai, Sydney, Mexico City, Cape Town, Hong Kong, and Paris.

http://www.youandmrjones.com