LONDON & NEW YORK – WPP has agreed to take a majority stake in UK digital technology consultancy Cognifide, with WPP Digital, the digital investment arm of WPP, and Wunderman, the world’s largest digital agency network, taking equal stakes.
“We look forward to working with Cognifide and delivering to our clients the benefits of our IMPACT 360 platform: personalized communications across all channels and touch-points”
Cognifide is a digital technology consultancy, specializing in Content Management and Digital Asset Management technology. It helps companies and brands build their capability through company-wide digital frameworks which create, manage and optimize measurable digital experiences with confidence and agility across all digital channels from web to mobile. Cognifide’s clients include Skype, Roche and Virgin Media, as well as some of the world’s leading companies from financial services, life sciences, media & entertainment, and retail. Founded in 2005, Cognifide has offices in London, Copenhagen, and Poznań, Poland.
The move bolsters WPP’s collective expertise and credentials in the marketing technology arena and affords clients of all companies the ability to more easily create, manage and deliver content over all online channels with real-time precision. Joining WPP will give Cognifide access to its global reach and full digital marketing capabilities. It will add greater value to Cognifide’s enterprise clients and provide a platform for the development of its own consulting service and technology offerings.
Among Cognifide’s many partners is Adobe. In the UK and Europe, Cognifide is Adobe’s #1 partner for its Adobe Experience Manager (AEM) platform, with more than 30% market share. Accordingly, Cognifide has an exceptional track record for on-time, on-budget sophisticated AEM platform builds to help companies create, store and distribute content online, via mobile devices and through apps. Since its founding, Cognifide has amassed an impressive number of world firsts in Adobe Marketing technology, including the:
- First multichannel AEM-mobile implementation;
- First integration of AEM with Test-and-Target;
- Highest traffic global AEM implementation;
- Integration of AEM, PhoneGap (mobile apps) and Analytics for an Adobe-centric, closed loop marketing solution
“This is great news for our clients, as it will give Cognifide genuine global reach, and hugely expanded capability through WPP’s network of digital marketing agencies in almost every territory on earth, while maintaining Cognifide’s unique service proposition. We see great opportunities for promoting and developing further our own products and IP offerings, for expanding the range and type of work we do and for taking on more complex, exciting and demanding projects that will continue to stretch and develop our people,” said Miro Walker, Cognifide CEO.
“Cognifide has unparalleled expertise in realizing the benefits of digital technology platforms in a multi-brand, multi-channel and multi-territory environment, helping to transform its enterprise clients by building their own digital capability. As a leading consulting and implementation partner for Adobe and Sitecore, Cognifide is an important strategic addition to WPP,” said Mark Read, CEO of WPP Digital.
“We look forward to working with Cognifide and delivering to our clients the benefits of our IMPACT 360 platform: personalized communications across all channels and touch-points,” said Gurval Caer, Wunderman’s chief marketing and innovation officer. “By combining Cognifide’s content management technology and expertise together with our global footprint, data assets and content production capabilities, we can equip large companies with the global platforms they need to deliver the right content to the right customer at the right time—around the world.”
Cognifide is a Sitecore Certified Solution Partner; two members of the practice have been awarded the coveted title of Sitecore Most Valuable Professional (MVP), and regularly share their expertise at Sitecore technical user groups.
About Cognifide
Cognifide is a leading digital consultancy that understands the marketer’s need for speed. We work with companies to help them execute their digital strategy with greater impact and cost-efficiency, through a combination of technology and business transformation. Founded in 2005, Cognifide has offices in the United Kingdom, Poland and Denmark with over 200 staff. Cognifide guides enterprises through transformational change to create and optimize digital experiences by putting the digital capability client-side and accelerating collaboration with external agencies.
Econsultancy ranked Cognifide at #48 on the UK’s top 100 Digital Agencies in 2013, while The Drum ranked Cognifide #1 in the Digital Census Financial Category 2013 for smaller agencies. In 2013, Cognifide was awarded “The Ace of Responsible Business” for CSR activities by the Greater Poland Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
Leading brands that choose Cognifide include: Allianz, Chivas, Direct Line Group, Euromoney, GSK, Investec, John Lewis Partnership, RBS, Shell, The Telegraph and Virgin Media. For more information: http://www.cognifide.com/
About Wunderman
Advertising Age ranks Wunderman as the #1 global digital agency network. Founded by Lester Wunderman in 1958, Wunderman has 170 offices in 60 countries offering Brand Experience, Consumer Engagement, Data & Insights and World Health marketing solutions. Powered by complex analytics and strategic insight, creative content engages the consumer as participant, critic, creator and champion in always-on conversations to propel our clients’ growth. Best Buy, Citibank, Coca-Cola, Ford, Land Rover, Microsoft, Nokia, Novartis, Telefonica and leading local and regional brands are among them. Wunderman is a member of WPP (NASDAQ: WPPGY) and part of Young & Rubicam Group. For more information: www.wunderman.com.
About WPP Digital
WPP Digital is the digital arm of WPP, the global communications services company. Its remit is to act as a catalyst for change within the Group in the digital media space. Its prime goal is to champion new digital agencies and services, common technologies and new media innovations and to stimulate, support and enhance existing Group company activities in this area. Activities include identifying acquisitions/partnerships/investments, funding start-ups, establishing training programs and instigating cross-Group integration through the WPP Digital Advisory Board. For further information, please visit www.wpp.com.
