The four companies will each own 25% stakes in the newly-formed JV holding company, which will be based in Belgium, and operated by an independent management under the supervision of a shareholder-appointed supervisory board
EC approves Deutsche Telekom, Orange, Telefónica, and Vodafone Group's creation of an ad tech JV. (Credit: EmDee/Wikipedia.org)
Deutsche Telekom, Orange, Telefónica, and Vodafone Group secured an unconditional approval from the European Commission (EC) for the creation of an ad tech joint venture (JV).
According to the Commission, the proposed JV transaction would not lead to any competition concerns in the European Economic Area (EEA).
The four companies will each own 25% stake in the newly-formed JV holding company, which will be operated by an independent management under the supervision of a shareholder-appointed supervisory board.
To be based in Belgium, the JV intends to provide a platform to help the digital marketing and advertising activities of brands and publishers in France, Germany, Spain, Italy, and the UK.
The JV will create a unique digital code based on the mobile or fixed network subscription of the user, subject to his or her consent.
The code will enable companies and publishers to identify users on their websites or applications on a pseudonymous basis, classify them into groups, and customise their content to specific users’ groups.
The EC stated that the formation of ad tech JV would not significantly stifle competition in the French, German, Spanish, and Italian markets for the supply of digital identification services for targeted advertising and/or site optimisation.
Furthermore, it will not hinder the retail supply of mobile telecommunications services, fixed internet access services, audio-visual services, and online advertising space.
Telefónica said that the platform has been developed to meet the European data protection policy including General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the ePrivacy directive.
A trial has been initiated by the companies in Germany and other trials are expected to take place in France and Spain to further develop the platform.
The companies aim to make the platform available to any operator in Europe.