ipsh! acquired by Omnicom Group

Global communications and marketing group Omnicom has strengthened its position in the mobile market with the acquisition of leading North American mobile marketing firm, ipsh!

Tom Harrison, Chairman and CEO of Diversified Agency Services (a division of the Omnicom Group) commented: "At Omnicom, we recognise growth markets and exceptional business opportunities that support our existing businesses and clients, so this acquisition is a perfect fit."

"ipsh! has an ability to successfully implement mobile marketing campaigns for a broad range of clients across industries, which will give us a leadership position in the marketplace," he added.

ipsh! (Instant Power, Single Handed) was founded in 2001, and provides mobile marketing and promotional activities which cover a broad spectrum of brands and industries. Clients include Nokia, SEGA, Disney, AOL/Time Warner, American Express, Sony and many more. The company represents sixty percent of US media firms in the Fortune 100, and was recently awarded the Marketing and Interactive Excellence Silver award.

Utilising its proprietary PRISM technology, ipsh! provides marketing solutions using one-way and two-way SMS, real-time voting, premium SMS and MMS, and additional mobile content such as ringtones, logos, wallpapers and games.

Nihal Mehta, founder and CEO of ipsh! stated: "This acquisition represents a unique partnership with the convergence of traditional corporate communications and wireless services. It highlights the growing importance of the mobile phone as a viable marketing medium."

The Omnicom Group was founded in 1986, and encompasses numerous divisions specialising in advertising and marketing services, specialty communications, interactive and digital media and mobile communications. The company posted revenues of USD 9.7 billion for the 2004 fiscal period and intends to further develop its revenue streams with the ipsh! acquisition.