PadSquad acquires Source Digital video tech assets
December 6, 2023
PadSquad, the high-impact advertising experiences specialist, has acquired patent protected interactive advertising technology assets from Source Digital, a player in Activated Moments in video content and metaverse. The technology enables content recognition within video ads and the real-time delivery of interactive instream video ads.
The news comes less than a year removed from Star Mountain Capital making a significant investment in PadSquad to fuel organic growth and pursue acquisitions. The acquired technology assets enable PadSquad to expand its video offering to deliver large format interactive ads within a publisher’s video content. This exclusive new ad experience, dubbed VidStream+, rounds out PadSquad’s existing Interactive Video product suite to cover all sides of digital video: instream, outstream, and connected TV.
“We now have patented technology that will allow us to enter the digital video instream advertising market with a solution not available anywhere else,” said Daniel Meehan, founder and CEO of PadSquad. “The biggest winners here will be our advertising partners. Our decade plus of experience has taught us that interactive ad formats drive business outcomes. With the unrivaled engagement of our rich media offerings, it’s about time we bring our creative best practises to instream video. We’re confident brands can achieve far greater performance through remarkable instream creative that utilises interactive components.”
VidStream+ campaigns feature interactive elements that invite consumers to explore ‘Brand Activated Moments’ within online video content. See the demo experience of highly engaging and proven past interactive feature of ‘Product Cards’, which enables the viewer to explore featured products in an overlay of the video ad, while also making the unit shoppable.
“These new tech capabilities bolster our creative toolkit as we reimagine instream advertising experiences for our advertising partners,” added Jennifer Klimek-Gavin, SVP of creative and innovation at PadSquad. “We can now offer the agility, customisation and interactivity that has escaped brands looking to market their products using video.”
Financial terms were not being disclosed.
Research from PadSquad finds that the majority of consumers (80 per cent) are more likely to remember a product being advertised after viewing an interactive video ad, and nearly half (46 per cent) are likely to make a purchase after viewing an interactive video ad. Further, only half of advertisers have tested interactive instream, per a PadSquad survey of hundreds of marketers from agencies and brands. The QSR, automotive and retail industries have been the quickest to embrace VidStream+ as interactive instream video ads have proven to drive sales for early adopters.