Digital marketing intelligence firm comScore has signed an agreement to acquire communications research agency ARSgroup.

The all-cash acquisition strengthens comScore’s position of measuring advertising and its effectiveness in TV, online, print and integrated cross-media platforms.
 

Following completion ARSgroup, will be renamed comScore ARS and Jeff Cox, chief executive of ARSgroup will be become an executive vice-president of comScore.  
 
ComScore adds that it anticipates closing the transaction in March 2010 and expects ARS to fuel incremental growth for comScore in 2010.

Dr Magid Abraham, comScore president and chief executive, says: “As the advertising market continues to become more fragmented as it migrates toward various emerging digital content channels, understanding how to measure the effectiveness of one’s advertising messages has never been more important.

“We believe that the high quality, proven research tools and practices of the ARSgroup will powerfully complement comScore’s existing product suite, allowing us to strengthen our portfolio of advertising measurement services.”

“We are excited about the opportunity to leverage ARS’s expertise and proprietary IP to build innovative solutions in the online measurement space and to provide leading cross media measurement solutions for the measurement of advertising effectiveness.”

Jeff Cox, chief executive of ARSgroup, adds: “We are excited to become a part of ComScore and by the opportunity to provide exciting additions to ComScore’s existing global suite of products.”