VGI Global Media Plc (VGI) (VGI.BKK), Thailand’s number one online to
offline (O2O) solutions provider across advertising, payment and
logistics platforms, and iClick Interactive Asia Group Limited
(“iClick”) (Nasdaq: ICLK), an independent online marketing and data
technology platform in China, have entered into an agreement to form a
joint venture (“Joint Venture”) that will enable brands in Southeast
Asia to capture the multi-billion dollar Chinese consumer market through
a range of technology-driven marketing solutions.
The new partnership will leverage the respective strengths of VGI and
iClick to provide brands across Southeast Asia tremendous business
opportunities and deepen their engagement with the large and growing
customer base in China. Together the firms will generate significant
cross border marketing opportunities, which can be addressed through a
suite of mobile and new media products, including:
-
Mobile Application – An AI-powered mobile application that
generates personalized digital content based on users’ interests and
preferences, allowing brands to target consumers more effectively with
highly granular segmentation. -
China Solutions – China solutions comprise a wide range of
digital marketing offerings ranging from marketing intelligence tools,
social, and mobile solutions. These offerings not only help clients
gain in-depth insights of the Chinese market based on iClick’s 780
million consumer profiles, but also provide an efficient way for
clients to acquire the right consumers across multi channels in China,
especially the significant number of Chinese outbound travellers. -
O2O Solutions – 10,000 new mobile charging stations with the
ability to display marketing messages that will be introduced and
placed throughout VGI’s network across Thailand, in prominent
locations such as BTS SkyTrain stations throughout Thailand’s leading
mass transit system, and the distribution centers of Kerry Express,
the leading parcel delivery company in Thailand.
Nelson Leung, CEO of VGI, said, “This collaboration represents an
exciting new digital development in Thailand, as well as the entire
Southeast Asia region. We are delighted to join forces with iClick,
strategically combining our strengths and unlocking the potential of our
companies to improve our influence and market share within the region.
Through iClick’s expertise in digital market analysis and knowledge of
the markets in China and more widely in Asia, we will be better
positioned to offer targeted, customized and measurable marketing
solutions to our customers. We will also continue to expand our O2O
solutions to meet the demands of the ever-growing Chinese market.”
Sammy Hsieh, Co-founder and CEO of iClick, added, “By offering a
variety of innovative solutions, this Joint Venture will strengthen both
VGI’s and iClick’s footprint within the region’s digital market. With
the fast-changing demands of consumers, the capability to offer
effective, flexible and targeted products and services is vital to the
success of the future of advertising. We are confident that this
strategic alliance with VGI will create even greater and more innovative
marketing platforms for brands in the region, and open doors to many new
business and investment opportunities between our companies going
forward.”
The Joint Venture will address the significant potential of the
Southeast Asia market. China is the highest ranked country in the world
in terms of number of outbound travellers. According to the data from
the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of China, with nearly 150 million
outbound trips were made by Chinese travellers. The most popular
destination for these travellers was Thailand, followed by Japan,
Vietnam, Singapore, Indonesia and Malaysia. Chinese outbound travellers
also exhibit a strong propensity to spend while abroad. This group spent
USD 258 billion in 2017, contributing 21% of global total spending while
abroad, making China the top country in this metric. The Joint Venture
has also identified opportunities not limited to the travel sector, and
plans to capture potential benefits in retail, consumer goods,
healthcare and entertainment, amongst others.
The establishment of the Joint Venture will be subject to certain
regulatory approvals.
About VGI Global Media Plc (Stock Code VGI.BKK)
Established in 1998, VGI has been committed to be Thailand’s most
customer-oriented media company. This rich heritage defines who we are
and what we do today. VGI was the No. 1 out-of-home media platform
having its media in Transit, Office, Outdoor, Aviation and Activation
with THB 7billion inventory on hand. Now, VGI is a unique market leader
with exclusive access to behavioral data from our advertising, payment
and logistics platforms. We turn data to meaningful consumer insight,
enabling us to offer Offline-to-Online solutions. To provide a better
customer experience, we help brands to navigate their customers at every
stage of the purchasing process. We are No.1 listed media company on SET
by market capitalisation of over THB 67billion (USD 2billion) and
generating THB 3,936milion in total sales revenue with a superior margin
of 21.5% as of March 2018. VGI is a member of BTS Group Holdings Plc.,
Thailand’s leading provider of mass transit solutions.
About iClick Interactive Asia Group Ltd (NASDAQ:ICLK)
iClick Interactive Asia Group Limited is an independent online marketing
and data technology platform that connects worldwide marketers with
audiences in China. Built on cutting-edge technologies, our proprietary
platform possesses omni-channel marketing capabilities and fulfills
various marketing objectives in a data-driven and automated manner,
helping both international and domestic marketers reach their target
audiences in China. Headquartered in Hong Kong, iClick Interactive was
established in 2009, currently operating in nine locations worldwide
including Asia and London.
Safe Harbor Statement
This announcement contains forward-looking statements. These statements
constitute “forward-looking” statements within the meaning of Section
21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and as defined
in the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These
forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as
“will,” “expects,” “anticipates,” “future,” “intends,” “plans,”
“believes,” “estimates,” “explore,” “confident” and similar statements.
Such statements are based upon management’s current expectations and
current market and operating conditions, and relate to events that
involve known or unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, all of
which are difficult to predict and many of which are beyond the
Company’s control. Forward-looking statements involve inherent risks and
uncertainties. A number of factors could cause actual results to differ
materially from those contained in any forward-looking statement,
including but not limited to the following: the Company’s fluctuations
in growth; its success in implementing its mobile and new retail
strategies, including extending its solutions beyond its core digital
marketing business; relative percentage of its gross billing recognized
as net revenues under the gross and net models; its ability to retain
existing clients or attract new ones; its ability to retain content
distribution channels and negotiate favorable contractual terms; market
competition, including from independent online marketing technology
platforms as well as large and well-established internet companies;
market acceptance of online marketing technology and business
intelligence solutions; effectiveness of its algorithms and data
engines; its ability to collect and use data from various sources;
ability to integrate and realize synergies from acquisitions or
investments, fluctuations in foreign exchange rates; general economic
conditions in China and other jurisdictions where the Company operates;
and the regulatory landscape in China and other jurisdictions where the
Company operates. Further information regarding these and other risks is
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with the SEC. All information provided in this press release and in the
attachments is as of the date of this press release, and the Company
undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statement, except
as required under applicable law.
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