London/Düsseldorf, 9. September 2014 – ZenithOptimedia today announces the acquisition of AKM3, a leading SEO agency in Europe. The transaction is subject to the approval of the German Federal Cartel Office.
Founded in 2011 and based in Berlin, AKM3 provides clients the full range of services needed for successful search engine optimization. The fast-growing company has more than 100 employees and has built up an impressive list of blue chip clients, such as Zalando, Teufel Audio, ProSiebenSat1 and Axel Springer.
Under the terms of the acquisition, AKM3 will be aligned with digital performance marketing agency Performics, part of the ZenithOptimedia group. This will enhance Performics’ digital offering and will see the two aligned companies become the leader in SEO in Germany.
SEO is one of the fastest growing segments of performance marketing and has been a key driver in the success of Performics. Today, Performics is a global leader in performance marketing and has been a leading player in Germany since 2011.
The agency will operate under its existing management team of Maik Metzen, Markus Koczy and Andre Alpar, who will lead the newly aligned company as CEO, reporting to Frank-Peter Lortz, Chairman ZenithOptimedia Germany.
Frank-Peter Lortz, Chairman, ZenithOptimedia Germany, said:
“AKM3 is a natural fit with Performics and the combined offering will take ZenithOptimedia’s performance marketing expertise to the next level. This acquisition will make us a top three performance agency in Germany.“
Andre Alpar, CEO, AKM3, said:
“We are very excited about becoming part of the Publicis Groupe. Our alignment with Performics will enable us to enhance our service to large international clients and to benefit from market-leading tools and resources.“
