Opera Mediaworks has bought AdVine, a local provider of a premium mobile-advertising network, for an undisclosed amount.
In a statement, Opera Mediaworks says brands keen on reaching mobile consumers in the region will have access to its rich-media and video campaign platform, "the world's largest independent mobile advertising platform".
The company, citing Ericsson's Mobility Report, notes Sub-Saharan Africa is one of the fastest growing mobile markets in the world with over 600 million mobile phone subscriptions, a figure predicted to increase to over 930 million by the end of 2019.
With the acquisition, both companies will work strategically with advertisers interested in reaching mobile consumers on smartphones and tablets, a rapidly expanding market in the region, Opera Mediaworks says.
"Africa is positioned to become the 'mobile continent' with experts predicting an explosion in mobile data usage over the next five years," says Mahi de Silva, CEO of Opera Mediaworks. "We are particularly excited about the hundreds of millions of African and global consumers who will be glued to the African Cup of Nations in 2015."
"Mobile Web usage in Africa is one of the highest globally and the continent's dynamic mobile industry remains an incredible place of growth," says Sarah Utermark, CEO of AdVine.
Opera Mediaworks and AdVine have a long-standing relationship, monetising Opera's owned and operated mobile-ad inventory in the region. To better serve this market, Opera Mediaworks plans to significantly expand its investments in people and resources across the continent.
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