Opt acquires Catcha Digital Asia

Former Apple APAC Head of Online Marketing, Mitsuru Kikunaga to take on CEO role

18/03/2013

Opt Inc. (“Opt�E, Japan’s leading e-marketing company and one of the largest in Asia, today announced that it has acquired Catcha Digital Asia Pte Ltd (CDA), one of Southeast Asia’s leading digital media networks, from Catcha Group Pte Ltd (“Catcha Group�E. Former Apple Asia-Pacific Head of Online Marketing, Mitsuru Kikunaga, currently Opt’s Asia-Pacific Business General Manager, will step into the role of CDA CEO.

Opt, which has operations in Japan, Korea and China and a head count of 1261 employees, is listed on the Japan Securities Exchange (JASDAQ) and generates revenue of ¥78.9 billion (US$825 million) annually. Its decision to acquire 90 percent of CDA is designed to strengthen its position across Asia and enable CDA to become the one-stop digital solution to meet the requirements of its clients in the ASEAN region, including those of Japanese companies that want to advance into ASEAN’s rapid growth markets.

Appointed as CDA’s incoming CEO, Mitsuru Kikunaga, has extensive business experience in the APAC region and is well placed to take advantage of the business opportunities available in this emerging market. Commenting on the move, Kikunaga said, “Opt has determined ASEAN as an important market for Opt’s overseas expansion and will aggressively invest the resources of the company in the region. We are targeting to generate ¥10 billion (US$105 million) in revenue through our overseas businesses by 2020.�E/p>

As part of this strategy, Opt will be dispatching specialists in performance-based advertising such as Search Engine Marketing (“SEM�E and Display Advertising to South-East Asia; both are fields in which Opt is a Japan market-leader. Additionally, Opt will be looking to augment CDA’s current ad network business and introduce Opt’s capabilities to CDA, including by way of providing access to Opt’s management and solutions across display media, social media, and data and search advertising.

As part of the terms of the acquisition, Catcha Group will retain a 10% stake in CDA. CDA was established by leading international investment firm Catcha Group in 2009 and represents numerous internationally recognised online media brands across 13 countries.

The move by Opt was welcomed by Catcha Group CEO, Patrick Grove, who said “Interest in CDA by an international media player of the caliber of Opt is testament to Catcha Group’s ability to create and develop value in fast-growing digital companies in the ASEAN region. It only affirms the great business the management team and Catcha Group has built over the last few years. We’re excited by this new relationship with Opt and we are looking forward to more opportunities to work together.�E/p>

*1: About CDA (As of March, 2013)
Established in: December 10th, 2009
Head office: Singapore
CEO: Mitsuru Kikunaga
Offices: Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia
Business:
1. Ad network agency
2. Digital trading desk
3. Search marketing
Shareholders: Opt 90%, Catcha Group 10%
URL: http://catchadigital.asia/index.html

*2 About Mitsuru Kikunaga
Experience:
1997 Opt, Asia-Pacific Business General Manager
1999 Dell Japan, Leader for online business
2004 Apple, Asia-Pacific Head of Online Marketing
2012 Fast Retailing, Global Marketing Division
2013 Catcha Digital Asia, Chief Executive Officer

*3 About Catcha Group
Name: Catcha Group Pte Ltd
Established in: 1999
Headquarters: Malaysia
Offices: Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Hong Kong, Thailand, India
Group CEO: Patrick Grove
Business: Private Investment Group
Major affiliated Companies:
iProperty Group Ltd (Regional property portal, listed on Australian Securities Exchange)
iCar Asia.Limited (Regional car listing portal, listed in Australian Securities Exchange)
Catcha Media Berhad (New media group listed on Bursa Malaysia)
Dealmates.com (Online flash sales site, e-commerce)
Haute Avenue (Online luxury flash sales site, e-commerce)
URL:http://www.catchagroup.com/

[About Opt]
Opt is a one-stop shop for advertisers and advertising agencies that are seeking online marketing solutions that will enable such clients to maximize ROI.
URL: http://www.opt.ne.jp/

Name: Opt Inc
Established in: March 4th , 1994
Capital: ¥7595 million (US$79.14 million) as of 30/06/2012
President & CEO: Noboru Hachimine
Address: Tokyubancho Bldg., 6, Yonban-cho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo, 102-0081, Japan
Business: Online Marketing
Listed on: JASDAQ
URL: http://www.opt.ne.jp/

For further information, contact:
Oono (IR representative)
Tel: 6-03-5745-3624
E-mail: info@ml.opt.ne.jp