REDWOOD CITY, CA--(Marketwired - Sep 2, 2014) - Rocket Fuel (
With the highest media spend per person in the world, Australia provides Rocket Fuel with an ideal opportunity to enter the market, as a rise in supply-side providers in the past two years has grown with the demand for programmatic offerings.
"Our partners in London have had huge success with Rocket Fuel, so we are thrilled to welcome them to Australia. We have run the first campaign out of Australia with Rocket Fuel, and are excited about the entry of Rocket Fuel into the digital advertising industry in Australia," said Sophie Paulin, digital director at Media Circus, an independent media agency based in Brisbane, Australia. "As supply-side vendors have expanded within the market in recent years, the opening of Rocket Fuel's Sydney office will provide us with an excellent opportunity to buy this inventory at scale."
With the entry into this new market, Rocket Fuel is committed to growing its footprint organically, with full local support. The new office will be dedicated to delivering to customers a full suite of managed and self-service solutions across programmatically enabled mobile, social, video and display channels.
The Sydney office, located at Ark Coca-Cola Place, is headed by JJ Eastwood. With positions at eBay, Ninemsn, Fairfax Digital and News Corp under his belt, JJ's arrival and background represent the best in old media, along with a deep understanding and mastery of new media. As General Manager of eBay Advertising for the ANZ Market, JJ implemented a fully programmatic advertising sales strategy, creating Australia's largest private market place, via partnerships with Google and Mi9. As a technologist he is well positioned to help Rocket Fuel expand in the region.
"Coming straight from the world of eBay programmatic selling, JJ's dynamic background, clear understanding of the programmatic advertising landscape, as well as his position as a thought leader within the ANZ market was the perfect match to expand the Rocket Fuel platform," said George John, Rocket Fuel CEO and Chairman. "As Rocket Fuel continues to grow in new and existing markets worldwide, we are excited to welcome JJ as our close connection to advertisers in Australia and New Zealand."
"Rocket Fuel's vision for Australia is simple -- leverage our Big Data plus AI technology to deliver unparalleled return on ad spend for Australian marketers and at the same time provide best-in-class customer service," said JJ Eastwood, Managing Director of Rocket Fuel, Australia and New Zealand. "Programmatic has grown exponentially in Australia in the last 12 months, so we're looking forward to building upon this momentum and providing full support for clients in the region."
The Australian market has made a huge leap forward. According to research firm IDC, RTB spending was $74 million in 2013, or 9% of total display ad sales -- an increase of 105% from the 2012 spend of $36 million, or 5% of all display ad sales, and is expected to rise to $278 million by 2017.
"We are very thrilled to announce the opening of our Australian office, which allows us the opportunity to service an entirely new geography in a growing and maturing market," said Mark Prior, VP of Mobile and International at Rocket Fuel.
About Rocket Fuel Rocket Fuel delivers a leading programmatic media-buying platform at Big Data scale that harnesses the power of artificial intelligence (AI) to improve marketing ROI in digital media across web, mobile, video, and social channels. Rocket Fuel powers digital advertising and marketing programs globally for customers in North America, Europe, and APAC. Customers trust Rocket Fuel's Advertising That Learns® platform to achieve brand and direct-response objectives in diverse industries from luxury cars to financial services to retail. Rocket Fuel, a GSA approved vendor, currently operates in more than 20 offices worldwide and trades on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the ticker symbol "FUEL." For more information, please visit http://www.rocketfuel.com or call 1-888-717-8873.
Media Contact: Kenya Hayes khayes@rocketfuelinc.com (650) 481-6178
