Social Intelligence Providers Brandwatch, Crimson Hexagon Merge

Brandwatch and Crimson Hexagon, two social intelligence solution providers, have announced that they will merge to create a $100 million business that will move forward as Brandwatch. The deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter.

"In this digitally connected world, our vision is to transform how organizations understand their consumers through products that bring structure and meaning to the public voices of billions of people,” said Giles Palmer, Brandwatch founder and chief executive officer. “This merger allows us to accelerate towards that vision and move beyond social listening to innovate at the cross-section of brand, market and consumer intelligence."

"We believe that our artificial intelligence capabilities are unmatched in this industry, and our many customer successes bear witness to the value that it has driven over the years," said Chris Bingham, Crimson Hexagon's chief technology officer. "I am very excited to know that our 11-year investment in AI and machine learning is so valued by Brandwatch, and that it will be at the very core of our new integrated platform."

Integration of the products has begun, although both will continue to be supported and operate independently for an extended period. A new roadmap for the combined company will bring together Crimson Hexagon's AI and historical data index with Brandwatch's data handling and flexible user interface to create greater value for customers. The company will also add data from marketing, customer behavior and market research sources to the platform, expanding beyond social intelligence.

"Our clients tell us that they need a faster, richer understanding of their markets and consumers based on public and proprietary data they trust. They need global reach, world-class professional services and fast, intuitive products they can put in the hands of non-analysts as they become more data-driven," continued Palmer.