Philipp Welte, Management Board Member Publishing at Hubert Burda Media: ‘The competition for the attention of the consumer in the digital channels and the social networks is decided by the attractiveness of the content; this is why content marketing is a growth market.’ Welte regards ‘the ability to convey the fascination of brands to the respective target groups via exciting content’ as the next key development step in marketing, which is why the media group is planning to strategically expand its entrepreneurial activities in this field via BurdaCreative. The acquisition of wunder media production is a milestone in this endeavor; it is currently awaiting approval by the Anti-Monopoly Office.
With wunder media production (wmp), Burda has acquired an agency that specializes in the concept development, production and publication of high-quality digital content. The company with 73 permanent staff mainly caters to customers in the media, entertainment and pharmaceutical industries; key accounts include Microsoft msn, 1&1, ProSiebenSat.1, and Teva. wmp’s portfolio includes editorial services for digital channels and social networks, the production and management of video content, and the administration of communities. Furthermore, wmp handles technical tasks such as programming and digital development.
With the acquisition, wunder media production will split off from its parent company, wunder media; however, there will be no changes to the headcount and the setup of operating teams. Previous customer relations will remain unchanged as well. BurdaCreative and wmp will act in cooperation while continuing to present themselves as stand-alone enterprises in the market. Future planning includes a joint investment in technological developments as well as digital tools for performance evaluations, tracking and data analysis.
In addition to serving as the Director Finance & Operations of BurdaCreative, Jeno Schadrack will join the wmp management as its Commercial Director, supporting the previous executive team of Patrick Wolf and Alexander Dix. The agency’s co-founders Todd Covell and Armin Nusser will be retiring from their positions, but will continue to serve as consultants to the company. In order to ensure the close cooperation and coordination with BurdaCreative, the wmp Managing Directors will also report directly to Gregor Vogelsang, Managing Director of BurdaCreative and Burda Magazine Holding.
BurdaCreative’s Managing Director Gregor Vogelsang: ‘Owned media channels and professional media content have meanwhile become an element of sustainable communication with the consumer and are thus a priority on the agenda of the decision-makers in marketing. Larger companies in particular want to see a partner by their side that offers them reliable services based on creative ideas, an integrated approach to paid, owned, earned communications and wide-ranging expertise. Therefore, service providers in this market will have to step up their investment in multi-channel, content, video and analytics expertise in the future. By acquiring wunder media production, BurdaCreative has taken a vital step in the right direction. In the future, we will continue to pursue further strategic alliances and acquisitions as part of our growth strategy.’
wmp Managing Director Alexander Dix: ‘As a digital native agency, we at wunder media production have established all the relevant expertise to support customers in matters of editorial and content marketing over the past 15 years. The collaboration with Burda will allow us to present and apply our expertise even better and faster in the future and to pool it with the strengths and advantages of a leading media group. This is to the benefit of both our customers and our staff, who will have new opportunities in their career development. I am very much looking forward to this new stage for wunder media production, which we have just ringed in.’
