AudioValley Group, the Belgian company that owns the audio ad tech
provider Targetspot, is changing its name to take on the branding of its
largest division. AudioValley’s board has approved switching its name
to Targetspot. It also plans to sell off the Winamp audio player
business as part of what the company says is a “refocusing” on the
digital audio monetization business, where it sees strong momentum.
“Our
name change reflects our decision to accelerate growth in digital audio
monetization,” said chairman and founder Alexandre Saboundjian.
“Podcasts, streaming, gaming: in all of these fast-growing markets we
are ready to make a difference by capitalizing on our proprietary
technologies, a portfolio of massive, international audiences and the
trust of leading advertisers. By bearing the Targetspot flag, we are
also clarifying our positioning to our customers and shareholders.”
Targetspot
makes up nearly all of AudioValley’s business – last year 92% of its
revenue came from the ad tech unit. Targetspot has also been growing at a
rapid pace. During the first quarter of this year its revenue jumped
34.6% following full-year 2021 results that saw Targetspot revenue grow
50% for the full year.
AudioValley says the gains have been
driven by expansion of its business in both the U.S. and Europe. It says
that momentum, as well as new opportunities offered by the digital
audio market, are at the heart of its refocusing decision. The company
says the changes should enable it to focus more resources on developing
Targetspot’s capabilities. Launched in 2007 as one of the original
online audio advertising platforms, Targetspot currently works with
audio publishers to provide end-to-end integration between advertisers
and publishers through both direct and programmatic buying.
“The
next step in this refocusing process will be the sale of our Winamp
platform, a project justified by the significant investments and
recruitment required for its development, which are now incompatible
with our new roadmap,” said Saboundjian.
AudioValley says Winamp
currently has 80 million monthly active users worldwide with a mix of
podcasts, radio streams, audiobooks and other audio content. Winamp was
first developed for Microsoft Windows by Nullsoft, which later sold the
technology to AOL in 1999 for $80 million. AudioValley – which was then
called Radionomy – bought Winamp and Shoutcast from
AOL in 2014 in a deal said to have been valued in the $5 to $10 million
range. It announced in 2019 that it planned to release Winamp 6 in 2019
but three years later, no update has materialized.
AudioValley’s
name change to Targetspot will mean that as of today (June 24) the
company will adopt a new stock symbol in Paris and Brussel where its
shares trade on the Euronext Growth exchanges. It will become “ALTGS.”
The company also announced it plans to release its mid-year revenue
report on July 26.