LiveRamp acquires data clean room provider Habu for USD $200 million

LiveRamp, a preeminent data collaboration software provider, has declared the acquisition of Habu, a well-known data clean room software provider. The acquisition, worth approximately USD $200 million in a cash and stock transaction, aims to promote LiveRamp's capacity to provide global data collaboration at scale, encompassing all clouds and walled gardens.

Following the acquisition, LiveRamp intends to offer novel capabilities to its customers, improving cross-cloud collaboration and streamlining processes. Additionally, the acquisition will facilitate a single, unprecedented viewpoint of measurement across various platforms.

Habu's cutting-edge technology allows global brands and media companies to securely share first-party customer data with business partners and publishers, enabling more effective, personalised marketing. Despite being inundated with data, many companies struggle to fully exploit the value of the information available to them. Often, valuable data remains in operational silos, which can hinder internal utilisation and complicate collaborations with external partners. The union of LiveRamp and Habu aims to tackle these structural issues by interconnecting data and making it operable across all clouds, walled gardens, and clean room environments.

Discussing the acquisition, Scott Howe, CEO of LiveRamp, hailed it as a significant move towards empowering customers to reveal insights, use cases, and revenue streams by connecting data and deepening measurement. Howe emphasised Habu's shared vision with LiveRamp, believing that the combined effort of the two companies will enable more global enterprises to harness the transformative power of data collaboration.

The acquisition will streamline cross-cloud collaboration, enable a single view of measurement across all platforms, enhance enterprise identity and connectivity solutions, and expand LiveRamp's industry-leading data collaboration network. It will also further AI initiatives through greater data access to train and optimise analytical models.

CEO of Habu, Matt Kilmartin, voiced his excitement over the acquisition and shared an ardent commitment to the continuing mission of paving the way for responsible data collaboration. Kilmartin perceives the union of LiveRamp and Habu as a shared endeavour to create the largest data collaboration network rooted in privacy. 

Kilmartin said, "LiveRamp and Habu approached the data collaboration market with two complementary strategies that share the common goal of creating the largest data collaboration network rooted in privacy. As we look ahead to our next chapter as part of LiveRamp, we're as committed as ever to our mission of paving the way for the next frontier of responsible data collaboration."

The acquisition's financial impact is expected to drive accelerated growth and value for LiveRamp shareholders. The combined capabilities will unlock several powerful and new use cases for existing customers. The addition of Habu will offer a simple, cross-cloud user interface and enhanced self-service capabilities that will allow LiveRamp to better serve a broader set of customers. It will also accelerate LiveRamp's international expansion efforts.

The deal is anticipated to be concluded in LiveRamp's fourth fiscal quarter. LiveRamp presented its preliminary financial results for its fiscal 2024 third quarter, reporting a significant increase in revenue and operating income results, which exceeded prior guidance.