Member Article

London tech startup Unruly launches in Japan

London-based startup, Unruly set to launch in Japan, coinciding with the Mayor of London’s trade visit to promote the capital as a major investment destination.

The move marks the tech company’s continuing investment in the APAC region, following the opening of an office in Sydney, Australia in April and the launch of its APAC HQ in Singapore last year.

Founded in London in 2006, Unruly now employs 200 people across 15 offices with HQ operations in London, New York and Singapore.

The global video platform, which has worked with 90% of Ad Age 100 brands to help get their ads watched, tracked and shared online, is expanding its operations across APAC to help ROI-driven marketers in Japan benefit from its unique audience data, native video ad formats and mobile video exchange.

Over the next three days (October 13-15), Boris Johnson is leading a trade mission to Japan, where he will meet with senior Japanese politicians, business leaders and investors to foster closer ties and greater investment in life sciences, tech and innovation.

The visit is part of his continued drive to create jobs and growth in the capital by strengthening ties with world cities like Tokyo and promoting London to the world as a major investment destination.

Mayor of London Boris Johnson MP said: “Unruly is one of the great success stories of London’s tech community and I’m delighted that the company is bringing their talent and innovation to the Japanese market. Japan is one of the world’s most important economic powerhouses and my visit is an opportunity to bang the drum for London and strengthen our ties with the country.”

Sarah Wood, co-founder and co-CEO of Unruly said: “We are looking forward to bringing our unique data and insight to the Japanese market. Every market is different and Japan presents a huge opportunity for marketers looking to amplify the impact of their online video campaigns.

“Japan is still in the early stages of its digital video journey. Despite Japan currently having the third largest ad market in the world, only 3% of digital ad spend in 2014 was on online video. That’s going to change massively over the coming months, with some predicting that the Japanese online video market will be worth nearly $1bn USD by 2017.

“We want to be there from the outset to help develop the online ad industry in a way that is positive to publishers, brands and consumers.

Separately, the Mayor of London, Boris Johnson MP has today appointed Sarah Wood as a technology ambassador for London. She will join other ambassadors such as Russ Shaw, Founder of Tech London Advocates, Gerard Grech, CEO Tech City UK and Kathryn Parsons CEO Decoded, to help promote the capital’s tech sector on an international stage.

The Mayor of London continued: “Sarah is one of the most talented individuals working the tech sector. She has built a world-class business by harnessing the best of London’s talent and innovation and is already spreading the message of our tech sector to international investors and audiences.

“Sarah is a shining example of the dynamic, entrepreneurial spirit that’s so pervasive in London and she is an outstanding ambassador.”

Sarah Wood added: “It’s a real honour to be asked to be a technology ambassador for London. London is the place to be if you want to start up and scale up a global technology company, and I want to make sure everyone around the globe is aware of all of the opportunities the capital offers.

“It’s home to some of the most innovative companies in the world, we have more developers and investors than any other city in the world, there are highly favourable tax incentives for entrepreneurs and we have a vibrant, lively and diverse culture.”

Unruly was acquired by News Corp last month in a £58m deal. The startup continues to run as a separate company from its Shoreditch HQ, but reports to Rebekah Brooks, who was recently appointed chief executive of News UK.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ellen Forster .