The Trade Desk intends to acquire ad data firm Sincera, marking only its second acquisition since it launched in 2009 — a rare move for a company that usually builds, not buys.
Financial terms weren’t disclosed, but when the deal closes, expected in the first quarter, Sincera’s co-founder and CEO, Mike O’Sullivan, will report directly to The Trade Desk’s CEO, Jeff Green.
Why The Trade Desk acquisition breaks its ‘build over buy’ habit
The move arms the ad tech vendor with more data to convince publishers that ads running through its platform outperform the rest of the programmatic market. In fact, Sincera’s data powered The Trade Desk’s recent “Sellers and Publishers,” spotlighting where advertising value is migrating across the premium, open internet.
“In recent years, the digital advertising landscape has expanded rapidly with the emergence of new channels such as streaming TV, digital audio, and retail media. As the market expands and as the supply chain seems to get more complex, it’s critical that advertisers can show publishers which data signals they need and value,” said Green in a statement. “With the acquisition of Sincera, we will bring the value to life in a way that will improve programmatic performance and significantly improve the quality of data signals that advertisers get from publishers.”
That last point underscores a more significant trend: sell-side targeting. Traditionally, targeting has been the domain of demand-side platforms like The Trade Desk.
However, as other ad tech players, such as supply-side platforms and curation specialists, refine their ability to replicate DSP-level targeting, the dynamics are shifting. The more targeting migrates upstream, the greater the risk to The Trade Desk’s profit margins, which rely heavily on selling audience data to advertisers – something it can’t do if targeting happens elsewhere.
Sincera could help counteract that risk. Enabling The Trade Desk to provide advertisers with sharper insights into the value of impressions strengthens the case for publishers to use its platform instead of turning to competitors. This level of analytics has created a gap in The Trade Desk’s push to curate the best ad impressions outside walled gardens, and Sincera aims to fill it.
“Sincera has become the go-to resource for advertisers and publishers looking for objective data on advertising value. We have retained that objectivity by ensuring our focus on being an expert data company, rather than a data provider,” said O’Sullivan. “We’re excited to bring our perspective and insights to The Trade Desk. We have a shared belief that trust and growth in the programmatic ecosystem will be fueled by a transparent and fair marketplace based on objective data.”
The Trade Desk isn’t typically an M&A player — its first and only other acquisition was AdBrain in 2017 — but when it comes to bolstering its data, it seems the ad tech vendor seems willing to make the exception.
Pundits will also be aware of how Sincera — long a darling of the sector that has won the backing of several key industry powerbrokers, such as Aperiam, LiveRamp, and NextView Ventures — had earlier benefitted from The Trade Desk.
For example, The Trade Desk’s $7 million venture capital arm TD7 participated in Sincera’s $4.2 million seed funding round in late 2023. This came two years after TD7’s initial investment in Chalice, a correlation that will likely lead such observers if further M&A moves lie ahead for The Trade Desk.
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