ITV’s Media for Equity initiative, ITV AdVentures Invest, has acquired a minority stake in the location service what3words Limited.
what3words has divided the world into a grid of 3 metre squares with each having its own three-word identifier.
For example, the front door to ITV’s head office can be found at ///drama.keen.buyers, and one of ITV’s most-iconic locations, the Rovers Return in Coronation Street is at ///horn.studio.towers.
“what3words has seen a dramatic increase in the number of people using the system. Our work is helping individuals and businesses across the UK to make deliveries, meet friends, specify destinations for taxis and cars, but also to save lives,” explained Giles Rhys Jones, CMO, what3words.
The broadcaster has acquired a minority stake valued at £2 million (€2.3 million) in return for advertising inventory, with an option to invest a further £2 million.
Kelly Williams, Managing Director ITV Commercial, said: “We are always exploring new and creative opportunities to introduce emerging brands to TV advertising. This new equity scheme marks an opportunity for ITV to invest in and support entrepreneurial consumer-focused companies, whilst diversifying and expanding upon our existing clients and relationships.
ITV’s New Media For Equity programme is being run by venture capitalist Niko Waesche. He was responsible for co-founding Germany’s leading independent media for equity fund, German Media Pool, and brings significant experience from a background in media strategy, sales, data and tech, having previously held senior positions within RTL, GfK and the media industry unit of IBM.
Minority stakes are being taken in early stage digital and direct-to-consumer businesses, alongside venture capital investment, in return for advertising inventory across ITV’s range of market-leading channels and streaming service ITV Hub.
