Opera Acquires AdVine To Expand Its Mobile Ad Network In Africa

Opera Mediaworks has acquired South African mobile advertising network AdVine, enabling global and local advertisers to reach millions of consumers in Africa.

The company noted in particular the oppportunities that will be presented during the African Cup of Nations next year.

Opera Mediaworks citied a study by Ericsson, which said that Sub-Saharan Africa has over 600 million mobile phone subscriptions and that the figure is expected to pass 930 million by the end of 2019.

With the acquisition, both companies will work strategically with advertisers interested in reaching mobile consumers on smartphones and tablets, a rapidly expanding market in the region. No financial details were disclosed.

"Africa is positioned to become the 'mobile continent' with experts predicting an explosion in mobile data usage over the next five years," says Mahi de Silva, CEO of Opera Mediaworks. "We are particularly excited about the hundreds of millions of African and global consumers who will be glued to the African Cup of Nations in 2015."

Opera Mediaworks will play an integral part in helping advertisers reach their audiences across a broad portfolio of popular mobile apps and websites. These include the award-winning Opera Mini browser and the Opera Max data-savings app for Android.

"Mobile web usage in Africa is one of the highest globally and the continent's dynamic mobile industry remains an incredible place of growth," says Sarah Utermark, CEO, AdVine. "We're excited to be able offer unrivaled reach to brands looking to tap into the burgeoning African market as part of Opera Mediaworks' global mobile advertising platform."