Struggling Tapit Media acquired by Geronimo

The assets of struggling Near Field Communications company Tapit Media have been acquired by mobile marketing company Geronimo.

The announcement:

GERONIMO ACQUIRES TAPIT MEDIA

Global technology platform enabling Near Field Communications for marketing

MEDIA RELEASE: Sydney Thursday 10th AUG 2017: Mobile customer experience company, Geronimo, today announced it has acquired Tapit Media, citing the company’s NFC technology as a major growth area in mobile marketing. The move further consolidates Geronimo’s position as a leading innovator in mobile marketing industry and enhances the capabilities of its mobile customer experience (MCX) platform. Since launching in 2015, Geronimo has emerged as a leading specialist in mobile marketing strategy, tech, data, creative & media, working with brands including Pfizer, Westfield, SBS, NIB and Commbank.

Tapit is a pioneer within the contactless communications sector. Since 2011 Tapit has worked with global brands including Google, Microsoft, Unilever, P&G and Nestle to deploy, manage and analyse their contactless infrastructure including NFC tags and QR codes. Leveraging Tapit and the power of contactless communications provides global brands with a scalable, innovative and secure way to engage consumers via their smartphone directly from physical environments, turning foot traffic into web traffic with a simple tap.

The acquisition of Tapit brings proprietary technology, data and IP to the Geronimo technology stack and sees Jamie Conyngham, founder of Tapit, join the Geronimo management team as the CEO of the Tapit business.

Geronimo CEO Matt Hunt says the acquisition is about helping marketers build better connections with their customers. “Geronimo is all about improving a customer’s experience with a brand using mobile. Tapit’s platform helps us connect the physical world with the digital world and we believe the platform will allow people use their phones to transact with companies in the future.”

“If you sit in any chief marketing officer’s role in Australia, I think it’s difficult to argue there is any more pressing issue than focussing on the customer and improving the way you connect with them. That’s why investing in NFC technology and why mobile innovation is so key for our clients and for the team at Geronimo.”

“We’re excited to welcome the Tapit brand to Geronimo, and we look forward to continuing their legacy of innovation in the mobile arena,” he said.

Tapit Founder Jamie Conyngham says the deal enables a raft of fresh research and development work to take place:

“This acquisition coincides with Apple’s announcement last month that it will open up near field communication (NFC) support for developers in iOS11. This is a pivotal moment for the mobile industry. In Australia, we already use NFC for payments like Apple Pay, our banking apps and Samsung Pay, plus all the chip and pin credit cards for Tap and Pay. However, for other NFC uses like Tapit marketing, pairing speakers and other systems for your phone like transport ticketing, companies and governments have held back because it doesn’t work on all phones. With Apple updating their operating system in September it will work on most new phones. NFC will therefore become one of the core technologies driving mobile innovation around the world.“

“It’s been an incredible journey so far and we’re excited to be joining the Geronimo team in this new chapter for Tapit. The timing couldn’t be better. We believe in the Geronimo vision and we’re excited about building a mobile customer experience company like no other.”