Tracx is one of many social media listening, analysis, and reaction platforms. They just raised another $12.5 million in funding. That’s nice. I’m including this because social media marketing is another important area outside the realm of machine-driven messaging.
Cloud-based customer service system provider Freshdesk has acquired Pipemonk, a small data integration vendor. This should help clients integrate Freshdesk with data from other systems, including Freshdesk’s own half-dozen acquisitions in the past 16 months. My hidden message: integration among cloud systems is possible but still not trivial, so most companies will need specialized systems like CDPs to help.
Looking even further into the future, we have a personal virtual reality camera being announced at the CES show in Las Vegas. Personal virtual reality is exactly where things seem to be headed. Just to be clear, though, this particular product does is use six cameras to create a 360-degree streaming video of your own actual reality to share with others. So it’s still disappointingly tethered to the real world. It does help to clarify the importance of streaming video.
CDP and marketing cloud vendor Zeta Global announced an agreement to purchase LiveIntent, which helps companies do email-based advertising. The deal will let Zeta expand its identity graph, enter the publisher monetization business, and accelerate its mobile and retail media products. Zeta will pay $77.5 million in cash and $172.5 million in common stock, with potential for additional payments based on performance.