Enpocket, a privately held Boston multimedia advertising firm that has created mobile websites and text-messaging-based marketing campaigns for the likes of CNBC, Ford, and MTV, will be acquired by Finnish mobile technology giant Nokia (NYSE: NOK), the two companies announced today.
Enpocket was formed in September 2001 as a spinoff of U.S.-based online media technology company Engage, and focused first on the U.K. mobile market, where 3G data services such as SMS and MMS messaging found a foothold sooner than they did in the United States. It acquired mobile marketer SkyGo in 2003 and expanded into North American markets, turning its first profit that same year. In 2004, Enpocket merged with Landmat, a creator of applications and content for mobile-based communities, and grew into a one-stop shop for companies wishing to create websites specialized for the mobile platforms and opt-in mobile marketing campaigns. Mobile Entertainment magazine named Enpocket the “best mobile marketing provider” globally in 2006.
For several years, Nokia has been stretching beyond its role as a mobile device manufacturer and experimenting with software platforms and services designed to make the experience of using mobile phones more compelling for users—and more profitable for carriers and media companies. “Nokia has already announced its intention to be a leading company in consumer Internet services and we believe that mobile advertising will be an important element in monetizing those services for our customers and partners,” Tero Ojanperä, Nokia’s CTO, said in a statement. “This acquisition is a game changing move to bring the reach and depth of Nokia to organize the market across the world, and make it easier for an ecosystem to develop.”
The companies did not disclose the terms of the deal, which is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2007.
