Townsquare has acquired the MOG Music Network business from MMN Media, and will rename the business Townsquare Media. Launched in 2008, MOG has aggregated a network of music and music related digital publishers, including leading and highly influential music blogs, reviews sites, concert / event information sites, artist sites and lyrics sites.
The network reaches more than 62 million monthly US unique visitors and 170 million monthly global unique visitors, making it the largest music-focused ad network in the US. This community of music enthusiasts and tastemakers is engaged and attracts significant interest from brand advertisers.
MOG joins the national premium digital content brands owned and operated by the Townsquare Media Group, including PopCrush, ScreenCrush, Taste of Country, Diffuser.fm, TheFW, Loudwire, GuySpeed and Ultimate Classic Rock.
“This acquisition dramatically expands the consumer reach we provide to our advertising partners, while continuing our focus on delivering highly engaging and influential media experiences for consumers and advertisers,” commented Townsquare CEO Steven Price. “Our publishing partners are the tastemakers of the digital music ecosystem as it relates to their ability to connect deeply and emotionally with their audiences and shape music related trends and opinions. This acquisition complements our high touch portfolio of radio, digital, mobile and live event assets and helps us to balance our media footprint from local-to-national.”
“We now have the privilege of working with many of the most insightful and influential music-related publishers in the world,” commented Bill Wilson, Townsquare Media Group EVP and Chief Digital Officer. “I am looking forward to working closely with this group of publishers, learning from them, and helping them to be even more successful, both critically and commercially, by leveraging the amazing assets of the MOG Music Network and our premium owned and operated brands.”
As part of the transaction, MOG’s teams located in Berkeley, Santa Monica, Chicago and New York will join Townsquare.
RBR-TVBR observation: The move is a smart one. It allows Townsquare to further its efforts in monetizing the digital/blog space, while beefing up its radio station websites with customized content from experts in the music biz—along with new music discovery. The stations act as the loudspeaker, driving listeners to these sites directly, as well as their station sites. Cross-media ad packages are also part of the mix, with promotions and events kicked in as well.
