UPDATE - Freestar Announces Acquisition of MPW Digital’s Publisher Portfolio and Strategic Direct Sales Partnership

Acquisition adds over 500 managed websites to the Freestar portfolio and bolsters direct sales offering


PHOENIX, March 23, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Freestar, the leading monetization partner for content publishers, e-commerce sites, and app developers, today announced its acquisition of the ad management business of MPW Digital, a Chicago-based company focused on providing outsourced advertising sales and operations for digital publishers since 2016.

The deal adds over 500 additional websites to Freestar’s ever-expanding group of publisher partners that includes some of the largest websites in the world. In connection with the acquisition, the two companies have entered into an ongoing strategic partnership strengthening Freestar’s existing direct sales capabilities. The announcement further cements Freestar as one of the largest sources of digital advertising inventory in the world and the most complete solution for publishers’ monetization needs. The acquisition is Freestar’s fourth in the last two years, coming on the heels of its acquisitions of Sortable and Triple13 in the second half of 2021.

“We are excited to get back to our core business and focus on direct sales, leaving the management of programmatic and header bidding in the hands of the best in the business at Freestar,” said Brandon Weiss, CEO of MPW Digital.

“We are thrilled to add publishers like Emmis Communications and Zacks to Freestar’s family of incredible digital publishers. The MPW team has been incredible to work with and we are excited to extend their direct sales prowess to all Freestar publishers. We have always prided ourselves on being a one stop shop for all publishers’ monetization needs, and our ongoing partnership adds yet another piece to that puzzle,” said Kurt Donnell President and CEO of Freestar.

About Freestar

In an ever-changing industry full of buzzwords and empty promises, Freestar was founded to simplify the challenges of monetizing websites and apps. Leveraging the ideal mix of programmatic header bidding, private marketplace deals, and a unified analytics platform, Freestar’s team of monetization experts help publishers, e-commerce sites and apps unleash their true revenue potential. Freestar’s ever expanding family of publisher and app developer partners reach over 70% of all U.S. internet users each month and provide unique opportunities for advertisers to reach their target audiences efficiently at scale. For more information, visit www.freestar.com.

About MPW Digital

MPW Digital is a boutique digital advertising sales and yield optimization agency that serves as the outside sales and operations team for a portfolio of web, app, and CTV publishers.

MPW helps publishers build out their programmatic ad strategy through programmatic private marketplace deals, agency direct contracts, header bidding (now powered by Freestar), and relationships with direct response marketers.

MPW provides advertisers the ability to connect with publishers across multiple verticals, formats, and content platforms at scale through the most direct channels possible. For more information, visit www.mpwdigital.com   

Media Contact
Lauren Goveo
Director, PR Freestar
lauren.goveo@freestar.com 
602.320.5613