AT&T Closes AppNexus Acquisition; Facebook Restores Crimson Hexagon Data Access

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Retired, But Not Resting

Justice Department appeal or not, AT&T is full steam ahead with its advertising platform plans. AT&T’s advertising and analytics group, run by Brian Lesser, officially closed its acquisition of AppNexus on Wednesday. Brian O’Kelley, co-founder and CEO of AppNexus, will report to Lesser and continue to run the business. Read the release. In an email to employees seen by AdExchanger, O’Kelley said the AppNexus name will be retired in about a month – presumably with the debut of the new AT&T ad platform brand, which to date has been unofficially referred to as Adco. “We will have a ton to learn about a different part of the media and advertising ecosystem,” O’Kelley wrote. “Most importantly, we will have more resources to help us succeed every day.”

Crimson Tide Turns

The hex has been lifted. On Wednesday, the remainder of Crimson Hexagon’s customers had their access to Facebook and Instagram data fully reinstated. Although the bulk of its clients were allowed back in at the beginning of August, a few were still under investigation by Facebook. Crimson Hexagon’s apps were suspended from the platforms during an inquiry into whether it had used Facebook data for government surveillance. A Wall Street Journal report in late July called attention to the social analytics platform’s government contracts and the fact that one of its clients is a Russian nonprofit with ties to the Kremlin. Facebook found no wrongdoing. In a blog post, Crimson Hexagon noted that government customers represent less than 5% of its business but that it now understands the importance of “monitoring these government customers on an ongoing basis to ensure the public’s expectations of privacy are met.”