AT&T to buy online ad firm AppNexus

David Becker | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Randall Stephenson, chairman and chief executive officer of AT&T.

AT&T said on Monday it would buy online advertisement exchange company AppNexus, less than a month after the No. 2 U.S. wireless carrier closed its $85 billion deal to acquire media company Time Warner.

AT&T did not disclose the AppNexus deal value. However, the Wall Street Journal, citing sources, reported last week that the company was in talks to buy AppNexus for about $1.6 billion.

AppNexus, which runs a digital platform for advertisers to purchase online ads, will become part of AT&T advertising & analytics, as the U.S. telecom company aims to expand its online advertising to better compete with Alphabet’s Google and Facebook.

AppNexus extends the advertising and analytics’ footprint globally, expanding into Asia-Pacific, Australia, Europe, and Latin America, AT&T said.

The acquisition also adds to AT&T’s ad-supported premium video content portfolio including Turner Networks, Audience Network, and Otter Media, the company said.

The transaction is expected to close during the third quarter of 2018.