• by Joe Mandese  @mp_joemandese, August 11, 2023

Ascential plc., the London-based parent of the Cannes Lions, this morning announced the acquisition of London-based creative communications publisher and advisory service Contagious Communications.

Terms were not disclosed, but Contagious was founded in 2004, has a staff of 40 and advises both advertisers and agencies on creativity and creative services, including publishing data bases, case studies and advising on advertising reviews and pitches.

One of its most recent reports, “Grand Prix Insights,” is a detailed analysis of the top Cannes Lions winners published in July. One of its recent creative intelligence briefings, "Cannes Deconstructed" (see below), was published in June.

“It will support our mission to help the world’s biggest brands produce world class, highly effective and truly creative marketing,” Ascential Intelligence & Events CEO Philip Thomas said in a statement.

In recent years, Ascential has focused on integrating its Cannes Lions database with WARC (World Advertising Research Center), a publisher of advertising industry data and analytics it acquired in 2018.