• by Joe Mandese  @mp_joemandese, March 22, 2024

The sale of agency tech startup Hudson MX is underway and is expected to be concluded during the next quarter, London-based Ascential plc disclosed this morning as part of a report to shareholders on its annual results.

While Ascential did not disclose details, it said completing the sale is one of its corporate priorities.

Still unclear is what role Omnicom might be playing in the Hudson sale. As part of its deal to acquire Flywheel Digital from Ascential late last year, Omnicom announced it would “participate” in the sale of Hudson, but declined to elaborate on what that role might be.

Industry executives speculated Omnicom might play a role in forming an agency holding company consortium that would acquire and operate Hudson, similar to a failed attempt Omnicom and WPP made nearly a quarter century ago to create Mediaport, a joint venture that would have developed agency media-buying and accounting software to compete with long-standing industry supplier Donovan Data Systems, now Mediaocean.

Mediaocean also is deemed a potential suitor, as well as a new strategic investor that might want to make a play to enter the advertising and media-buying industry.

Meanwhile, Ascential also disclosed that it has consolidated majority ownership of privately-held Hudson as part of an earlier agreement to acquire the equity of MT II Holdings, which invested £24.9 million ($31.4 based on current conversion rates), as part of a restructuring of Hudson in February 2023.

This morning, Ascential disclosed a  £13.2 million ($16.7 million) loss from its Hudson investment for the 10 months through October 2023, as well as £116.7 million ($147.2) fair value loss related to its acquisition of MT II Holdings’ equity in Hudson.

As part of the February 2023 restructuring of Hudson, a pool of early private investors including former Hudson CEO (now Secretary General of the U.S. Soccer Federation) JT Batson, former Medialink CEO Michael Kassan, and his son Alexander Kassan, were given common stock equal to 12.5% of Hudson’s equity.