• by Joe Mandese  @mp_joemandese, September 1, 2017

Brandzooka, the fast-growing self-service programmatic ad platform backed by Madison Avenue renegade Alex Bogusky, Thursday announced it has acquired AdJelly, a platform specializing in the creation, deployment and measurement of ads on Facebook.

The companies boast that AdJelly currently has “more than 200,000 advertisers,” including “5,800 small and medium” size businesses using its platform.

The deal is the first strategic acquisition for Boulder-based Brandzooka since it was formed two years ago.

“We set out to fully democratize digital advertising by leveling the playing field for marketers, and to offer intuitive, accessible programmatic marketing solutions for brands of all sizes,” Founder and Executive Chairman Bogusky stated, emphasizing that the goal of the platform is to enable those attributes “without the high technical or monetary overhead.”

Brandzooka said it plans to shift AdJelly from its current “subscription-based” service model to a “free-to-access service in the near future.”

“Part of making digital advertising accessible to business of all sizes is to offer better tools, including measurement," explained Brandzooka CEO Aquiles La Grave. “AdJelly’s services on the ad creation and creative deployment side of digital advertising are a great complement to Brandzooka’s streamlined approach to distribution.”