J.D. Power Acquires Social Media Research Firm Umbria

  • April 3, 2008
J.D. Power and Associates has acquired Umbria Inc., a market research firm that specializes in social media and user-generated content (UGC) research. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Boulder, Colo.-based Umbria's research tech uses algorithms to translate the social currency of communities like blogs, message boards and social networks into quantifiable data. The acquisition expands J.D. Power and Associates' Web-based, "voice of the customer" research capabilities.

"Consumer behavior has changed dramatically in today's Internet-powered world, and consumer-generated Web commentary is becoming a prominent part of our social fabric," said Steve Goodall, president of J.D. Power and Associates. "The combination of Umbria's technology, people and clients, coupled with J.D. Power and Associates' research capabilities and name recognition, has enormous potential to expand our customer-focused thought leadership well beyond the automotive industry into other emerging industries and markets."

Westlake Village, Calif.-based J.D. Power and Associates is a business unit of The McGraw-Hill Companies.

--Tameka Kee

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