• by Joe Mandese  @mp_joemandese, June 5, 2008

Isobar, already the No. 1 digital advertising services network in the world, just became No. 1 in one of the fastest-growing emerging markets: Russia. Isobar, a unit of London-based Aegis Group, Wednesday announced the acquisition of AdWatch, a Moscow-based digital marketing agency founded in 2000, and offering strategic planning, online media planning and buying, creative services, Web site design and development, online public relations, and below-the-line services.

Aegis did not disclose terms of the deal, but estimated AdWatch's gross assets at $14.7 million, and said the AdWatch would be integrated into Isobar, making it the largest digital ad services shop in Russia.

Billings also were not disclosed, but AdWatch has a client roster including Microsoft, VTB Bank, SUN Interbrew, Canon and Rolf, and a staff of 76. According to RECMA, Isobar's 3,200-person network is the largest digital advertising network in the world.

Aegis touted the deal as a key building block for future growth, noting that online is the sweet spot in an already hyper-accelerated Russian media marketplace. Aegis--the parent of Carat, Vizeum, Posterscope and other traditional media services shops--estimated the overall Russian media economy will expand by 20% in both 2007 and 2009, but that online spending would actually grow by more than 50% over the same periods.

"A shift towards digital consumption means that Russia's online users now stand at 25 million and is growing at over 25% annually," the agency noted.