Mobile shopping startup shopkick on Wednesday said it turned a profit for the first in the fourth quarter of 2012, though it didn’t provide actual figures to support its claim. Launched in 2010, the shopkick app allows users to earn points, or “kicks,” toward rewards and discounts when they visit participating retailers. The company said its in-store shopping tool generated $200 million in revenue for partner retailers and brands last year including American Eagle Outfitters, Best Buy, Macy’s Target, and Procter & Gamble, up from $110 million in 2011. To date, it’s also driven 16 million verified store walk-ins, …

SapientNitro this morning announced the acquisition of 81% of iThink, a leading independent digital agency in Brazil. The move into Brazil marks the expansion of SapientNitro into the Latin American market. Terms were not disclosed, but iThink was founded in 2002 and has a roster including Castrol, Johnson & Johnson, Kraft, Google, and Samsung.

GroupM's Outrider Canada search marketing unit has been re-branded Catalyst Canada, following its integration wtih Boston-based Catalyst.

Interpublic this morning announced a strategic investment in mobile and gaming ad platform Kiip. The investment, which will be overseen by the IPG Media Lab division of Interpublic's Mediabrands, was part of a funding round that raised $11 million for the start-up. Interpublic's stake was not disclosed but it participated in the round at the end of 2012 with Relay Ventures, Hummer Winblad, True Ventures, and Digital Garage.

Virtually all marketers currently use or are planning to incorporate mobile into their marketing mix, with 85% planning to increase their mobile budgets in the near future, according to a new study by the Association of National Advertisers (ANA) and MediaVest. The finding was based on an online survey conducted during the fourth quarter among a sample of 68 client-side marketers (and ANA members) who are using or plan to use mobile media initiatives to reach consumers. While the survey indicated a widespread embrace of mobile marketing, it also showed continued frustration with the lack of ROI measurement and accountability …

The Mobile Marketing Association has formed a new advisory board focused specifically on brand marketers and insuring mobile is integrated strategically into the overall marketing mix. The members of the MMA’s new Executive Marketing Advisory Board were selected based on their commitment to marketing innovation in mobile and include executives from Visa, Coca-Cola, Home Depot and Wal-Mart. Sheryl Daija, chief strategy officer for the MMA, will oversee the board, which will meet this month to create a preliminary agenda for the group. Below is the full advisor board membership: -Linda Boff, Global Executive Director, Advertising, Digital and Design, General Electric …

Mobile advertising firm Pontiflex on Tuesday announced closing a fourth rounding funding of $7.7 million led by Talus Holdings, a media technology holding company backed by Blackstone's GSO Capital. Existing investors RRE Ventures, New Atlantic Ventures and Tribeca Venture Partners also participated in the round. TechCrunch first reported the investment last week. Pontiflex said it would use the new financing to accelerate adoption of its flagship AdLeads program, in which advertisers are charged for ads running in mobile apps on a cost-per-lead basis rather than for clicks and impressions. The self-serve system also lets local marketers geo-target ads down …

The startups behind social TV apps Viggle and GetGlue have terminated their planned merger. Viggle, a TV rewards site that automatically identifies shows people are viewing, announced in November it would acquire TV guide and check-in app GetGlue for $25 million and 48.3 million shares. Both sides said the split was amicable. “During the time we started talking to GetGlue about an acquisition and since the merger agreement was signed in November, we have seen impressive growth in our business," Viggle CEO Robert F.X. Sillerman said in a statement on Monday. "We wish GetGlue and [founder] Alex [Iskold] all …

John Arianas has been named executive vice president-advertising sales & partnerships at Participant Media, which is developing an as-yet-unnamed new cable TV network aimed at Millennials. Arianas, who reports to Participant Media President Evan Shapiro, most recently was senior vice president-linear & digital ad sales at Current TV, and previously was a cable TV ad sales vet working at VIacom's Comedy Central and MTV networks. He will be responsible for assembling and managing the advertising sales and media partnerships team for Participant Television's new cable network as well as TakePartTV on YouTube and Takepart.com.

WPP's Grey New York office has been named agency-of-record for the National Park Foundation, the philanthropic partner of the National Park Service, following a review.