Nielsen to acquire IAG Research.

The Nielsen Company announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire IAG Research, Inc. for a purchase price of $225 million. IAG is a privately held company based in New York that measures consumer engagement with television programs, national commercials and product placements.

The acquisition will be effected through a merger of IAG with a wholly-owned subsidiary of Nielsen in which IAG stockholders will receive cash for their IAG shares. The transaction is subject to Hart-Scott-Rodino review and other typical closing conditions. Nielsen currently intends to finance the transaction through the issuance of notes, existing facilities and cash on hand.

Nielsen said it expects to complete the acquisition in the second quarter of 2008. The executive team of IAG has agreed to join Nielsen following the merger.

IAG Research conducts research with viewers to measure the effectiveness of advertising and program engagement across television and the Internet. Its clients include major advertisers, advertising agencies, Internet providers, telecommunications services, television and cable networks and other content providers.

“IAG will add a new dimension to Nielsen’s media business and will be the cornerstone for a new analytics practice that will provide our clients with even greater insights and clarity,” said David L. Calhoun, chairman and CEO of The Nielsen Company. “We are excited by the energy the IAG team will bring to the multiple opportunities they will have at Nielsen. Overlaying their perspective with the vast array of industries and technologies we touch gives us an opportunity to bring greater clarity and creativity to our work on behalf of clients.”

“We are excited to be joining The Nielsen Company, where IAG will be able to enhance the services it already supplies to clients” said IAG co-founders and co-CEO’s Alan Gould and Ken Orkin. “By working within Nielsen we will also be able to make the company’s services available to a wider base of clients. In an increasingly fragmented media landscape, we believe strongly that advertisers and media companies need the insight that Nielsen and IAG can provide together.”