While Hawk joined the Azerion group almost a year ago, we spoke to Nicolas Sistac, Platform Commercial Director at Hawk DSP, to understand how the platform has evolved since the merger and to discuss the future.

How does Hawk fit into the Azerion Group’s offering?

Nicolas Sistac: The acquisition of Hawk has enabled the Azerion group to complete its technological stack and benefit from a complete value proposition. Azerion is now positioned as a genuine European alternative to the major US technology platforms, from omnichannel buying to the monetisation of multi-format inventories.

As a DSP enabling omnichannel buying, Hawk can be managed by all the Group’s international teams (24 offices), making it the Group’s main advertising space buying engine.

One year on, how would you assess the results of the merger and whether the synergies have been fruitful?

N.S: Completely!

The integration into the Azerion group has enabled a particularly rapid change of scale for the platform: we have gone from an average of 100 activations per day in 2023 to 180 by the second quarter of 2024.

Omnichannel activations already represent 25% of the total activated and should quickly reach 30%. The development of unique ID tools and partnerships with all the players on the supply side will help us achieve this. The speed of deploying an SSP or data partner has more than doubled, and Hawk can now integrate a new partner in less than two weeks.

Our ambition is to have our DSP adopted in all the Group’s markets, but we are still in the seed phase. Hawk expects to see 200% growth in the volume of active campaigns by next year.

This integration will enable Hawk to accelerate its technological development, and in particular:

• assert its leadership in digital audio and DOOH. Audio remains a pillar for us, and our objective is to achieve the same market share in the main EMEA markets as in France: 70%.

• step up our efforts in video, CTV and rich media
• to develop tools for the press (a new feature that will be arriving very soon!)

As well as technological development, which is essential in our industry, this merger has enabled us to accelerate in several areas.

Firstly, internationalisation. Hawk already had a strong European footprint, with a presence in several countries, but the integration into the Azerion group has enabled us to develop demand in 15 markets this year. We now have a global capability and are able to respond to both EMEA and global pitches.

We have also been able to consolidate relationships with our long-standing agency clients, and to offer them dedicated packages to simplify programmatic access, namely powerful curated deals to cover the audiences that brands are looking for.

Finally, we have strengthened our links with our publisher and SSP partners in many markets.

More specifically, what are your ambitions for the months and years ahead?

N.S:  In the short term, our teams are working on several key areas:

• A solution for accurately tracking all audiences, based on a multi-device reconciliation system 
• A self-service creative solution for publishers and agencies, which will enable them to take advantage of generative AI to develop their creative assets. Our audio DCO solution, for example, enables our customers to develop up to 1,500 versions of a digital audio message instantly!
• The integration of a rich media format creation tool into the DSP, to offer a complete and fluid activation process from format production through to broadcast.
• Ongoing enhancement of our Data Marketplace, to provide a better response to our users’ targeting needs. The tie-up with Captify is the first example, and other partners will be announced shortly. The aim is to provide the widest possible range of data offerings.
• A complete media planning solution to facilitate access to off media that have become programmatic: audio, DOOH, CTV, but also the press.

Our ambition is to offer an alternative to the American platforms that currently dominate the market. The value created in the market must be shared by all stakeholders, and we are working with our partners, both suppliers and customers, to build this future champion of the AdTech ecosystem, with a strong European footprint.

Finally, on a personal note, what drives you daily?

N.S: I’m lucky enough to work with experienced teams who know the industry and their business inside out. My role is to put them in the best possible conditions so that we can deliver even greater value to our partners. Hawk’s greatest success over the last few years has been the renewed confidence of its teams, and their desire to make a long-term commitment to this project. The Azerion group is investing in the development of the dsp, and it’s a strength to have these teams involved in deploying it quickly and globally!