Bertelsmann acquires Indian analytics start-up Ramyam

Bertelsmann division Arvato has acquired India-based IT analytics start-up Ramyam to expand its footprint in India.

Arvato, Bertelsmann's customer relationship management (CRM) and marketing division, says it will use Ramyam’s expertise in product and IT development to enhance and offer new CRM solutions to customers, both in and outside of India, and its technology to introduce "sophisticated analytics features" to help serve consumers better as well as to unite several existing platforms and strengthen its IT infrastructure.

Financial details of the deal will not be disclosed.

Fernando Carro, c.e.o. of Arvato, said: “I am delighted to welcome Ramyam to the Arvato family. Its unique expertise in advanced analytics enables us to offer new and more valuable customer experience solutions to our many clients around the world – giving us a real competitive edge.”

Shobhna Mohn, executive v.p. for growth regions at Bertelsmann, said: “India is one of our strategic growth regions, so we have been investing increasingly in the country in the past few years. Through the acquisition of Ramyam, we further strengthen one of our largest divisions in the country offering a global solution. Ramyam’s technical expertise will enable Arvato to further enhance its services to its numerous international customers with presence in and outside of India."

MV Balasubrahmanyam, c.e.o. Ramyam, added: “This deal is great news for Ramyam’s clients, partners and employees. Our combined expertise and resources mean that we’re ideally placed to maximize on our success to date, as part of one of the world’s leading customer relationship management organisations. With my leadership team, I’m really looking forward to growing our business and adding Ramyam’s expertise to Arvato’s solutions portfolio.”

Ramyam, which was among the American research company Forrester’s top 10 emerging business technology companies in India in 2015, will become a fully-owned subsidiary of Arvato CRM Solutions.

Bertelsmann announced it was "stepping up" its activities in the Indian e-commerce market, with an investment in New Delhi e-commerce service provider KartRocket in January 2016. Other recent investments by Bertelsmann in India include Pepperfry, an online marketplace for furniture; music streaming service Saavn; and higher education service provider iNurture. Several Bertelsmann divisions also have operations in India: RTL Group through its production arm Fremantle Media, while Penguin Random House - in which Bertelsmann has a 53% stake - is the largest English-language trade publisher in the country.