PDV, which specialises in online and telephone data, was bought for an undisclosed sum from shareholders, the key player being Smedvig Capital, a London-based private equity firm.
DM plc is building its assets in the direct response arena, buying lifestyle data vendor DLG in November 2008 for £3.25 million.
Current management at PDV, including managing director Bill Burey, sales director Troy Attwood and business development director Tony Coad, will remain at the company. They will relocate from central London to Watford to share DLG's offices but will be run as a separate entity.
PDV's flagship product is Fair Exchange, a site that runs prize draws and games in exchange for personal information, and Free DVD Club, a venture that allows users to trade facts about themselves for free discs.
Clients include O2, Npower, EDF Energy, Scottish Power, timeshare operation Club La Costa and Radisson Hotels.
Burey said the deal would provide PDV with the growth capital it needed. "Our acquisition by DM will not only increase our scale and give us access to a wider market but also development capital to support our growth," Burey said.
He added: "In these recessionary times, clients are moving out of traditional media and into real time sales leads, and to providers like us who will share the cost of customer creation with them. As a result PDV grew by 50% last calendar year and has had three-budget breaking months since."
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Data vendor PDV bought by database group DM plc
LONDON - Data vendor PDV has been acquired by DM plc, the customer acquisition and database firm.
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