International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) has acquired European digital full-service agency Ecx.io, their third creative agency acquisition in a week.

Founded in 1995, Ecx.io provides services necessary to implement successful digital projects including strategic consulting, creative implementation, technical implementation, service, and maintenance.

The company claims to be one of Europe’s leading agencies with offices in Dusseldorf, Bracknell/London, Munich, Wels, Varaždin, Vienna, and Zurich and is one of the few specialized in implementation services across three of the leading commerce and customer platform software providers: Adobe, Sitecore, and SAP hybris.

Ecx.io’s client list includes ALDI, SPAR, Atomic, Red Bull, Alnatura, and Wüstenrot.

The acquisition, unsurprisingly, will see Exc.io join IBM’s rapidly growing Interactive Experience Group (IBM iX), a push by Big Blue to offer new digital market, commerce and platform skills to clients seeking a digital transformation, and follows in the footsteps of IBM’s acquisitions of Aperto AG and Resource/Ammirati Inc.

“For the last 20 years, we’ve fostered an open, agile and collaborative culture with a dedication to quality and innovation,” Ecx.io Chief Commercial Officer and Co-Founder Christoph Mause said in a statement. “Joining forces with IBM iX will provide us with a global network of talent with expertise in strategy, analytics, cognitive computing and innovation that will not only compliment our services offerings, but allow them to become more personalized. Together with iX, we will continue to provide clients with superior services and platforms for exceptional customer engagement and experiences.”

Expansion

Of particular interest is IBM’s push into Europe (Aperto is also based there), a continent where there are numerous enterprises that may be interested in these services, while at the same time serving homegrown companies wanting to launch international marketing campaigns across several regions.

IBM’s move into the digital agency space is also an interesting change in and of itself given it’s not a space they have ever seriously operated in before, although with its large client base it could be argued that it’s a complimentary product that allows them to offer a full range of online services to customers, even if it does seem on the surface a weird fit.

The deal is expected to close in the first quarter of 2016 and is subject to applicable regulatory review and customary closing conditions.

Image credit: Ecx.io/screenshot