Experian

In 2001, Experian made a significant move by acquiring ConsumerInfo.com for $130 million. At the time, ConsumerInfo.com was one of the largest and most well-known providers of online credit reports and credit scores direct to consumers. This acquisition marked a pivotal moment for Experian as it allowed the company to enter the online direct-to-consumer credit reporting market, a sector that was rapidly gaining popularity as consumers became more interested in managing their own credit profiles. This strategic purchase allowed Experian to bolster its consumer services division and positioned it as a leader in the credit monitoring industry, providing services that facilitated consumer engagement with their credit information online.

Experian, in its expansion into online services, acquired the shopping comparison website PriceGrabber for $485 million in 2006. This acquisition was seen as a strategic move to leverage the growing trend of consumers comparing prices online before purchasing. PriceGrabber was a well-known platform that helped consumers find the best prices for products online by aggregating multiple retailer listings. The move was part of Experian's broader strategy to diversify beyond its credit reporting services and into digital marketing and analytics. This acquisition positioned Experian to tap into the then-burgeoning e-commerce market, aiming to provide new avenues for advertising and consumer insights through the digital shopping data collected by PriceGrabber.

In March 2008, Experian announced it acquired Hitwise, a leading Internet monitoring company, for $240 million. Hitwise's capabilities included tracking consumer behavior online across a range of industries. This acquisition was significant as it allowed Experian to bolster its digital marketing services. With Hitwise's analytical tools, Experian expanded its portfolio to include market intelligence that helped businesses understand how consumers interact with brands on the internet in real-time. Integrating Hitwise into its operations enabled Experian to offer clients valuable insights into online consumer trends and behaviors—insights that could be used for more targeted marketing campaigns.

In August 2008, Experian acquired The pH Group, a UK-based business specializing in marketing data and analysis, for an undisclosed sum. The acquisition was aimed at enhancing Experian's ability to provide data-driven insights for business-to-business (B2B) marketing. The pH Group was known for its innovative approaches to customer segmentation and targeting strategies, enabling businesses to effectively reach and engage their target audiences. With this acquisition, Experian sought to enrich its portfolio of B2B marketing solutions, providing its clients with improved analytical capabilities and insights into market trends and consumer behaviors, thus strengthening its position in the data marketing industry.

In September 2012, Experian unveiled PowerCurve, a suite of analytics tools designed to transform decision-making processes in financial services. PowerCurve offered a robust platform to optimize credit risk management, enabling users to adjust credit policies and strategies dynamically. The launch of PowerCurve marked a significant advancement in how banks and financial organizations could approach lending and customer assessments with greater precision and flexibility. Utilizing advanced analytics, PowerCurve was able to deliver tailored insights that helped financial institutions manage their portfolios more effectively and reduce risks associated with lending, offering enhanced decision-making capabilities that responded to real-world consumer data.

On April 16, 2013, Experian announced its acquisition of 41st Parameter, a leading provider of fraud detection and device identification solutions, for $324 million. This acquisition was a key element of Experian's strategy to expand its fraud prevention capabilities and secure consumer identities. 41st Parameter's technology was crucial in identifying devices used in fraudulent activities, providing an additional layer of security in online transactions. This acquisition allowed Experian to enhance its offerings in fraud detection services, particularly important in a time when online security threats were increasing, and businesses required more robust measures to protect themselves and their customers from fraud.

In 2015, Experian announced they had suffered a data breach that exposed personal data of a significant number of T-Mobile customers. The hack, which affected about 15 million customers, was notable as it exposed sensitive information like names, addresses, and birth dates, though it did not involve payment card information. This incident led to increased scrutiny over Experian's data security practices and prompted T-Mobile to reevaluate its relationship with the credit data company. The breach underscored the vulnerabilities within data storage practices at Experian and other companies handling consumer data.

In early 2017, Experian announced the sale of its email and cross-channel marketing business to private equity firm Vector Capital for $400 million. This strategic divestiture was a part of Experian's plan to sharpen its focus on core strengths in credit services and decision analytics. By selling this business segment, Experian aimed to reallocate resources to enhance its innovation in financial data management and consumer insights. The divestiture was also reflective of Experian's efforts to streamline its operations and improve profitability by focusing on high-margin services such as credit scoring, fraud detection, and identity verification, as opposed to marketing services, which were considered less aligned with their strategic goals.

In October 2018, Experian launched a significant new service called Experian Boost. This free product allows consumers to add positive payment histories from utility and telecom bills to their credit report, potentially improving their FICO scores instantly. Experian Boost ushered in a groundbreaking shift in how credit scores could be calculated by incorporating alternative data sources that were traditionally not included in credit scoring models. Experian highlighted that Boost could particularly benefit consumers with thin credit files or those seeking to improve their creditworthiness. This innovation was part of Experian's strategy to make credit scoring more inclusive and reflective of a consumer's financial behavior beyond traditional credit products.

In April 2021, Experian acquired Tapad, a leading digital identity resolution provider, to enhance its digital identity capabilities. The acquisition was intended to strengthen Experian’s ability to offer improved customer insights by integrating Tapad’s expertise in cross-device linking and digital identity resolution. This move was part of Experian's strategy to enhance its marketing services with advanced technology that enables precise consumer identification across different digital platforms. By integrating Tapad, Experian aimed to create more accurate and comprehensive identity resolution frameworks, facilitating more effective digital marketing and consumer engagement strategies for its clients.