SOLOCAL_Registration Document_2017

SOLOCAL, LOCAL DIGITAL PARTNER TRUSTED BY BUSINESSES 1.3 Overview of the sector

Partnerships negotiated with certain Group competitors (such as Google, Facebook or smaller actors like LaFourchette) enable the Group to offset some of the negative effects of the competition and to take advantage of the specific strengths of certain competitors. For B2B service providers, the competitive environment can be broken down into three categories of players: the so-called “GAFAM”, such as Google and Facebook, which l provide specific communication solutions based on their media. The Group believes that its local presence, and in particular its local sales teams, as well as its customer base of VSEs and SMEs, enable it to compete effectively with GAFAM; web agencies, such as Geolid or Net Booster, which provide a l large range of communication solutions, such as websites or AdWords campaigns. The Group believes that the large audience of its own media, its geolocalized intent data and its proprietary products and services allow it to address the competition of these players; pure AdTech players, such as YEXT and Criteo, which provide l specific technology-based communication solutions, such as presence management or retargeting. The Group believes that its local presence and audiences on its own media allow it to deal with the competition from these players. In addition, the development of the Websites segment offering has forced the Group to revisit its positioning on the entry-level market, which is affected by the influx of free alternatives for websites, such as presence solutions, especially on social media, as well as the emergence of new alternative self-made website models (known as “Do-It-With-Me” solutions).

verticals, or operators with a strong focus on a specific industry l (such as home or retail). These players also offer transactional services, such as the ability to purchase or book services online directly from their websites, and aggregate professional and personal advice on specific topics, such as health or travel. This category in France includes LaFourchette, Doctissimo, Travaux.com, Kompass, Companeo and Quotatis. Vertical operators often do not have agreements with platforms and mostly do not have the same purpose or provide the same service to end-customers. For example, Doctissimo provides medical advice, while PagesJaunes provides doctors’ contact details and addresses; multi-verticals, including operators such as SoLocal, which l address several industries. SoLocal’s main competitor in France is Leboncoin, following Yelp’s withdrawal from the French market in 2016. Leboncoin is a digital classifieds platform that, to a certain extent, is in competition with the online directory market. Yelp had previously acted as a provider of crowdsourced reviews of local businesses and also owned the online reservation service SeatMe. Based on 2016 local digital search revenue, SoLocal is the largest player in this category, generating over twice the revenue of its nearest competitor, Leboncoin. The Group also benefits from a multi-specialist positioning relative to its competitors, which enables it to compete with (i) multi-vertical platforms and players, through its user-oriented websites and mobile applications enhanced by the use of artificial intelligence, and (ii) actors operating on a vertical, through its transactional functionalities (with the booking function, for example).

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GAFAM

WEB AGENCIES PURE AD TECH

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AUDIENCE • Owned media • Massive Audience

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DATA & TECH • Rich daily updated local content • Purchase-driven & geolocated data • Proprietary programmatic technology

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LOCAL PRESENCE • 1,800 sales reps • SMB field approach

• Local contacts with large accounts

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2017 Registration Document SOLOCAL