This week, Ooh-tv looks back at 2010. Today we look at the five external growth operations which strike us as being the most significant:

1. Elemidia being bought by the Grupo Abril media group. With support from the Tiger Global investment fund, which was also behind the giant Focus Media in China, Elemidia has grown quickly and well. The leading DOOH agency in South America now manages a park of 6, 000 screens – not quite in line with expectations – but which should grow rapidly with a coming deployment in the Pão de Acucar supermarkets.

The DOOH sector in Brazil is experiencing strong growth: advertising expenditure in the sector reached 17% of all OOH spend by mid-2010.

2. Mood Media being bought by Fluid Music Canada. Created in 1954, the multi-sensorial retail marketing agency was sold for an estimated $160M. Fluid Music Canada decided to keep the brand name and even re-christen itself as the Mood Media Corporation.

3. Some of Titan UK’s assets being bought by JCDecaux. The operation, which was announced at the beginning of 2010, enabled JCDecaux to become the leading OOH company in the UK (with a 29% market share, according to Kinetic estimates). The French company now controls the digital networks deployed by Titan in railway stations and shopping centres, both of which are targeted for extensive expansion in 2011.

JCDecaux UK has one of the biggest digital portfolios in the country, with also a significant presence in the country’s airports as well as an LED network of 20 screens in London.

4. dZine being bought by Barco. The acquisition of Belgian company dZine, one of Europe’s finest digital signage companies, by fellow Belgian Barco, cost a sum estimated at between €8M and €15M. The purchase allows the giant from Courtrai to strengthen its position in the digital signage sector.

5. DMG being bought by VisionChina Media. Already announced in late 2009, the operation, valued at $160M, was completed in January 2010. Designed to strengthen VisonMedia China’s leading position in the public transport sector, the deal seems to have turned sour. The company ended up suing DMG’s previous shareholders for financial fraud, leading the company to pay “ a grossly inflated price” for the shares.

VisionChina Media has recently found a new ally with Focus Media taking a capital stake at the end of December.