AOL Looks To Acquire TradeDoubler
Early Monday, Time Warner announced plans to purchase TradeDoubler, a European provider of online marketing and sales services. The deal, which has yet to be finalized, is reported to cost the company around $900 million.
According to MarketWatch, Time Warner plans to assimilate TradeDoubler into AOL's advertising network, Advertising.com, which buys advertising from publishers, and then uses its technology to sell that advertising to individual companies.
More info from the Marketwatch piece:
TradeDoubler shares rallied 12% to 221.50 krona in early Stockholm action, indicating investor hopes for a possible counter-bid.
TradeDoubler's board has backed the offer, and investors that hold 20% of its shares have also accepted the Time Warner offer. TradeDoubler's top shareholder, Arctic Ventures, is among the investors backing the deal.
In 2006, TradeDoubler was the subject of much speculation for a possible takeover, but those talks stalled late in the year. Here's a little more information about the company:
General facts:
• Founded in 1999
• Operations in 18 European markets
• 344 employees throughout Europe
• Head quarters in Stockholm
• Local offices throughout Europe
Business facts:
• Offers online marketing and sales solutions
• Solutions to B2B and B2C companies
• Performance-based marketing model
• Proprietary technology platform
Financial facts:
• 117 million Euros in turnover 2005
• 82% increase in turnover from 2004 to 2005
• Break even reached in Q3 2002 on a group level
According to analyst reviews, TradeDoubler sports a solid free cash flow and holds a strong position within the European marketplace, which probably figures into why Time Warner is willing to shell out $900 million in order to acquire the company in the first place.
It will be interesting to see what positive effects, if any, the move has on AOL's long-term financial success, and whether or not this means Time Warner has put plans to offload AOL on hold for now.
Tags: AOL, TradeDoubler, Advertising
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