Wed 16 Jul 2008
Complete List of Q2 2008 Web / Internet / Tech Acquisitions
Posted by Dane Fox under Acquisitions
M&A Activity for Q2 2008 Remains Strong
We’ve gotten great feedback from our readers on both of the previous acquisition lists that we’ve compile (2007 and Q1 2008), so we’ve once again compiled a comprehensive list of all mergers and acquisitions that occurred during the quarter and broken them down by the following industries: Web, social networking, technology, internet advertising and hardware. We’ve also provided an overview of the blog/media/press coverage for each acquisition and have linked to official press releases where available.
M&A activity in Q2 picked up right where Q1 left off, with the largest amount of activity occurring in the Internet & technology sector. This trend continues to spike upward quarter after quarter as more companies try to strengthen their Internet portfolio and increase their Web presence.
Here are a few interesting stats that we’ve noticed:
- Activity increased substantially with 41 tech acquisitions taking place in Q2 2008 compared to 32 in Q1 2008.
- The majority of the acquisitions for Q2 had undisclosed prices, with many of the undisclosed acquisitions in the $5-$15 million price range according to our sources.
- Of the 18 acquisitions that were disclosed, the total value was $45 billion, skewed heavily by acquisitions of EDS and Alltel.
Also, thanks to all of the great blogs out there (TechCrunch, GigaOm, Mashable, VentureBeat, ReadWriteWeb, and more) whose frequent tracking of acquisitions makes this list possible.
Finally, in the wireless communications field, already a highly-concentrated industry, we are seeing even greater consolidation with Virgin Mobile acquiring Helio and Verizon acquiring Alltel, allowing Verizon to surpass AT&T as the nation’s largest wireless provider.
If you know of any mergers or acquisitions that we’ve missed, please leave a comment on this post and we’ll update.
Update: Here is a link to Q1 2009 Web/Internet/Tech Acquisitions, our most recent list.
Web/Internet Companies Acquired in Q2 of 2008
| Acquired | Acquirer | Acquisition cost | Details |
| Twhirl | Seesmic | Undisclosed | Twhirl is a popular application that allows users to access Twitter directly from their desktop. Press Release | TechCrunch Mashable ReadWriteWeb VentureBeat |
| Pageflakes | Live Universe | Undisclosed | Pageflakes is an Ajax home page service. TechCrunch | Reuters BNET VentureBeat |
| Sphere | AOL | $25 Million | Sphere is a San Francisco based blog content engine. Press Release | TechCrunch | BNet GigaOm |
| Farecast | Microsoft | $115 Million | Farecast is an airfare pricing comparison tool that uses a predictive algorithm to recommend when you buy your ticket. Press Release| TechCrunch | VentureBeat |
| Activeweave | Buzzlogic | Undisclosed | Activeweave is the creator of the Firefox browser add-on call BlogRovR. Press Release | TechCrunch | VentureBeat |
| Fleaflicker | AOL | Undisclosed | Fleaflicker is a popular fantasy sports site. Press Release | TechCrunch | BNet |
| Expensr | Strands | Undisclosed | Expensr is an online personal finance application. Press Release | ReadWriteWeb |
| gBox | eFORCE | Undisclosed | gBox is a music store that makes a gift-giving widget that allows you to buy DRM-free music from your wishlist or your friends wishlist. TechCrunch |
| MeeVee | Live Universe | Undisclosed | MeeVee integrates online TV lisiting with video. TechCrunch | CenterNetworks WashingtonPost |
| Inquisitor | Yahoo | Undisclosed | Inquisitor is a browser plug-in that offers search assistance features for a faster way in which to dig down into search results. Press Release | Mashable | CNET |
| Cnet | CBS | $1.8 Billion | CNET Networks is a publicly held media company with a focus on technology. TechCrunch | Mashable GigaOm VentureBeat |
| Ars Technica | Conde Nast | $25 Million | Ars Technica is a technology blog. Press Release TechCrunch | VentureBeat |
| StarBrand Media | Sugar Inc. | Undisclosed | StarBrand provides an online marketplace for a number of major television shows, allowing viewers to purchase the clothes and props they see on TV. Press Release | TechCrunch |
| M:Metrics | ComScore | $44 Million | M:Metrics is the trusted source and recognized leader of mobile media measurement. Press Release | VentureBeat | BNET |
| Celebrity Baby Blog | People.com | Undisclosed | Celebrity Baby Blog was started in 2004 by Danielle Friedland. TechCrunch | Mediaweek |
| Snapvine | WhitePages.com | $20 Million | Snapvine is a VOIP/Widget startup. Press Release | TechCrunch | Mashable |
| SwapDrive | Symantec | $123 Million | SwapDrive is an Online Backup Service. Press Release | TechCrunch | ComputerWorld |
| Hostopia.com | Deluxe | $122 Million | Hostopia.com is a web hosting and design company. Press Release | Forbes |
Social Networking Companies Acquired in Q2 of 2008
| Acquired | Acquirer | Acquisition cost | Details |
| Imity | Zyb | Undisclosed | Imity is a mobile social network. Press Release | TechCrunch |
| Rupture | Electronic Arts | $30 Million | Rupture is a social network gaming startup. TechCrunch | VentureBeat |
| ZYB | Vodafone | $50 Million | ZYB is a mobile phone utility and social networking site. Press Release | TechCrunch | GigaOm VentureBeat |
| StarNet Interactive | IAC | Undisclosed | StarNet Interactive, the parent company of GirlSense, a social network for teen fashion. Press Release | Mashable | WallStreetJournal |
| Plazes | Nokia | Undisclosed | Plazes is a location based social network. TechCrunch | GigaOm | VentureBeat ReadWriteWeb |
Internet Advertising Companies Acquired in Q2 of 2008
| Acquired | Acquirer | Acquisition cost | Details | ||
|
|
$300 Million | Adify is a white-label ad platform that allows advertisers to contact small web publishers directly and negotiate ad rates. TechCrunch Mashable VentureBeat GigaOm |
||
| Personifi | Collective Media | Undisclosed | Personifi is a maker of behavioral-based advertising technology focused on ad targeting and content classification. Press Release | TechCrunch |
||
| Navic Networks | Microsoft | Undisclosed | Navic Networks, a maker of television advertising technology. Press Release | NYTimes |
Software Companies Acquired in Q2 of 2008
| Acquired | Acquirer | Acquisition cost | Details |
| Gracenote | Sony | $260 Million | Gracenote is a provider of a wide range of music-related solutions including MusicID. Press Release | TechCrunch Engadget |
| Simple Star | Sonic Solutions | Undisclosed | Simple Star is a developer of photo software and the creator of PhotoShow Press Release | TechCrunch | VentureBeat |
| Diligent | IBM | Undisclosed | Diligent is a storage “de-duplication” company. Press Release | | BNEt |
| EDS | HP | $13.9 Billion | EDS Plano Texas based IT services company. Press Release | VentureBeat | GigaOm |
| Hands-On Mobile Korea | Electronic Arts | Undisclosed | Hands-On Mobile Korea’s hot game is Heroes Lore. BNET | VentureBeat |
| B-hive Networks | Vmware | Undisclosed | B-hive is an Isralei based virtualization company. Press Release | GigaOm |
| OpenAir | NetSuite | $26 Million | Open sells Web-based software aimed at professional services firms. Press Release | TechCrunch | BusinessWeek |
| Let It Wave | Zoran Corporation | $27.6 Million | Let It Wave delivers award winning and patent-pending technology for video Frame Rate Conversion and image enhancement capabilities for flat panel televisions and other consumer electronics products. Press Release | WSJ | BNET |
| Practique Associates | Merced Systems | Undisclosed | Practique Associates is Europes leading sales performance management vendor. Press Release | BNET |
| MusicGremlin | SanDisk | Undisclosed | MusicGremlin is a technology company that develops advanced digital content distribution technologies. Press Release | BNET | Forbes |
| Skywire | Oracle | Undisclosed | Skywire is a maker of insurace software. Press Release | InformationWeek |
| Symbian | Nokia | Undisclosed | Symbian is a mobile operating system that runs on the ARM architecture used in Nokia, Sony and Samsung devices. TechCrunch | Mashable | GigaOm |
Telecom Companies Acquired in Q2 of 2008
| Acquired | Acquirer | Acquisition cost | Details |
| Alltel | Verizon | $28.1 Billion | Alltel is the 5th largest wireless communications provider in the United States. Marketwatch | BNET | Bloomberg |
| Helio | Virgin Mobile | $39 Million | Helio is a US mobile telecom company. VentureBeat | Gizmodo |
Hardware Companies Acquired in Q2 of 2008
| Acquired | Acquirer | Acquisition cost | Details |
| Iomega | EMC | $213 Million | Iomega is a maker of portable hard drives and zip drives. Press Release | TechCrunch |
A brief disclaimer: We’ve tried hard to ensure that all of the information above is accurate, but it is very likely that we’ve made a few typos and mistakes. If you catch an error, please post a comment and we’ll do our best to research and correct it. We’re not responsible for the accuracy of the above information and it should not be relied upon.
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September 7th, 2008 at 7:46 pm[…] focused on small business topics. You can read their most recent quarterly M&A deal summary at http://startup.partnerup.com/2008/07/16/list-of-q2-2008-web-tech-acquisitions/. Of particular interest is that deal flow remains strong especially at the lower range of company […]



December 14th, 2008 at 4:58 pm
Nice list but I think you missed one:
Sun Microsystems acquired Montalvo Systems on April 24, 2008 for an undisclosed sum. See:
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/04/24/sun_buys_montalvo/