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.
 TechCrunchReuters  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 | TechCrunchBNet 
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 ReleaseMashable | CNET
Cnet CBS $1.8 Billion CNET Networks is a publicly held media company with a focus on technology.
 TechCrunchMashable   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 ReleaseVentureBeatBNET 
Celebrity Baby Blog People.com Undisclosed Celebrity Baby Blog was started in 2004 by Danielle Friedland.
 TechCrunchMediaweek 
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 | TechCrunchComputerWorld 
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 | TechCrunchGigaOm  VentureBeat
StarNet Interactive IAC Undisclosed StarNet Interactive, the parent company of GirlSense, a social network for teen fashion.
Press ReleaseMashable   |  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

Adify

Cox Enterprises

$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 ReleaseTechCrunch  | 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 ReleaseWSJ  | 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 ReleaseBNET  | 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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