Mergers (110 articles)

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Google buys DoubleClick
3.1 billion dollars in cash 16 April 2007 11:01 GMT
Google has expanding its advertising reach even further with the acquisition of ad firm DoubleClick.

The search engine has announced that it is paying $3.1 billion in cash for the company and in the process gains software for creating and measuring internet...
Techorati rumoured to be up for sale
Boasting uncharacteristically about figures 4 April 2007 14:40 GMT
Rumours are starting to surface that blog tracking website Technorati is up for sale.

According to commentators online, the rumours have started because the normally secretive site has just posted recent traffic figures showing a massive growth in visitor numbers.
Borders ditch Amazon.com partnership
Consolidating after heavy loses 26 March 2007 11:39 GMT
Borders, the US book store, has said that it plans to launch its own online store finishing its current relationship with Amazon.com

The move comes as the bookstore has announced loses of £77 million last year and the sale of its book stores in the UK and the...
Virgin Media tipped to buy Pipex
But BT, Sky and Carphone Warehouse could still be in the running 23 March 2007 17:10 GMT
Virgin Media has been tipped to be the likely buyer for broadband provider Pipex in the UK according to reports online.

Pipex has been put up for sale since the beginning of the month after hiring investment bank UBS to carry out a sale of the company.
HP buys Tabblo to make online printing easier
Looks to integrate with Snapfish 22 March 2007 16:16 GMT
HP has announced that it is continuing its push into offering printing services online with the acquisition of Tabblo, a privately-held developer of web-based software located in the US.

HP says that it plans to leverage Tabblo’s technologies to make printing...
Motorola tipped to be buying Palm
Some believe it would complement consumer brand nicely 21 March 2007 20:45 GMT
Motorola has been tipped as a possible buyer for Palm this week with a possible price tag of $2 billion CNBC said on Wednesday.

Some industry insiders are suggesting the move is because Motorola is worried the effect of Apple’s iPhone will have on its markets.
Google CEO indicates closer ties to Apple
Makes a veiled reference to Microsoft 6 March 2007 14:56 GMT
Microsoft may be jabbing at Google's soft underbelly by attacking its book project, but Google has thrown a punch in the form of a hint that it may be aligning more closely with Apple.

"I will tell you that Google and Apple are doing more and more things together...
Mio parent company to buy Navman
Two brands to remain separate 27 February 2007 12:41 GMT
The corporation that owns Navman satnavs has announced that it is to sell the brand to Mitac, the company that produces the Mio range of devices.

Brunswick has already found a buyer for its marine satnavs, and is now looking to sell off the remaining fleet management...
XM and Sirius Satellite Radio propose merger
In a deal worth $13 billion 20 February 2007 14:16 GMT
The only two available satellite radio companies have announced a plans to merge their enterprises in a deal worth about $13 billion.

If the deal goes through, it means that people will only have one choice - to subscribe to the one satellite radio company available,...
Google buys in-game advertising company Adscape
Google advertising everywhere 16 February 2007 17:23 GMT
Google, having spread its sphere of influence beyond internet advertising into radio marketing, is now dipping its toe into the gaming ad market with the acquisition of Adscape.

The company has paid $23 million for the company, which has developed the technology...
MySpace and Vodafone strike mobile deal
Get your fix through your mobile 7 February 2007 11:20 GMT
MySpace.com has long been threatening to join the mobile world to make it easier for the site's users to access their profile and online social life, and now it has, with Vodafone's help.

This isn't the first mobile deal for the News Corp. site; it has a deal...
Flickr members object to opening Yahoo accounts
Storm in a teacup 1 February 2007 13:28 GMT
A few Flickr users have become disgruntled since an announcement by the website that all Old Skool users, those who had Flickr accounts before the company was bought by Yahoo, would have to open a Yahoo account and use a Yahoo username to sign into the photo sharing site.
Pentax and optical glass maker Hoya to merge
No threat to digital camera maker yet 21 December 2006 14:23 GMT
The latest camera manufacturer merger will take place next October between optical glass maker Hoya and Pentax.

The two companies will become known as Hoya Pentax HD on 1 October, after the contract is signed in April.

The last major merger in this...
eBay China starts joint venture with Chinese e-commerce firm
US auction site lost ground to Alibaba.com's auctions 20 December 2006 15:22 GMT
Ebay seems to have realised it doesn’t understand the way the Chinese use the internet, and is instead turning into a joint venture with Beijing-based Tom Online.

Ebay will only retain a 49% stake, while Tom Online will hold a controlling 51% share.
Palm buys back its Palm Garnet OS
Pays for the license in perpetuity 11 December 2006 11:00 GMT
Palm is buying back the software that it originally developed in order to be able to improve it for its range of handheld devices.

The company had developed PalmSource for its first devices, and after it received critical aclaim, set it up as its own firm. Then...
Google and Sky sign service agreement
Google services to be integrated into Sky broadband 6 December 2006 16:00 GMT
Sky and Google have teamed up on Sky's broadband service to bring customers Sky-branded, Google-based technologies.

The two companies will team up in three areas, namely video, communications, and search and advertising.

In the first area, Sky plans...
Time Warner looking to buy more internet advertising companies
Also looking to put kiosks for digital movie downloads in Wal-Mart stores 6 December 2006 10:55 GMT
Time Warner's Chief Executive Richard Parsons sounded off on a number of topics in recent interviews, and has made it clear that the company is looking to acquire more internet-based businesses.

AOL switched earlier this year to an advertising-supported service...
Yahoo buys online contests site Bix.com
Company lasted 3 months before being bought out 17 November 2006 19:58 GMT
As the web buyouts continue with apace, Yahoo has announced it has bought internet start-up Bix.com a site that allows users to compete online polls in all manner of areas including online karaoke contests, and rate each other’s videos and photos.

As if a sell...
Google closes acquisition of YouTube
YouTube now Google 15 November 2006 0:25 GMT
Google announced today that it has closed its acquisition of YouTube.

In a statement from Google, the search engine said that:

"In connection with the acquisition Google issued an aggregate of 3,217,560 shares, and restricted stock units, options...
Reuters takes stake in Pluck, to syndicate blogs
$7 to feed newspapers around the world 15 November 2006 0:00 GMT
Reuters the news agency has taken a stake in web media syndication site Pluck Corp and agreed to distribute blogs worldwide as part of its new media strategy.

Reuters has said that it has invested $7 million in the Austin, Texas-based company Reuters in return...
Virgin and ntl Telewest unveil new branding
New logo looks a lot like Virgin's old logo 8 November 2006 12:23 GMT
Virgin has unveiled the fruits of its merger with ntl Telewest in the form of its new branding – Virgin Media.

Virgin Media, which launches at the beginning of 2007, has a new logo that features a lens flare effect and the same (or nearly identical) font as...
Google to expand its role in radio advertising
Company is hiring masses of radio sales executives 8 November 2006 10:16 GMT
It looks as though Google is poised to significantly expand its role in radio, as it’s hiring large numbers of radio sales people.

Other signs that it may be trying to take a bigger chunk of the $20 million industy is that Google is starting a public beta of...
Sony Ericsson to acquire Symbian
Mobile phone company will own software developers for smartphones 7 November 2006 16:57 GMT
Sony Ericsson has made a bid for UIQ Technology, a part of Symbian that creates the user interface for the company’s smartphones.

The company is the biggest licensee of the UIQ’s OS, have installed it on the P990, M600, and W950 handsets. The history of UIQ...
Microsoft and Novell team up over open source solutions
OpenOffice and MS Office to work better together 3 November 2006 18:51 GMT
Microsoft and Novell have announced a collaboration on Windows and Linux interoperability in a move that came straight out of left field for most of us.

The two software companies have announced a set of agreements to build, market, and support a series of new...
Google buys wiki company JotSpot
Similar application to Writely and Spreadsheets 31 October 2006 16:15 GMT
Google has acquired online wiki company JotSpot in an attempt to expand even further into the online document collaboration market.

The announcement was made on the Google Blog by co-founder Joe Kraus, who explains that the site was set up to allow non-HTML...