ValueClick moves into comparison shopping with Pricerunner.com
ValueClick Inc., a major provider of online marketing services including e-mail and Internet search, is moving into the world of online comparison shopping with its planned acquisition of Pricerunner AB’s Pricerunner.com, a European comparison shopping site popular in Sweden and the UK, ValueClick said.
"We have been looking to add comparison shopping services as part of our strategic growth plan, and in Pricerunner we have found an established partner that will help us take our first step in this rapidly-growing and profitable area of performance-based online marketing," said chairman and CEO James Zarley.
ValueClick said it has agreed to pay about $29 million in cash and stock, plus an additional $6 million contingent on Pricerunner’s future performance. Pricerunner, which currently operates comparison shopping sites in Sweden and the UK, plans to expand into France and Germany this year, ValueClick said. Pricerunner generates most of its revenue through a lead-based model, under which online retailers pay it on a cost-per-click basis for shoppers forwarded from Pricerunner.com.
ValueClick noted that online sales in Europe are projected to grow at an annual growth rate of 33% over the next several years, to 167 billion Euros in 2009 from 40 billion Euros in 2004.
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