AOL acquires affiliate network to boost ad platform
Mike Butcher
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AOL has acquired buy.at, a leading affiliate marketing network backed by VC house DFJ Esprit, reports TechCrunch UK. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed, but well-placed sources say the deal is worth in the region of $150 million (£75 million). Although launched in the UK in 2002, buy.at now has a much bigger US operation, which is what attracted AOL’s interest. buy.at will now operate as a wholly-owned business unit of Advertising.com, part of AOL’s Platform-A organization, to which it added four other companies in the last year including Tacoda, AdTech, Third Screen Media and Quigo. Unlike previous deals which were more about ad serving, the buy.at deal is about getting closer relationships with retailers. AOL is understood to have tried to buy another affiliate network, Tradedoubler, a year ago but the deal foundered with the latter’s shareholders, who couldn’t agree on price.
One more portal buying an online advertising company. I guess its herd mentality all the way!
So what’s the price, $43m or $150m??
Acquisition grow the network, Advertising and affiliate networks are main target of big enterpreneurs like Yahoo, Google, AOL, Microsoft and others. Acquisitions has become usual news.
@PEG - $150m ballpark. Slight confusion before, sorry.
Why don’t ad networks call themselves widget networks and vice versa?
Just a correction on this story, buy.at are far bigger in th UK than the US at the moment. They’ve launched the Ticketmaster programme over there last year but have hundreds of programmes running in the UK.
Good move by AOL, especially given the huge forecast for online ad spending over the next 4 - 5 years. Congrats to Buy.at.
That’s AOL problem, they don’t buy enough companies! If they would only sharpen their pencils and buy a lot more companies, that would make them a successful business.
So much activity from AOL recently…
I think AOl is setting up in ad group and SEO field.
AOL = PILE OF JUNK
it is very strange with the austrian url
I think this is a good move by AOL and will definitely help to tap into the European market.
Anybody know buy.at revenue and profits? just wondering about multiples being paid for them…
Don’t have profit figures but buy.at says its revenues are between £25m and £30m.
According to their accounts, buy.at’s EBIT in FY06 was £1.2m on £13.0m turnover. Assuming constant margin, that would mean FY07 EBIT of £2.2-2.7m on Richard’s figures.