AOL has agreed to buy Swedish ad firm, TradeDoubler, for $900 Million. TradeDoubler will help fund AOL’s operations in Europe, to make up for lost revenues after AOL’s transition from a paid to free service. From the New York Times,
“TradeDoubler…works on behalf of online marketers, gathering ads and offering them to Internet media owners and other Web sites, which can choose which ones to run. An electronics retailer, for instance, could select advertising from a computer maker, and the companies would share revenue from any online transaction that resulted from clicks on the ads.”
Not everyone is optimistic about the agreement – Alecta, a swedish pension fund and 10% stakeholder of TradeDoubler, claims that the agreed sum is too low. The ECommerce Times points out that AOL’s offer is likely to start a bidding war.
Discussion:
- AOL’s $900MM Bid for TradeDoubler.com Hits Obstacle (Marketing Vox)
- AOL Bids $900 Million for European Online Marketer TradeDoubler(DMW Media)
- AOL Says Holds Firm on TradeDoubler Bid (Reuters)
