Faversham House, the Croydon-based media company, has acquired the Utility Week portfolio from Reed Business Information (RBI).
Utility Week provides news, analysis and comment on Britain’s major electricity, gas and water utilities. The acquisition includes the Utility Week website www.utilityweek.com, the Utility Week Achievement Awards (6 December 2010) and the Utility Week Debt Conference (2 November 2010).
Faversham House Chief Executive Amanda Barnes, said: “We were delighted when RBI responded positively to our approach to acquire the Utility Week portfolio. We are extremely pleased to welcome the Utility Week team into our already successful and extensive portfolio of water, environment and sustainability titles. This acquisition underlines our commitment to grow our position as the premier provider of information into this market. There is considerable synergy with our Sustainabilitylive! exhibitions and with our world-leading edie.net environmental information portal. We look forward to working with the talented Utility Week team to maximise the opportunities this gives us.”
Jane Burgess, Managing Director of RBI said: “I’d like to thank the Utility Week team for their contribution to RBI – they are a talented team with deep experience in their sector and we wish them every success at Faversham House”
The seven-strong team joined Faversham House on Monday 26 July 2010.
According to the WSJ and Vedomosti, Digital Sky Technologies‘ Russian investment holding, DST Russia, which owns online portal Mail.ru, ICQ, majority of social network Odnoklassniki.ru is expected to do IPO of between 10% and 25% of its shares in London in spring 2011.
DST was founded in 2005 and is one of the largest internet companies in the Russian-speaking and Eastern European markets and one of the leading investment groups globally to exclusively focus on internet related companies. DST, together with its affiliate DST Global, also holds stakes in internet world leaders such as Facebook, Zynga and Groupon. DST is a privately held company backed by leading international financial institutions and companies.
According to Quintura (refering to Russian language paper Vedomosti). DST Russia could be valued at $6 billion, Vedomosti said, thus implying value of stake to be sold at IPO at between $600 million and $1,500 million.
Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley and JP Morgan are to manage the IPO.
Location: Russia, Moscow
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Naspers’s (the broad based international media group) subsidiary Myriad International Holdings B.V. (“MIH”) is to take a 28,7% stake in Digital Sky Technologies Limited (“DST”), the internet company that has stakes in stakes in internet world leaders such as Facebook, Zynga and Groupon. The transaction will be effected by Naspers contributing its 39,3% stake in Mail.ru into DST and investing US$388m in cash. Concurrently, Mail.ru management and other minorities will also convert their shares into DST.
Upon the close of this transaction, DST will own over 99,9% of Mail.ru. Mail.ru is the leading communication and entertainment platform in the Russian-speaking internet world, with over 50m registered email accounts, leading market share in MMO games and one of the leading social networks in Russia.
Naspers and DST have worked closely together over the past three years as co-owners of Mail.ru and today’s transaction will enable them to further strengthen that relationship.
Chief Executive Officer of DST, Yuri Milner, said, “Naspers’s strategic insight has already proven to be valuable in our partnership and we welcome the expertise they will bring to DST. We are delighted to announce this transaction and look forward to creating further value through our relationship.”
Antonie Roux, head of Naspers’s internet operations, commented: “We have known DST and its management for years and we share a similar view and approach. We are excited to strengthen our partnership. This opportunity further expands our exposure to emerging markets and the fast-growing internet sector.”
Location: South Africa, Johannesburg & Russia, Moscow
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7 Star Entertainment, Inc., an independent online entertainment dating company has signed an Investment Agreement with Kodiak Capital Group, LLC of New York for a $10 million equity facility, the funding of which will be contingent upon the Company achieving certain conditions.
Upon successful completion of the required conditions and subsequent receipt of the funds, the Company plans to use the funding for the online marketing and growth of its flagship product AdultMatchClub.com and the build-out of its existing online portfolio. The Company’s business plan projects growth through national and international marketing, the utilization of time-tested marketing strategies and through the acquisition of similar online properties.
Joseph Daleo Jr., 7 Star’s President and CEO commented, “The facility offered to us by Kodiak is sure to put us on the frontline of the ‘online dating community’ by developing our database and technology, creating an aggressive marketing budget for consumer awareness and enhancing our brand recognition. We plan to continuously enhance our sites and servers by utilizing our latest proprietary technology; ultimately improving the end user’s online experience while simultaneously increasing shareholder value.”
Location: USA, Fort Lauderdale, FL
Symantec Corp. (NASDAQ: SYMC) has completed its acquisition of VeriSign‘s (NASDAQ: VRSN) identity and authentication business, which includes the Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) and Code Signing Certificate Services, the Managed Public Key Infrastructure (MPKI) Services, the VeriSign Trust Seal, the VeriSign Identity Protection (VIP) Authentication Service and the VIP Fraud Detection Service (FDS). The acquisition agreement between Symantec and VeriSign also included a majority stake in VeriSign Japan and was announced on May 19, 2010.
“Enterprises and consumers alike expect simple and secure access to information from any device, protection from identity fraud, and online experiences that are user-friendly and hassle-free,” said Enrique Salem, president and CEO, Symantec. “The combination of Symantec’s leading security solutions with VeriSign’s security products, services and recognition as the most trusted brand online, uniquely positions Symantec to drive the adoption of identity security and restore trust online unlike any other company.”
“Symantec has acquired a strong technology suite and team that we hope to continue to leverage,” said Andrew Salesky, SVP Platform Services at Charles Schwab. “We benefit by having a single primary security partner for our enterprise and client facing applications, and look forward to further enhancing these capabilities with Symantec.”
Signifying Trust Online
The VeriSign check mark is the most recognized symbol of trust online with more than 250 million impressions every day on more than 90,000 websites in 160 countries. Symantec has begun the process to transition to a new corporate identity incorporating the VeriSign check mark. This will include a new corporate logo, as well as a new version of the Norton consumer logo, to convey that it’s safe to communicate, transact commerce and exchange information online. The external global roll-out will begin in the December quarter.
Creating Mutually Trusted Interactions Online
With the completion of the acquisition, Symantec’s current portfolio, along with assets from VeriSign, provides the depth and breadth of technologies to make identity-based security of information part of a comprehensive security solution. Integration efforts are expected to:
Provide VeriSign’s SSL Certificate Services with Symantec Critical System Protection through the sales channel. By quickly enabling the sales force to begin cross-selling these offerings, Symantec will help organizations ensure and verify a higher level of security on their web servers, providing users with the trust and confidence to do business online.
Align the VeriSign SSL and client PKI authentications services with Symantec Protection Center (SPC) to provide a unified enterprise security management solution.
Strengthen user access security by expanding Symantec’s Data Loss Prevention solutions and Data Insight technology with VeriSign’s identity security services to ensure that only authorized users have access to appropriate information.
Offer users strong authentication and give organizations the ability to leverage the highly-recognized VeriSign trust mark in online searches by providing VeriSign VIP authentication service along with Norton products and Symantec desktop clients.
“Our customers’ intellectual property, data and business processes are critical to their success. In today’s connected environment, protecting these valuable information assets is more important — and more challenging — than ever before,” said Mark Melvin, chief technology officer, ePlus Technology, Inc. “With the combined security products from Symantec and VeriSign, ePlus will be able to offer our customers a complete identity security solution that provides them with simple and secure access to their important business information from anywhere, while ensuring that corporate data is not at risk.”
“As identity pervades many corporate and consumer security functions, there is a strong synergy between Symantec and VeriSign,” said Christian Christiansen, vice president of security products and services, IDC. “As devices, data, web services, and applications proliferate, strong authentication and identity management become crucial to reducing risk of unauthorized information exposure, protecting privacy, and increasing trust. The incorporation of VeriSign’s market-leading SSL, PKI and VIP products into Symantec’s broad portfolio of information security solutions offers the promise of more secure interactions and transactions. By baking authentication into its security products, Symantec can extend VeriSign’s “trusted web” to an even greater effect.”
VeriSign’s identity and authentication business will become part of the Enterprise Security Group led by Francis deSouza.
Location: USA, Mountain View, CA
Dice Holdings, a leading provider of specialised career websites for professional communities, today announced it has completed the purchase of Rigzone, a U.S. market leader in the oil and gas industry delivering content, data, advertising and career services.
“The acquisition of Rigzone extends our capabilities and strengthens our position in the highly attractive energy vertical,” said Scot Melland, Chairman, President & CEO of Dice Holdings, Inc. “The Rigzone and WorldwideWorker services complement each other with Rigzone’s traditional strength in North America and WorldwideWorker’s focus on the Middle East and emerging markets. And, both teams share a commitment to quality and a desire to serve the energy industry on a global basis.”
Known as the online gateway to the oil and gas industry, Rigzone is the world’s most-used source for upstream oil and gas news and data, including in-depth information on the exploration, drilling and production markets. Rigzone has built a valuable and largely-passive community with more than 500,000 unique visitors each month and more than 270,000 resumes in their database covering skills ranging from production operators to petroleum engineers.
“The Dice team has the strongest vision for the future direction of online recruiting, while recognizing the value of our unique and valuable content,” said David Kent, President of Rigzone. “We are truly excited about working with our colleagues from Des Moines to Dubai connecting top talent with organizations that are tackling the energy challenge.”
The purchase price consists of initial consideration of $39 million in cash. Additional consideration to a maximum of $16 million in cash is payable upon the achievement of certain operating and financial goals through June 30, 2011.
The Jordan, Edmiston Group acted as Rigzone’s financial advisor.
Location: USA, New York, NY
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Glam Media, the vertical media company for women,is to acquire AdPortal, a publisher advertising-technology startup.
“Glam Media’s heart and soul is about publishers and professional social media content,” said Samir Arora, chairman and CEO of Glam Media. “With the acquisition of AdPortal, we are launching ‘GlamAdapt for Publishers,’ a one-stop solution to web-enable all digital inventory for existing and emerging demand sales channels. AdPortal will bring one of the most advanced technology products to the recently announced next generation GlamAdapt Platform designed for Brand Advertising.”
“Our goal with AdPortal has always been to empower publishers to make the most use of their premium inventory, while making it easy for advertisers to get their message in front of the people they want to target,” said Robert Tas, CEO and Founder of AdPortal, a former SVP of Media & Technology at 24/7 and one of the founders of Tacoda. “We are thrilled to be a part of Glam Media and integrate AdPortal into GlamAdapt, now a full alternative ad-tech platform for premium brand advertising.”
Tas will be joining Glam Media as Vice President of GlamAdapt Platform.
“Linden Lab has had success with AdPortal, allowing us to drive greater value for our premium inventory,” said Robin Ducot, VP of Web Development at Linden Lab. “We are pleased that AdPortal is becoming part of GlamAdapt, and look forward to working with Glam Media to drive innovation around audience packages, brand-focused analytics, and advanced ad formats.”
AdPortal is a Silicon Valley venture-funded spinoff of Sportgenic, with investors including top-tier VC firms SoftTechVC and Greycroft Partners, key Silicon Valley startup investors and a list of premium publishers. AdPortal’s San Francisco-based employees will join the Glam Media ad products team in Silicon Valley.
USA, San Francisco, CA & New York, NY
Japanese Internet company Rakuten, has closed an all-cash sales transaction to acquire Buy.com.
Buy.com will continue its mission of being a destination site that stands for the best of online shopping as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Rakuten, and will remain headquartered in Aliso Viejo, Calif. Rakuten will retain Buy.com’s executive management team and staff.
Buy.com is a retail marketplace with around 14 million customers. Buy.com was founded in June 1997.
In Japan, Rakuten has approximately 64 million registered members and sales in 2009 totaled US$3.2 billion. Its core business “Rakuten Ichiba” is Japan’s largest Internet shopping mall. In addition to its Internet shopping mall, Rakuten, which has more than 6,000 employees, is engaged in other Internet businesses such as travel agency and financial services.
Location: USA, Aliso, CA
Freelancer.com, an outsourcing marketplace, today announced the acquisition of Freemarket.com and simultaneous launch of an online marketplace for buying and selling virtual goods. Stocked with content by Freelancer.com’s rapidly growing user base of over 1.7 million registered professionals, Freemarket.com aims to be the world’s top marketplace for buying and selling digital content.
The launch of Freemarket.com marks a major milestone for Freelancer.com, who up until today focused on providing a marketplace for remote workers. “This is a giant step for us,” said Freelancer.com Chief Executive Matt Barrie. “Freemarket.com essentially doubles the options a small business person has for getting things done online. For example, a small business might choose to purchase a website template from Freemarket.com and have it customized by a freelancer from Freelancer.com. As a result, the website will be up and running faster, be potentially more cost effective and have higher certainty towards the final outcome. It’s great for freelancers as they can now generate multiple passive income streams while they sleep,” he continued.
Freemarket.com has been in private beta for a couple of weeks, and already over five thousand items of content have been uploaded. “The strength of Freemarket.com will be that content will be powered by our massive user base of talented freelancers,” commented Barrie.
Investment banking firm Piper Jaffray estimates that by 2013 the online virtual goods market will be worth in excess of $6 billion globally, with over $2.5 billion in revenue generated in the US alone. While much of this has been focused on the consumer, Freemarket.com is the world’s first digital one-stop-shop for small business.
Freemarket.com is open now for anyone to upload digital content for sale.
Location: Australia, Sydney
Fusion Corporate Partners 
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