TradeDoubler has acquired all shares in The IMW Group
TRADEDOUBLER ACQUIRES THE SEARCH WORKS - THE UK's LARGEST SEARCH ENGINE MARKETING COMPANY - AND SISTER COMPANY THE TECHNOLOGY WORKS
TradeDoubler AB (publ) today announced its acquisition on July 25th of all the issued shares in Interactive Marketing Works Ltd and its subsidiaries ('The IMW Group'). The purchase price amounts to £56 million and will be paid in cash and bank guaranteed loan notes.
The IMW Group consists of two trading entities, 'The Search Works', a well established search engine marketing agency and 'The Technology Works', a technology provider for search engine marketing which is in an investment phase, whose products include 'BidBuddy®' - a search management technology.
The IMW Group is a profitable and well managed company which has built up a significant client base, including such brand names as Asda, Comet, EasyJet, First Choice, Interflora and The Carphone Warehouse. The Group has a strong reputation within the industry for professionalism and driving return on investment for its clients. The Group was founded in 1999 and currently employs 108 staff. Turnover for the rolling twelve months preceding June 2007 amounted to £69 million and gross profit for the same period was £7.8 million.
The acquisition complements and expands TradeDoubler's existing performance-based product portfolio which includes affiliate marketing, online advertising campaigns, pay-per-call and an online tracking and ad-serving technology. The newly combined offering has great synergies for both TradeDoubler's and The IMW Group's client bases. Search engine marketing and affiliate marketing are the largest direct response online marketing channels, with significant growth forecasted in both areas. Search marketing accounted for 45% of European online ad spend in 2006 according to the IAB Europe / PWC and Forrester Research predicts that European Advertisers will spend almost €3 billion a year on search marketing alone by 2010 (up from € 856 million in 2004).
The Search Works is active in the UK, while The Technology Works has additional presence in Europe and in Asia. TradeDoubler has an extensive presence throughout Europe which spans 18 countries.
"Product expansion and further internationalisation are key components in TradeDoubler's growth strategy. The acquisition addresses both these areas by rolling out The Search Works and The Technology Works throughout Europe and by utilising The Technology Works' Asian foothold to assess the roll out of TradeDoubler's product offerings into Asian markets." says William Cooper, CEO, TradeDoubler.
Nick Hynes, CEO, The IMW Group adds, "There is a natural affinity between TradeDoubler's products and services and the search management technology that we offer. We also believe there is a strong cultural fit between our two organisations. Together we will be able to offer unprecedented online marketing services and tools to a range of clients across Europe and beyond."
Both companies will continue to be managed as separate business entities, while benefiting from joint corporate services where appropriate. While senior management at The Search Works and The Technology Works will take an active part in the management of the combined TradeDoubler Group, there are no plans to make changes to the management of either company,
TradeDoubler expects significant incremental revenue opportunities from combining its pan-European organisation with the IMW Group's search marketing offering. The IMW Group will form part of TradeDoubler's accounts from August 2007 but will be presented separately in reporting. Excluding extraordinary transaction costs, TradeDoubler estimates that The IMW Group will give a neutral contribution to TradeDoubler during 2007. The impact on TradeDoubler Earnings per Share for 2007 is expected to be slightly negative due to one off costs relating to the integration of both companies. Acquisitions sheets will be presented in the third quarter report.
TradeDoubler was advised by Keystone Advisers, Baker & McKenzie LLP and KPMG LLP. The IMW Group was advised by Ingenious Corporate Finance, Clarity Capital Partners Limited and Berwin Leighton Paisner LLP.
For additional information, please contact
William Cooper, CEO, +46-8-405 08 00
Casper Seifert, CFO, +46-8-405 08 27
About TradeDoubler
TradeDoubler is a Pan-European digital marketing company offering a range of performance-based marketing solutions. TradeDoubler's products and services provide companies with the tools and expertise to drive results online whether they are looking to generate sales or drive brand awareness. Headquartered in Sweden, the company boasts a unique European reach with local offices in 16 countries across Europe and a presence in a further two countries. With a breadth of expertise across multiple industry sectors and a network of more than 118,000 website publishers TradeDoubler helps deliver online results for over 1,200 advertisers across Europe including a mix of local and international companies such as Apple Store, Dell, Telia Sonera, eBay and Kelkoo.
Please visit www.tradedoubler.com for further information.
About Interactive Marketing Works Ltd
Interactive Marketing Works Ltd is a private limited company, registered in England. It is the holding company for The IMW Group, which includes The Search Works and those companies trading as The Technology Works.
Headquartered in London, England, The Search Works is the UK's leading privately-owned independent specialist search engine marketing services agency. Founded in 1999, the company provides pan-European search marketing campaigns using BidBuddy® technology and the unparalleled knowledge and expertise of its client services team, enabling clients to achieve higher online visibility whilst measuring and maximising returns from online marketing spend. The Search Works continues to build on its success of the past 8 years to deliver considered and highly-targeted search marketing solution services, first rate customer service and technological expertise on behalf of its broad range of blue chip clients including Lastminute, Eurostar, ASDA and The Carphone Warehouse
In the New Media Age Marketing Services Guide 2007, The Search Works was named as the UK's top search marketing agency with a turnover of £50.18m, nearly double that of its nearest rival. And in 2006, The Search Works was listed as Britain's third fastest growing private technology company and highest-ranked search marketing company in The Sunday Times TechTrack Top 100. For more information, please visit www.thesearchworks.com
About The Technology Works
The Technology Works is a media solutions business offering technology products that help meet customers' on & offline marketing needs. Current products include BidBuddy®, the company's pioneering search marketing technology that controls companies' online visibility, delivering traffic to websites and increasing sales, and Diallog®, the revolutionary telephone tracking system designed to help online advertisers track and automatically calculate the return on investment (ROI) of purchases completed by phone. Future and imminent products will all centre around delivering even more effective marketing campaigns, always with a focus on proven return on investment for the marketing professional. For more information, see www.thetechnologyworks.com