Google is continuously looking for more and more ways to boost it’s e-commerce business. In a series of those efforts, now company is acquiring Channel Intelligence Inc, a company which provides marketing services to clients and also provides technologies to boost online and offline sales. Channel Intelligence is a subsidiary of Internet Software and Services firm ICG Group. Orlando based Channel Intelligence is second recent acquisition of Google for improving it’s e-commerce business. Last year in November it acquired delivery service BufferBox.
Google is acquiring Channel Intelligence in a $125 million all-cash deal. Basically Channel Intelligence helps retailers, advertisers and manufacturers in making their products and services available for sale easily in both places – online stores and offline stores. Company has been very successful in the business from long time and right now is working with 850 clients including many big and well recognized clients like Best Buy and Target. It has also been a partner of Google Shopping from years now. For Google Shopping company has been working on improving it’s Return On Ad Spend (ROAS) through it’s Product Listing Ads (PLAs).
Channel Intelligence also provides several Facebook widgets which can be integrated nicely with websites and can help in boosting the Facebook fan base of a page. Company is globally active in 31 countries and has a very high customer satisfaction rate. The company is in business since 1999 and right now tracks 15% of all online transactions in U.S., driving nearly $2 billion in sales through referrals.
The deal was announced by Channel intelligence on it’s official website. Company said on it’s homepage,
“All CI services will continue to offer the excellent client service and great performance that our clients have come to expect over the years.”
ICG Group, the major stakeholder of Channel Intelligence, provided some more in-depth details about the deal. ICG said that it will get $60.5 million in the deal from Google and a portion of company’s proceeds will be held in escrow for identification claims. Remaining amount will go to Aweida Capital Management, the second stakeholder of Channel Intelligence. Deal is expected to close in the first quarter of 2013.
After the announcement of news, ICG’s shares went 3% higher in the day trading on Nasdaq and opened at $12.41 mark on Wednesday. On the previous day ICG’s shares were closed at $12.04 per share mark.
