Microsoft to Acquire Greenfield Online Including Its European Subsidiary Ciao, a Leading European Price Comparison and Shopping Site
29/08/2008 07:11
PR Newswire
LONDON, August 29 /PRNewswire/ --
- Acquisition of Ciao will expand Live Search offering in Europe.
Microsoft Corp today announced that it has reached an agreement to
acquire Greenfield Online Inc, owner of Ciao GmbH, one of Europe's leading
price comparison, shopping and consumer reviews sites, in a move that will
further extend Microsoft's search and e-commerce services in Europe. Under
the terms of the agreement, Microsoft will commence a cash tender offer to
purchase all of the outstanding shares of Greenfield Online for $17.50 (US)
per share in a transaction valued at approximately $486 million (US).
(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20000822/MSFTLOGO)
Ciao is a comprehensive source for intelligent shopping on the web,
combining consumer reviews and ratings from a multimillion-user-strong online
community with up-to-date price information from thousands of online
merchants. It currently has more than 26.5 million unique visitors per month
(source: comScore Inc, May 2008) across seven countries, who so far have
generated more than 5 million product reviews.
The acquisition signals a further milestone investment for Microsoft in
Europe and will see Microsoft increase its European commercial search
capabilities as part of its intent to make Microsoft Live Search the premier
destination for consumers looking to research and purchase goods and services
online, as well as enable merchants to drive greater online sales.
Ciao's technology platform, online community and extensive merchant
relationships will be integrated within the Live Search platform to deliver a
richer, more rewarding experience for both advertisers and consumers.
In a related transaction, Microsoft has secured a buyer for Greenfield
Online's Internet survey solutions, a business that has been the cornerstone
of Greenfield Online since 2001. Both transactions are expected to close
during the fourth quarter of 2008.
"Ciao's success has been led by a team of talented people who took a
unique combination of intuitive technology and the insight that comes out of
their passionate consumer community to become one of Europe's leading
shopping comparison sites," said John Mangelaars, vice president, Consumer
and Online, Microsoft Europe, Middle East and Africa. "This makes the company
a fantastic asset to the future of our search offer. Integrating Ciao's
capabilities into Live Search will provide a strong launchpad for our
commercial search offer in Europe and enhance our e-commerce offering on
MSN."
Microsoft's search strategy is focused on three key areas: delivering the
best results, simplifying key tasks and innovating in the business model. For
commercial search, this means simplifying how consumers research and purchase
online. Work is ongoing to ensure that Live Search delivers across all these
categories, building on recent progress including the acquisition of Multimap
and the decision to open a European Search Technology Centre this financial
year.
Commenting on the announcement, Albert Angrisani, president and CEO of
Greenfield Online, said, "We're proud of the community that we have helped to
establish, and we're looking forward to exploring the new opportunities,
technologies and relationships that Microsoft and the Live Search platform
can unlock. Like Microsoft, we are passionate about delivering a great
end-to-end commerce search experience. Today's announcement will
significantly accelerate our ambition and will deliver real benefit for
consumers and merchants across Europe."
Upon close of the agreement, the Ciao business will report to Rajat
Taneja, general manager for Worldwide Commercial Search at Microsoft.
About Ciao GmbH
Ciao GmbH is one of Europe's leading providers of consumer and price
comparison websites. The firm operates shopping communities in seven
countries and languages (ciao.co.uk, http://www.ciao-group.com,
http://ciao.de, ciao.fr, ciao.it, ciao.es, ciao-shopping.nl, ciao.se).
Internet users will find more than four million products and more than five
million independent product evaluations and reports of people's experiences
in over 20 categories, such as cars, computers, digital cameras, finances,
mobile phones, travel, electronics or foodstuffs. Ciao is ranked as the most
popular shopping website in Europe.
Ciao GmbH was founded in Munich in 1999 and since 2005 it has belonged to
Greenfield Online, Inc. (Nasdaq: SRVY). The headquarters of Ciao GmbH is in
Munich. Further offices are located in London, Paris, Timisoara (Romania) and
Wroclaw (Poland). Further information including digital material to provide
illustration can be found at: http://www.ciao-group.com or
http://www.greenfield.com/.
About Microsoft
Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT) is the worldwide leader in
software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realise
their full potential.
About Microsoft EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa)
Microsoft has operated in EMEA since 1982. In the region Microsoft
employs more than 16,000 people in over 64 subsidiaries, delivering products
and services in more than 139 countries and territories.
This material is for informational purposes only. Microsoft Corp
disclaims all warranties and conditions with regard to use of the material
for other purposes. Microsoft Corp shall not, at any time, be liable for any
special, direct, indirect or consequential damages, whether in an action of
contract, negligence or other action arising out of or in connection with the
use or performance of the material. Nothing herein should be construed as
constituting any kind of warranty.
Important Additional Information: The tender offer for the outstanding
common stock of Greenfield Online Inc has not yet commenced. This press
release is for informational purposes only and is not an offer to buy or the
solicitation of an offer to sell any securities. The solicitation and the
offer to buy shares of Greenfield Online common stock will only be made
pursuant to a tender offer statement on Schedule TO, an offer to purchase and
related materials that Microsoft intends to file with the Securities and
Exchange Commission. Once it is filed, Greenfield Online stockholders should
read these materials carefully prior to making any decisions with respect to
the tender offer because they contain important information, including the
terms and conditions of the tender offer. Once it is filed, Greenfield Online
stockholders will be able to obtain a copy of the tender offer statement, the
offer to purchase and other filed documents related to the tender offer free
of charge at the Securities and Exchange Commission's website at
http://www.sec.gov, from the information agent named in the tender offer
materials, or from Microsoft by going to Microsoft's Investor Relations
website at http://www.microsoft.com/msft.
Web site: http://www.microsoft.com
Alex Kingdon of Microsoft Consumer and Online, +44(0)7971-002936; or Paul Davies, +44(0)207-025-6504, +44(0)7971-207017, OSBEMEAConsumerteam@redconsultancy.com, Paul.davies@redconsultancy.com, or Justin Bates, +44(0)207-025-6419, +44(0)7878-357463, redcoiemea@redconsultancy.com, justin.bates@redconsultancy.com, both of The Red Consultancy, for Microsoft Consumer and Online; or Microsoft EMEA Response Centre, emearesponse@waggeneredstrom.com; NOTE TO EDITORS: If you are interested in viewing additional information on Microsoft in EMEA, please visit http://www.microsoft.com/emea or the EMEA Press Centre at http://www.microsoft.com/emea/presscentre. Web links, telephone numbers and titles were correct at the time of publication, but may since have changed. For additional assistance, journalists and analysts may contact the appropriate contacts listed at http://www.microsoft.com/emea/presscentre/contactus.mspx. If you are interested in viewing additional information on Microsoft Corp, please visit the Microsoft web page at http://www.microsoft.com/presspass on Microsoft's corporate information pages.; Photo: NewsCom: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20000822/MSFTLOGO, AP Archive: http://photoarchive.ap.org, PRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.com
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