Web analytics firm Omniture has agreed to acquire web optimization company Offermatica for about $65 million, including $35 million in stock.
The deal shows that the hyper-consolidation in online advertising and marketing is not limited to billion-dollar deals for big name companies such as DoubleClick and aQuantive, which were snapped up by Google and Microsoft, respectively.
Online marketing niches, such as behavioral targeting, have drawn interest recently with AOL agreeing to acquire TACODA. And Offermatica’s expertise is not in third party advertising but in helping companies wring the most dollars out of their web sites once users follow ads and finally get to a particular site.
San Francisco-based Offermatica is best known for products that allow marketers to test new elements and structures on their web sites. Companies testing the performance of their sites used to have to implement manual processes. Offermatica has developed software that allows companies to quickly test different features of large data-driven sites. The company has more than 100 clients, including Circuit City, ELOAN, Monster.com, and Williams Sonoma.
Orem, Utah-based Omniture provides web analytics and web site optimization services. It acquired behavioral targeting company Touch Clarity in February for about $51.5 million. Touch Clarity’s technology customizes content on a web site so that it is targeted to individual web surfers.
Like many other digital marketing companies, NASDAQ-listed Omniture has broadened its scope in recent years. While often known for helping ecommerce companies increase the number of purchases users make on web sites, Omniture also provides search marketing and optimization services aimed at increasing clicks to company web sites.
Omniture went public in June, 2006, with a disappointing IPO price of $6.50 a share, versus an expected $8 to $9 a share. Still, the company has been reeling in large clients while also targeting mid-sized companies
Omniture in July released quarterly earnings showing GAAP net loss of $4.1 million or 8 cents a share, compared with 2.3 million or 16 cents per share in the year-ago period. Revenue was up 78 percent over the year-ago period, at $33.5 million, as the company has some big name clients such as eBay, AOL, Wal-Mart, Sony, and HP.