Yahoo Acquires Kelkoo

By WebProNews
Staff Writer
Article Date: 2004-03-26

Moving to solidify their position as the web's largest portal, Yahoo announced they would be purchasing European Internet shopping portal Kelkoo.

The terms call for Yahoo to receive up to 100% of Kelkoo's share capital. The price for the agreement reached 475 million euros, or roughly 575 million US dollars.

Speaking of the acquisition, Terry Semel, Yahoo chairman and chief executive officer, said, "Kelkoo will add depth and breadth to Yahoo!'s integrated network of services for consumers, and adds another set of powerful tools for marketers seeking to reach them."

Kelkoo is Europe's largest online comparison shopping service accounting for 10% of Europe's Internet users. Kelkoo's services enables consumers to quickly and easily find products through its product search engine, then compare prices from more than 2,500 merchants with more than 3 million products across 25 categories.

Kelkoo receives referral fee income from merchants for clicks initiating from Kelkoo's service.

This move will expand Yahoo's global strategy, while giving them a larger European presence. The Kelkoo acquisition will give Yahoo the opportunity to increase its overseas reach by introducing millions of new users to Yahoo Europe's network.

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