Web.com a leading provider of online marketing for small businesses, today announced it has entered into an agreement to acquire privately-held Register.com, a leading provider of global domain name registration and complementary website design and management services. Under the terms of the agreement, which is subject to standard closing conditions, Web.com will pay $135 million and will finance the purchase through a combination of cash and long-term debt.
David Brown, President & CEO of Web.com, stated, “We are very excited to announce our agreement to acquire Register.com, which will bring highly complementary products, sales channels and operating capabilities to Web.com. Register.com has over 800,000 subscribers, which represents a substantial cross-and up-sell opportunity for Web.com. Additionally, small businesses signing up for domain name services have been one of Web.com’s most effective lead generation sources, making Register.com’s core competency in this area a perfect match for driving increased adoption of Web.com’s suite of online marketing and web services solutions.”
Brown added, “The acquisition of Register.com will be a transformative event for Web.com as we expect to expand our non-GAAP revenue base by over 80% and more than double our adjusted EBITDA run rate after realizing cost synergies that have already been identified. In addition to expecting a meaningful, positive impact on our non-GAAP EPS, Web.com’s significantly enhanced scale and cash flow will provide the company with far greater resources to invest in sales and marketing programs to drive long-term growth.”
Larry Kutscher, CEO of Register.com, stated, “Register.com provides essential tools that small businesses need to build and manage their online presence, which is a perfect complement to Web.com’s focus on providing high-value add online marketing solutions. Today’s announcement is a significant event for our customers and prospects as our combined company will have a unique combination of scale, product breadth and distribution to address the $10 billion online services market for small businesses.”