Broadcast.com Inc. accelerated its expansion into the
small business market Tuesday by acquiring Web hosting firm Simple Network
Communications Inc. for $20.75 million in stock.
Broadcast.com said it would introduce self-service audio and video
streaming to SimpleNet’s customers, allowing them to create their own
personalized audio and video programming and broadcast them over the
Internet in minutes.
The deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter at which time SimpleNet
will become a wholly-owned subsidiary of Broadcast.com.
Mark Cuban, Broadcast.com’s president, said the acquisition strengthens the
company’s position as a leading portal for video and audio on the Web.
“(The acquisition) gives us access to the consumer and small business
markets — two markets with significant growth potential for audio and
video streaming. By leveraging SimpleNet’s worldwide customer base, we hope
to deliver the power of Internet broadcasting to people everywhere, from
large corporations to individual consumers,” Cuban said.
Robert Bingham, president and chief executive officer of SimpleNet, said
the deal will give SimpleNet’s customers new services that are not
available from other Web hosting firms.
“Through this transaction, we can differentiate SimpleNet’s Web hosting
services by leveraging Broadcast.com’s sales and marketing expertise and
extending the company’s Internet broadcasting services to our client base
of over 15,000 consumer and small-business accounts in over 100 countries,”
Bingham said.