Online direct marketer DirectStuff.com said Wednesday that it plans to
acquire consumer coupon site MyCoupons and e-mail newsletter DirectCoupons
from online coupon site Save.com.
The move seems to represent a change of heart. DirectStuff originally
sold the properties in May to Save.com for about $23 million. Save.com
specializes in the online distribution of consumer packaged goods coupons.
Save.com’s chief executive Bruce Ettinger said that the time of the purchase
that MyCoupons would “anchor the Save.com network.”
MyCoupons.com is something of a hot property in the online couponing
space, with more than 20 million views monthly, according to
Nielsen//NetRatings. Weekly e-mail publication DirectCoupons has about
600,000 current subscribers.
DirectStuff.com said that acquiring both the properties MyCoupons and
DirectCoupons will enable it to boost its marketing arsenal.
“We have worked hard to build MyCoupons and DirectCoupons into top
branded and used Web sites and newsletters over the past four years,” said
DirectStuff.com president and chief executive officer Jason Wolfe.
“”We’re looking to round out our marketing group, and … it just seemed
as though more and more people knew MyCoupons,” he said. “Because of the
penetration of MyCoupons and the significant value we thought it might have
… and because of the way the market is, it’s a perfect time to get that
back.”
While suggesting that present market conditions had something to do with
the sale, Wolfe declined to comment on specifics of the deal, on the two
companies’ relationship, and whether the deal represented an about-face by
one of the companies.
“It’s a good relationship,” he said. “They’re moving forward with their
business model, and we’re moving forward with ours. We just decided we
wanted this product back. With the way the market is, it’s a good time for
us to do it.”
The news comes following management changes at Save.com. Earlier this
week, Ettinger resigned as CEO. Save.com’s publicly traded parent, Valassis
Communications, appointed Suzie Brown as his successor. Brown formerly
served as Valassis’ vice president of Internet and e-commerce services.
One reason to sell off the properties might stem from a simple need for
cash; while turning a tidy profit, Valassis has only about $7.21 million in
the bank.
Save.com and Valassis did not return calls by press time seeking comment.
Pittsburgh-based DirectStuff.com is owned in part by Internet Advertising
Report’s parent, internet.com, and is funded by the internet.com Venture
Fund.
