Financial software firm MYOB has advanced its expansion into the web services market with the acquisition of Melbourne-based web hosting business SmartyHost.
MYOB signalled its intention to move into web hosting earlier this year and purchased business-oriented web hosting operation Ilisys in March.
MYOB purchased the shares and existing debt of SmartyHost for $7 million. The firm currently generates more than $3 million of revenue and over $1 million in EBIT.
MYOB chief executive Tim Reed says the acquisition will deliver the company access to a solid client base and the ability to provide a suite of web design and marketing functions that will help it become a “one-stop-shop” in web hosting.
“It’s a very strategic acquisition for us. It is a space that we’ve flagged as one that we would like to play a bigger part in, and it’s something that we’re very committed to as a long-term strategy,” Reed says.
The MYOB small business survey published in June this year found 59% of Australian small businesses do not have their own website.
MYOB also announced its half yearly results to June 2008 today, with a one-off $28.3 million loss on the sale of the company’s British operations resulting in a NPAT including significant items loss of $18.5 million.
By contrast, the company’s core operations in Australia and New Zealand performed well, helping to drive 27% growth in NPAT from continuing operations for the half to $9.8 million.
The MYOB move comes just days after global IT security giant Symantec announced its acquisition of Australian security software provider PC Tools for an undisclosed amount.
PC Tools will operate as a separate unit within Symantec and continue to be run by current chief executive Simon Clausen.
Symantec said in a statement it believes the purchase of PC Tools will help it expand its presence in emerging regional markets. PC Tools has offices in the US, Britain, Ireland and the Ukraine in addition to it’s Sydney headquarters and sells its products in 196 countries around the world.
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