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Tom.com Purchases Yazhou Zhoukan of Hong Kong
The famous web company of Hong Kong - Tom.com formally announced November 22 that it had purchased 50 percent share of the Yazhou Zhoukan (Asia Weekly) of Hong Kong, thus continuing to expand its media domain.
It's analyzed that Tom.com's successive purchase of traditional media and further expansion of the combination of printing media will help broaden the coverage of advertisement, enhance its attractiveness to advertisers, thereby bringing more profits to the company.
Since the ebb of the technological stock heat early this year, Tom.com has begun its development from a pure portal website to a trans-media group. After purchasing Y.C. Press, Shawei.com (a sports website), 163.net, Fenchstar Information Industry Co. and Yazhou Zhoukan, Tom.com has established a large multi-layer advertisement platform covering networks, printing, outdoor activities, etc. In the opinion of an analyst, these companies purchased by Tom.com will bring it profits and extricate itself from the predicament resulted from insufficient advertisement income.
Insiders estimated that this M&A (merger and acquisition) practice would last till the latter half of next year. Currently, it is large websites that purchase traditional media, but in the next step, the practice of merger will take place between large and medium-sized web companies.
Purchasing Portal 163.net
Tom.com said it has agreed to acquire a 100 pct stake in Chinese portal 163.net for 48 mln US$.
In a statement, Tom.com said it will issue 61.68 mln new shares at 5.69 HK$ each to satisfy 45 mln US$ of the total payment, and will pay the remaining 3 mln US$ through certain shareholders' loans.
Acquiring Yang Cheng Press, Shawei.com
Tom.com signed preliminary agreements in August with two sports-related Chinese companies in a move to strengthen its position in the mainland's sports industry.
Tom.com said it intends to acquire a 70 percent stake in Yang Cheng Press for US$30.3 million and a 100 percent stake in Sharkwave Asia Pacific Ltd., which owns shawei.com, for about US$20 million.
By PD Online staff Deng Gang
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