Motricity Acquires InfoSpace Mobile Unit for $135 Million

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on October 15, 2007 - 8:35am.

Durham, N.C. - Motricity, a provider of mobile content publishing and delivery services, announced on Monday that it will acquire the mobile services business of InfoSpace for about $135 million in cash.

The company said Carl Icahn and Advanced Equities, Inc. provided "significant investments" to lead funding of the transaction.

Upon closing, Motricity chairman and CEO Ryan Wuerch will remain in his roles, while Steve Elfman, executive vice president of InfoSpace Mobile, will become president and COO of Motricity.

Durham, N.C.-based Motricity said the deal expands its customer base to include 11 of the top 13 carriers in North America; its mobile portal product will also power 5 of the top 6 carriers' "start screens."

The company expects to power over a billion dollars in content sales, and attract tens of billions of page views and user impressions.

"We're combining two of the best companies in the industry to create the premier provider of mobile platform infrastructure," said Ryan Wuerch, chairman and CEO of Motricity.

"Between us, we have unparalleled experience in mobile platform development, systems integration, innovation and building world class technology with a proven ability to scale -- powering the mobile marketplace including the largest operators and media companies in North America and Europe."

InfoSpace, which has now officially exited the mobile business, also recently sold its online directory business for $225 million, and will now focus exclusively on its Internet search business.