Gannett to acquire WordStream

Gannett Co., Inc. has entered into an agreement to acquire WordStream Inc., a provider of cloud-based software-as-a-Service (SaaS) solutions for local and regional businesses and agencies to optimize their digital marketing services campaigns. The transaction builds upon Gannett existing data-driven digital marketing services, ReachLocal and SweetIQ.

WordStream helps thousands of businesses to harness the power of Google, Facebook and Bing by leveraging its discovery and recommendation technologies, intelligent campaign optimization, and online training programs in its cloud-based SaaS solutions. These Do-It-Yourself (DIY) solutions provide businesses and agencies the ability to manage and optimize performance and results on paid search and social advertising campaigns.

WordStream is a proven innovator and delivers a world-class customer experience. Through WordStream, ReachLocal and SweetIQ, Gannett will now be able to provide the full spectrum of digital marketing services from DIY to managed service to any local or regional business or agency.

The market for digital marketing services in the U.S. is over $90 billion and consists of both large and small clients. The addition of WordStream best-in-class DIY SaaS solutions significantly enhances Gannett capabilities and expands addressable market.

Oracle buys Vocado

Oracle has acquired Vocado, a California based firm that offers student-centric, cloud based financial aid solution for higher education institutions. Post-acquisition, Vocado will be integrated with Oracle Student cloud platform.

Vocado works with thousands of financial aid sources to optimize funding for any type of higher education learning model. The solution helps students identify eligibility and obtain financing so they can achieve their academic goals. Vocado integrates its financial aid solution with both cloud and on-premise Student Information Systems (SIS).

Oracle Student Cloud is the software major’s next-generation, cloud-based SIS designed for all academic models across every stage of the modern student lifecycle. Vocado adds the most advanced financial aid solution with a highly-automated and scalable platform. Together, their solution offers institutions the most complete SaaS solution suite in higher education, the company said in the statement.

This is Oracle’s second acquisition in the month of April. Just a week back the firm announced the acquisition of Grapeshot, an intelligent software solution for the marketers that help them decide their ad inventories. Grapeshot’s Contextual Intelligence Platform enables the rapid creation of highly-customized segments that allow marketers and their agencies to confidently avoid unsafe content that will damage brand equity, and close the loop via Moat Measurement. The platform also helps marketers extend global audience reach by targeting the most relevant context, including late-breaking news and trending themes, to complement Oracle Data Cloud’s custom audience segments.

CarDekho buys Volob Technologies

Jaipur based Girnar Software Pvt. Ltd which owns and operates online portals CarDekho.com, Gaadi.com and Zigwheels.com has acquired Volob Technologies, a virtually reality startup in all cash deal. The deal size was undisclosed.

This is the third acquisition that the company has made this year. In April, it bought SaaS Startup Connecto and roadside assistance start-up Help on Wheels Pvt. Ltd in a cash and stock deal. Volob was founded in 2010 and provides 3D visualization solutions to various industries, primarily automotive, and this acquisition will strengthen 3D visualization capabilities of CarDekho by use of virtual and augmented reality.

CarDekho.com acquisition of Volob is aimed at amplifying the visual experience of car buyers in both real and virtual settings. GirnarSoft has enriched its value proposition for online buyers, dealers and OEMs. CarDekho, which is currently valued at $380 Million, raised funds from Google Capital and Hillhouse in March. The company that started out as a portal for used cars branched out to provide new car services after it acquired Gaadi.com in 2014.

Revenue generation for the company is greatly dependent on advertisement revenues from the new car segment. The strategy to move to the new car segment was adopted by rival CarTrade.com that acquired CarWale.com in 2015 and also raised Rs950 crore in a round led by Singapore based investment firm Temasek and March Capital this year. As part of its expansion plans in India, CarDekho is looking to add value added services. It launched insurance, accessories and tyres last year, in addition to roadside assistance services.

8K Miles acquires NexAge

Public listed cloud solutions provider 8K Miles Software Services Ltd, through its US arm 8K Miles Software Services Inc. has acquired NexAge Technologies USA Inc. for $3 Million in a cash and stock deal. The transaction also includes the existing debt of NexAge.

NexAge is one of the regulatory compliance and technology solutions companies in the US for the life sciences and pharmaceuticals industry. The agreement signed by the companies includes acquisition of intellectual property, technical solutions, client contracts and employees. Through this acquisition, 8K Miles will get access to the network of enterprise customers and strategic partners acquired by NexAge during the last decade.

8K Miles will boost their world class CloudExRx solution that has been designed to address qualification and validation compliance for applications running on the cloud securely with a purpose of empowering pharmaceutical and life sciences enterprises to use cloud services across value and supply chains. 8K Miles is an public listed firm in India with an operation base in Chennai.

8k Miles provides SMAC (social, mobile, analytics, and cloud) solutions for connectivity between consumers, SMBs, enterprises, and government agencies. Its flagship solutions ExIAM provides capabilities for user management, user provisioning and access requests for end users. Recently, the company acquired Cintel Systems Inc. a US based mobile application development and Services Company. In March, it acquired SaaS startup and in November 2014, it had acquired SERJ Solutions.