Content Industry Dealmaking Dried Up in Q4
The fourth quarter brought a marked decline in transaction activity for the marketing, advertising and digital media industries, according to the latest deal report from Petsky Prunier. During the quarter there were a total of 140 transactions worth a total of $4.7 billion.
While deal volume had been declining throughout the year, the fourth quarter numbers represented a drop of 42% from the same period in 2007 and was down 27% from the third quarter. Two deals accounted for roughly half the total - China-based Sina's purchase of Focus Media's Out-of-home media assets for $1.3 billion and eBay's $945 million acquisition of Bill Me Later. In all, strategic buyers accounted for $3.4 billion (72%) of the total, while venture investors closed 78 deals for a total of $1.1 billion. Almost out of the picture were private equity firms, completing only five deals in the sector during the quarter, due to challenges in the credit market.
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