Informa Buys TechTarget, Merges Units for New Firm

UK-based b2b services group Informa Plc is combining part of its business with US-based b2b purchase intent specialist TechTarget to create a new company in which Informa will hold a majority stake. The British firm will also pay $350m in cash.

TechTarget operates 150 enterprise technology-specific web sites, attracting communities of tech buyers researching their companies' IT needs - and offers a broad range of custom advertising, branding, lead generation and sales enablement solutions. The firm currently has offices in Boston, London, Munich, New York, Paris, Singapore and Sydney.

Informa provides business intelligence, research and events, and launched its Tech division in 2019, originally bringing together around 600 staff (now more than 1,000) to help business professionals make better technology decisions and marketers reach senior tech buyers and influencers. Its digital businesses, which are being combined with TechTarget, include Industry Dive (specialist b2b content/brands), Omdia (specialist tech research), NetLine (demand generation and buyer intent), and other specialist tech digital media brands including Information Week, Light Reading, Heavy Reading and AI Business. The new firm will also have access to IIRIS, Informa Plc's proprietary b2b data platform, taking New TechTarget's total b2b audience to around 50 million.

The combined company will be known initially as New TechTarget and will be positioned as 'an end-to-end solution provider across the go-to-market: from strategy, messaging and content development to in-market activation via brand, demand generation, purchase intent data and sales enablement'. The deal aims to bring benefits of scale, diversify revenue streams and offer opportunities for expansion.

Informa's $350m in cash represents c.$11.79 per outstanding TechTarget share, payable on completion of the transaction to existing TechTarget shareholders, who will also retain a 43% equity stake in New TechTarget.

TechTarget expects to report revenue of approximately $230 million and Adjusted EBITDA of approximately $70 million for the calendar year 2023, while the Informa Tech assets being added are expected to generate 2024 revenues of c.$275m and adjusted EBITDA of c.$50m. The firms say New TechTarget is aiming for $1 billion in annual revenue within five years, via a combination of organic and inorganic growth.

Gary Nugent (pictured), current CEO of Informa Tech will relocate to Newton, MA, where New TechTarget will be headquartered, and will serve as its Chief Executive while Michael Cotoia, current CEO of TechTarget, will be Special Advisor to the CEO, focused primarily on ensuring a smooth combination post-closing.

TechTarget CEO Michael Cotoia comments: 'We believe that the importance of permission-based audiences and first-party data is growing exponentially, and this combination positions New TechTarget to capitalize on these impactful trends by increasing our first-party intent signals, archive of original content, traffic footprint and size of our permission-based audience. I look forward to working with Informa Tech CEO Gary Nugent to combine our talented teams, drive new growth opportunities and unlock the full potential of this combination'.

Stephen Carter, Informa PLC Group Chief Executive says: 'Today we significantly strengthen Informa's position in the growing b2b Digital Services market, creating a platform to serve b2b customers at scale digitally, as we already do in Live & On-Demand b2b Events. Over the last three years, Informa has built a proprietary first-party data platform, IIRIS, and expanded our position in the b2b Digital Services market. Now, through a majority shareholding in US-listed TechTarget, we are positioning this business firmly where the customers and the value are'.

The transaction has been approved unanimously by the two Boards of Directors of TechTarget and Informa PLC, and subject to approvals is expected to close in the second half of 2024. New TechTarget is expected to trade on the NASDAQ exchange under the ticker symbol TTGT.

Web sites: www.informa.com and www.techtarget.com .

All articles 2006-23 written and edited by Mel Crowther and/or Nick Thomas, 2024- by Nick Thomas, unless otherwise stated.