Google Buys Retail Tracker for $125m

Google has acquired retail sales tracking firm Channel Intelligence (CI) for $125m in cash, from holding company ICG Group. The transaction is expected to close this quarter.

CI tracks online retail sales across a number of categories ranging from computing to consumer packaged goods. Its data-driven services include 'where-to-buy' product search engines, and the company claims to track nearly 15% of all US transactions online, equivalent to around $2 billion in sales annually.

The firm was one of the original launch partners for Google Shopping, which helps retailers measure their marketing efforts and manage product details on multiple web sites. Google said in a statement that CI will help create a better shopping experience for users and enable merchants to increase sales across the web.

Doug Alexander (pictured), CEO of CI, added: 'Building upon the perseverance and strong foundation laid by founder Rob Wight, I am extremely proud of the work we accomplished at CI. With the talent and hard work of the entire CI team, we successfully navigated a very complex marketplace, ending a record year that culminated in this very exciting acquisition.'

Web sites: www.google.com , www.channelintelligence.com and www.icg.com .

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