Contact: Scott Denne
In its latest acquisitions, j2 Global is buying companies that support its original line of business: online fax services. Three out of the four deals it has announced this month, including FaxMate and Ozefax today, add product depth and geographic distribution to its fax business.
While this shows j2 hasn’t forgotten its roots (fax and related voice services account for roughly two-thirds of its $482m in trailing revenue), its latest streak has us wondering when it’s going to do more media deals. The company has been in the media business for about a year after acquiring Ziff Davis in late 2012 and it has seen it grow (organically and inorganically) to $32m in its most recent quarter. For comparison, Ziff Davis had only $44m in revenue the entire year before being acquired.
Despite that growth, j2 has only inked three media transactions out of a total of 10 since acquiring Ziff Davis. During its latest earnings call, the company said two of its most recent media purchases – IGN Entertainment and NetShelter Technology Media – are fully integrated and it now has available resources to add other media businesses that fit into its focus on tech, gaming and men’s media.
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