3/06/2012

Another strategic acquisition for Singtel

Monday, Mar 05, 2012
AFP

SINGAPORE - Singapore Telecom said Monday that it will buy US mobile advertising start-up Amobee for US$321 million (S$401 million) to expand group revenues from ads and marketing across Asia.

SingTel, Southeast Asia's biggest telecom firm by revenue, said its 100 per cent buyout would boost mobile ad sales in India, Thailand, the Philippines, Indonesia, Bangladesh and Pakistan, where it has large affiliates.

"A vast majority of our 400 million (clients) are in emerging markets," said Allen Lew, chief executive of the SingTel Group's newly formed "digital life" unit announced Monday as part of a top-level reorganisation.

Citing data from technology research firm Gartner, Lew said the global mobile ad market is likely to exceed US$20 billion by 2015 from about US$7.0 billion this year, with 35 per cent of it generated in Asia-Pacific.

Amobee, founded in 2005 and based in Redwood City, California, has offices in Europe, Asia and Latin America....

Despite Amobee having unaudited net assets worth only US$600,000 as of November, Lew told a news conference SingTel was not overpaying for the firm with the all-cash acquisition.

"The way we value this company is not based on the net tangible assets. We value this company based on what we think is eventually going to be worth." ....

This must be another great strategic acquisition for Singtel to grow its business. It must be value for money.

6 comments:

  1. Aiyah, with infinite deep pockets funded by the CPF Ponzi Tax, there is never such a thing as "paying too much" -- a term which only applies if your resources are limited.

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  2. There is such a thing as "paying too much" for an abused asshole especially one who bends frequently.

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  3. Worrying about Singapore and the survival of its' people is the duty of a loyal citizen.
    To worry about the viability and collapse of a commercial entity anywhere cannot be part of the patriotism of a citizen. The collapse of one could be the beginning of a new one. Anyway, in the scheme of thing, some collapses were intended for liked those we see in movies and dramas.

    Please do not worry too much, your phone service will always be catered to. It is a damn lucrative industry.

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  4. When buying things, don't worry about price. In normal circumstances, the more expensive it is, the more value it is. It is called value for money. The reverse is to buy rotten apples and think it they are cheap. You can lose in billions.

    This one must be a good bye. Oops, sorry typo error. Good buy.

    And don't worry about Singtel. It is not a stats board that is paid for by tax payers' money. It is a privatised company. No connection with Singaporeans.

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  5. Paying too much depends on what we are talking about.

    Every time we complain about this problem they have a good answer, just like the ministers' salaries. Citizens can whine and shout their sky high salaries, but they do not hear. Until one fine day when their pockets are bulging with excesses that they start to do a wayang by calling in Gerard Ee or whoever to do a review of why they should not have been paid so much in the first place.

    So, don't worry too much about excesses. They will do something about it a decade or two down the road.

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  6. This is a masterstroke of a genius valuation. Do not be surprised that the person making the decision to buy at this price turns out to be the richest person in the world one day.

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