Finally Suitors Emerge For CNET

It hasn’t been much of a secret that CNET Networks is a good acquisition target and has been mulling around shopping itself. NYPost has some specific details today: it has had sale discussions with Viacom and Barry Diller’s InterActiveCorp, among others — and investment banks are vying for the deal. AOL and Yahoo are also rumored to be considering making a bid, according to the story.

I would doubt Yahoo would be buying it..it has a good thing going with all the recent hires to start its own tech channel, and wouldn’t make sense to spend so much money on the acquisition.

MarketWatch: Analysts at CIBC World Markets said it expects a “takeout” of the Internet company “is inevitable at some point in our view” and that the stock could attain $14 a share in a takeout.”
Staci adds: In real estate, it’s location, location, location. Online, it’s traffic, traffic, traffic and CNET has plenty. In the 1Q05 earning release, CNET reported an average of 105.9 million uniques monthly users, up 38 percent from 1Q04, and average daily page views of 94.7 million, up 114 percent from 1Q04. Whoever gets it — if it’s for sale — acquires major traffic flow in addition to roughly 16 brands that bring in users ranging from hard-core geeks and CTOs to comparison-shopping consumers (MySimon.com) and TV fans (TV.com). Traffic hunters of late include Ask and Diller, Viacom, the New York Times Company (don’t see it doing this and About)…
That’s not to say CNET has got remain intact; thinking out loud here, a buyer might see a number of pieces and technologies that fit in better with other companies and could fund part of a purchase that way.

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