At Sun Valley, Media Moguls Assess Mobile Acquisition Targets

Sun Valley

As mobile has passed the point of “next big thing,” one of the major questions about the space during Allen &Co.’s Sun Valley tech conference was where are the acquisitions going to come from. It’s natural to expect TV and other traditional media companies to start eying mobile start-ups more intently as they scramble to fill that gap in their expertise, Bob Davis, a partner at Highland Capital Partners, told Reuters.

That’s not to say that Davis foresees a mad dash for mobile purchases anytime soon, as the credit markets and other recessionary pressures continue to bear down on company’s ability to finance major M&A activity. On the other hand, those same issues are also likely to keep prices down, which should inspire some bargain-hunters. Earlier this month, the Jordan, Edmiston Group said that M&A in the mobile space was up 46 percent. Looking ahead, JEGI sees mobile social nets and mobile content providers as key areas of investment.

A bigger role for telecoms: The rise of the mobile internet will also spur carriers to buy up services. Case in point: AT&T’s 2008 purchase of Wi-Fi operator Wayport is seen as a way for manage the flow of content and expand their relationships with other companies. For example the Wayport deal expanded the carrier’s Wi-Fi network to nearly 20,000 hotspots in the U.S. by adding locations at some Marriott Vacation Club and Four Seasons hotels as well as McDonald

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