IAC's Ask.com to Buy Lexico
Search engine and
IAC/InterActiveCorp
(IACI)
-owned business Ask.com will acquire Lexico Publishing Group in a deal that is expected to grow the Ask network by nearly 150 million users.
Lexico owns Web sites Dictionary.com, Thesaurus.com and Reference.com. The acquisition will be an all-cash transaction, although terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Ask.com said the deal would rocket the company's network to the ninth spot among Web properties in the world -- ahead of
Apple
(AAPL) - Get Report
and Facebook -- in monthly worldwide unique users, according to
comScore
(SCOR) - Get Report
data.
"Lexico is a lean and fast-growing business with rapid top- and bottom-line growth, and is a natural addition for Ask.com," said Jim Safka, CEO of Ask.com, in a statement. "More than 30 percent of all searches conducted on Ask.com are in the reference category. This acquisition expands Ask.com's reach and aligns perfectly with our customers' needs."
IAC closed Wednesday at $23.73.