Berkery Noyes Releases 1st Half 2009 Online Merger & Acquisition Trends - E-Commerce...

Berkery Noyes Releases 1st Half 2009 Online Merger & Acquisition Trends -
E-Commerce and Software as a Service Show Resilience

NEW YORK, July 6 /PRNewswire/ -- As expected, deal activity in the Online
Industry as a whole has shown severe negative growth. Total transaction value
in the 1st Half of 2009 decreased by 49% over the 1st Half of 2008, from
$15.03 billion to $7.68 billion. However, in stark contrast to the overall
downtrend, the number of transactions for the E-Commerce and Software as a
Service (SaaS) segments has remained flat while the aggregate value of
E-Commerce transactions specifically has increased by 17% from $2.81 billion
in the 1st Half of 2008 to $3.29 billion in the 1st Half of 2009, indicating
that these two segments remain vital to the online marketplace. In
comparison, the number of transactions in the E-Content and E-Marketing &
Search segments both dropped approximately 22%.

While the 1st Half ratio of financially sponsored transactions to the total
volume of deals in the Online Industry has remained fairly consistent over the
last two and a half years - ranging from 10% to 14% - in terms of value the
ratio has shrunk dramatically from 25% in the 1st Half of 2007 to only 5% in
the 1st Half of 2009. Taking that into account, it can be concluded that the
steep decline in aggregate value of transactions represents a definitive
transition from large, heavily leveraged transactions to smaller, cash-based
deals.

To read the free four page report Click Here
(http://berkerynoyes.com/visit/BNC1stHalf09Online.aspx)

Berkery Noyes defines the "Online Industry" as internet centric; software,
content and services as opposed to offline equivalents.

Berkery Noyes provides skilled transaction management to publicly traded and
privately held businesses and private equity groups in both sell-side and
buy-side mergers and acquisitions. We have managed transactions ranging from
several million to more than four billion dollars in value, with an emphasis
on mid market transactions of $10 million to $500 million in enterprise value.

Our clients include private companies seeking a buyer, most of the major
international information companies, and private equity firms who use the
firm's expertise in locating, analyzing and negotiating with acquisition
candidates and in managing divestitures. The firm operates with a staff of
forty professionals serving the information and publishing industry.

For more information, visit www.berkerynoyes.com.

SOURCE Berkery Noyes

John Shea or James Berkery, +1-212-668-2022