LONDON, UK: Informa Plc, a UK-based information services company, has announced a deal to merge its digital businesses with TechTarget, a US-based provider of data-driven B2B products for the technology sector.

The deal will create a new entity called New TechTarget, which will be listed on the Nasdaq stock exchange and have a majority ownership by Informa.

The deal aims to create a leading platform in B2B data and market access, an area that offers significant growth and value opportunities. New TechTarget will combine the portfolios of both companies, which include products and brands such as Priority Engine, BrightTALK, Industry Dive, Omdia, Canalys, NetLine, and Information Week. The combined entity is expected to generate revenues of c.$500m and adjusted EBITDA of c.$120m in 2024.

Stephen A. Carter, Group Chief Executive, Informa, said: “Today we significantly strengthen Informa’s position in the growing B2B Digital Services market, creating a platform to serve B2B customers at scale digitally, as we already do in Live & On-Demand B2B Events.”

He added: “Over the last three years, Informa has built a proprietary first party data platform, IIRIS, and expanded our position in the B2B Digital Services market. Now, through a majority shareholding in US-listed TechTarget, we are positioning this business firmly where the customers and the value are.”

Informa will contribute its digital businesses and c.$350m cash in exchange for a 57% stake in New TechTarget, while TechTarget’s current shareholders will receive a c.$350m cash distribution and a 43% stake in the new entity. The deal will also generate annualised net synergies of c.$45m within three years, from cost savings and revenue enhancements.

New TechTarget will be fully consolidated by Informa, enhancing its group revenues and operating profit in 2024. The deal is expected to be neutral to earnings in 2025 and accretive thereafter, and to deliver a return on invested capital above Informa’s long-term cost of capital within three years.

Informa said the deal will give it scale in the US, the leading market for data-driven B2B products, and a strong market brand in New TechTarget. It will also benefit from the long-term growth dynamics of the technology sector and the increasing demand for products that deliver differentiated research, demand generation and buyer intent.

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