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Expansion is the Bridge to New Markets
With a 2010 CODiE award in the bag and a name change this year from Bridgeline Software to Bridgeline Digital to highlight its business-driven efforts, the company is keeping on the move with a number of recent acquisitions.
The most recent purchase is that of eMagination, a firm working in the Web application development, web content management, ecommerce, SharePoint, usability expertise and SEO market. The move sees Bridgeline expand its presence in the Baltimore area and get a foothold in the lucrative government sector via eMagination IG, a wholly-owned subsidiary that becomes a part of Bridgeline in the deal.
The deal comes in at US$ 4.3 million and sees Dan Roche, a former Ernst and Young Entrepreneur of the Year and eMagination's CEO move to Bridgeline as executive vice president. As part of the deal eMagination will offer Bridgeline's iApps to its customers.
Hello, Philadelphia
This deal follows on from one back in May where Bridgeline picked up TMX Interactive in a US$ 1.7 million arrangement. TMX has a profile in the Philadelphia area and strengthens Bridgeline's exposure in that town, with both companies having a similar fit and skill set.
From these moves it is clear that Bridgeline is acquiring smaller companies with good local businesses as a platform to further expand iApps market presence and to gain additional knowledge and skills.
About iApps
iApps is Bridgeline's headline product, offering a .NET-powered business-focused framework for web development, content management, commerce and marketing. The framework gets regular updates to offer the latest tools, such as social features, all of which helped it on its way to the Best CMS at the CODiEs.
