Market Leader Inc., a provider of marketing and "software as a service" products to real estate professionals, has acquired lead-generation network RealEstate.com, the companyannounced today.
Market Leader paid $8.25 million in cash for the acquisition, which includes "patents, trademarks and approximately 400 domain names, including Realestate.com; software related to consumer Web services; information, contracts and content necessary to operate the Realestate.com website; and, a network of over 250 real estate broker customers," according to a regulatory filing dated Sept. 15.
Earlier this year, Market Leader also acquired mobile lead-generation platform developer kwkly and real estate marketing company SharperAgent. In August, the company launched Market Insider, a tool that offers customized reports of housing market statistics and demographic trends in a local area.
In the second quarter, Market Leader trimmed its losses to $2.8 million as revenue grew 43 percent from the same period a year ago, to $8.3 million. Much of the revenue boost came from providing the lead management, contact management and marketing design components of Keller Williams' eEdge platform for agents.
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Q. I heard Market Leader acquired www.realestate.com. Why?
A. This was a very smart acquisition for us. RealEstate.com is one of the most recognized addresses in the online real estate category, with consistent organic traffic and significant potential for further growth. It will help us bring even more engaged home buyers and sellers to our rapidly growing customer base.
Q. How much did you pay?
A. $8.25M. Market Leader will get a great return on that investment just in additional buyer and seller leads alone. We are taking advantage of the real estate downturn and low prices.
Q. What are your future plans for www.realestate.com?
A. We will enhance and expand realestate.com into a premier nationwide destination for consumers, leveraging Market Leader’s national network of MLS partnerships as well as our website and SEO expertise. Unlike many other sites, our focus will be on helping our real estate professional customers meet engaged buyers and sellers.
Q. Will this change any current offerings to customers? Will this change my current advertising contract with Market Leader?
A. No. All existing offerings will remain the same. However, you can expect to see more advertising leads available, and over time other new opportunities to engage with buyers and sellers on realestate.com.
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