Radian6 to be Acquired by Salesforce.com

Cloud computing provider Salesforce.com announced it’s definitive agreement to acquire Radian6, the social media monitoring platform, for approximately $276 million in cash and $50 million in stock.

The transaction is expected to be completed in Salesforce.com’s fiscal second quarter ending July 31, 2011.

Founded in 2006, Radian6’s products include a monitoring platform designed to help companies track and analyze their social media efforts, with an engagement platform for companies to connect with individuals and communities online. Radian6 customers include AAA, Esurance, Dell, GE, Kodak, Molson Coors, Pepsico and UPS.

Radian6 and Salesforce.com will connect public social networks, such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, blogs and online communities, with Salesforce Chatter, a social network for the enterprise. According to the announcement, Chatter feeds will be filled with real-time insights from fans on Facebook pages, followers on Twitter and comments on blog posts.

“SFDC is moving ahead to put the tools needed by customers reaching out to social audiences. Radian6 provides an important part of the equation – Socialytics,” says Constellation Research CEO and analyst blogger R “Ray” Wang.

"Expect to see similar acquisitions by CRM vendors in the future,” says Forrester analyst Kate Leggett. “This acquisition of Radian6 solidifies Salesforce's customer service capabilities.”

“With Radian6, Salesforce.com is gaining the technology and market leader in social media monitoring,” said Marc Benioff, chairman and CEO, Salesforce.com was quoted in the announcement. “We see this as a huge opportunity. Not only will this acquisition accelerate our growth, it will extend the value of all of our offerings.” 

This story has been reprinted with permission from Information Management.

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