Pitney Bowes, best known for its postage meters that are found in hundreds of thousands of businesses worldwide, said Thursday it has entered into a $408 million merger agreement with MapInfo, which sells location-based information to companies.

Pitney Bowes plans to run MapInfo as a wholly owned subsidiary. MapInfo's product line, however, is expected to add to current offerings from Group 1 Software, which Pitney Bowes bought in 2004. Group 1, which also operates as a wholly owned subsidiary, provides information that companies can use to make marketing mailings more effective.

Pitney Bowes agreed to pay $20.25 per share of MapInfo stock, or $480 million. Subtract MapInfo's cash on hand, and the deal is worth $408 million. The transaction is expected to close in the second quarter.

MapInfo sells software and data related to geographic locations. A company uses the software to map its own data with MapInfo's and deliver the combined information through business-intelligence software, such as applications offered by MicroStrategy or Business Objects, or a customer information management system, such as Oracle's Siebel software. The information, however, can be delivered through any workflow engine, depending on the company's business. For example, a telecommunications company could use MapInfo data to help technicians in the field locate a weak transmitter.

MapInfo offers a variety of data packages for the telecommunications, retail, insurance, and banking industries. It also sells to government agencies and other organizations in the public sector.

The company will be part of Pitney Bowes' software group, and MapInfo's products could be integrated with Group 1 software, says Mike Hickey, chief operating officer for MapInfo. A firm roadmap won't be available until after the deal closes.

In general, there doesn't seem to be much overlap between the company's products, Hickey says. The exception would be Group 1's Business Geographics products, which also provide intelligence based on locations.

Nevertheless, MapInfo expects the merger to greatly expand its reach, given the opportunity to cross-sell to Pitney Bowes' 2 million customers. MapInfo, which had revenue of $165 million last year, has 940 employees and 7,000 customers. Pitney Bowes had annual revenue of $5.7 billion last year.