Fast Acquires Platefood To Compete In Online Advertising

Fast Search & Transfer announced Tuesday that it's acquiring search monetization and advertising provider Platefood Limited.

Fast, based in Norway with offices in Massachusetts, said it plans to consolidate Platefood's business into its current operations.

"Acquiring Platefood Limited gives Fast another solution in our portfolio to help customers build profitable businesses able to compete with content aggregators like Google, Yahoo, and AOL," says Perry Solomon, Fast's VP of strategic market development. "Fast has seen a dramatic increase in demand from media and entertainment companies around the globe."

Prior to the acquisition, Fast had a 19% equity stake in Platefood, and it paid slightly more than $10 million in cash for the remaining shares in the firm. Fast indicated it will retain all of Platefood's employees, most of whom are based in London.

The Fast search engine is used by more than 3,600 customers and partners, typically to leverage their IT infrastructures.

"The Platefood acquisition is a step forward in our ongoing growth strategy," said Joseph Lacson, Fast's chief financial officer, in a statement. "We expect that through 2010, search-based monetization and advertising solutions will be one of our fastest growing market segments."