Forbes Column 2009: The SaaS Roll-Up Begins

Zero-In this week looks at the SaaS roll-up prospects and speculates. Read: The SaaS Roll-Up Begins.

Intuit’s SaaS Roll-Up Begins With PayCycle

I have been calling for Intuit to start rolling up a SaaS portfolio for a while. [Read: ADP and Intuit Should Acquire Some SaaS, Intuit Needs To Acquire Into SaaS and SaaS Acquisitions Recommended For ADP and Intuit]. Well, Intuit just acquired PayCycle for $170 million, which was right at the top of my recommendation

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Deal Radar 2008: Biz360

Biz360 transforms available information to help businesses make informed decisions in order to understand and reach their target audiences better. They provide companies with this market research by using technology, analytics and natural language processing (NLP) to sift through large amounts of electronic and traditional media and present the information in flexible, easy-to-use formats.

Vertical Ad Networks: Evolution

Another big funding round in the vertical ad network world: FM raises between $40 and $50M from Oak Investment Partners. Valuation: $200 Million; 2007 Revenue: $25 Million; 2008 Revenue Forecast: $60 Million. Not bad!

Deal Radar 2008: TechCrunch

We all know TechCrunch, a popular blog, a web 2.0 phenomenon, that reviews and profiles Internet companies and products. Founded on June 11 2005 by Michael Arrington, it focuses on how various companies are impacting the web. In this post, we explore the details of Arrington’s ambition.

Deal Radar 2008: GigaOM

Blogs have changed the face of the web dramatically over the last few years. GigaOm is a network of blogs published by GigaOmniMedia, Inc. You could read my interview with founder Om Malik here to get a flavor of how he pioneered blogging in the early years of the millennium.

Deal Radar 2008: Groople, Interesting Use of Context

Groople is an online group travel site, which helps with searching, planning and booking group travel. (Read my Interview with Groople CEO Mike Stacy) Groople is different from Expedia and Kayak in that it serves only group travelers, no individuals, and is thus a great focus on a specific “Context“.

Deal Radar 2008: Travel Ad Network Executing Flawlessly

Travel Ad Network (TAN) is the leading vertical ad network focused exclusively on travel. It reaches users across 50 websites including Lonely Planet, Kayak, RandMcNally, Skybus Airlines, Groople, TravelHero, BootsNAll, AreaGuides, HotelsByCity, EuropeForVisitors, AirGorilla, and many others. Top advertisers with TAN include American Express, Vacations to Go, Best Western, Netherlands Tourism, Tourism Australia, etc.