It has emerged that iTouch has acquired a Finnish mobile entertainment firm for €30m, in the process opening up access to new markets in countries like Sweden, Finland, the Netherlands and Norway.
The deal will also afford iTouch with a springboard into the Russian SMS market, which is understood to be worth around €100m. iTouch is 50pc owned by Independent News & Media.
Under the terms of the deal, iTouch will initially pay €5m in cash and €7m in shares for Finland’s Jippii Mobile Entertainment. It is understood that the remaining consideration will depend on Jippii’s financial performance and will also be paid in shares.
Jippii is a subsidiary of Saunalahti Group, which has offices in six countries and agreements with mobile operators in 20 countries. The company last month established a pan-European gaming portal that boasts 2.8 mlilion users a month.
Last year, Jippii made a trading profit of €2m on revenues of €18m.
By John Kennedy
