Openwave buys Magic4

UK mobile data outfit gets the message

By John Oates • Get more from this author

Posted in Financial News, 11th May 2004 10:35 GMT

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Mobile data company Openwave has acquired UK messaging specialist Magic4 for $82.6m. The company will buy all outstanding shares in the private business and integrate its product into its client software.

The price will be paid in a mixture of shares and cash, the exact mix to be decided by Openwave before the deal closes. If regulators approve, the deal should go through in July and Openwave expects Magic4 to contribute between $9m and $11m in revenue in the second half of 2004.

Don Listwin, president and CEO at Openwave, said: "With Magic4, Openwave will become the number one open standards based software provider for data phone manufacturers. Browsing and messaging are the core engines that power advanced mobile data services today." Simon Wilkinson, CEO at Magic4, said the deal was good news for Magic4 customers.

Openwave software has shipped on 500m phones and claims 51 per cent of the global mobile browser market. ®