ITV snaps up Friends Reunited for £120m

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ITV has bought community website Friends Reunited for an initial £120m, as the broadcaster expands beyond its commercial TV business.
Founded by Julie and Steve Pankhurst in 2000, Friends Reunited lets long lost friends get back in contact with one another. In recent years, the company has expanded into other services including genealogy and dating.

ITV said the Friends Reunited brand will be maintained but the management teams of the site, ITV.com and ITV Local are to be integrated. This will see Friends Reunited integrated with ITV’s own classifieds and recruitment services.

ITV said it aims to generate half of its revenues from outside its ITV1 channel by 2012, including contribution from mobile phones, online and other new media.

Commenting on the buy, Jeff Henry, director of ITV Consumer said: "The acquisition of Friends Reunited is also a key step in the delivery of our strategy to drive new revenue streams for the company."

ITV said it would pay an extra sum of up to £55m in 2009, depending on Friends Reunited's performance