Did you know Microsoft owns one of the largest online interactive ad agencies in the world? Razorfish has had some big clients, including AT&T, Kraft, and Best Buy. It was acquired by Microsoft in 2007 as part of a larger deal for its parent company, aQuantive. And now, its history of being acquired and sold will get another chapter, as Microsoft has agreed to sell Razorfish for between $500 and $600 million.
According to the Wall Street Journal, the deal will see Razorfish switch hands from Microsoft Corp. to Publicis Groupe SA, a French advertising firm. Razorfish has been on the selling blocks for weeks, but Microsoft has finally gotten the big deal it was looking for.
The bidding was between several advertising conglomorates. It's even rumored that Japan's biggest ad agency, Dentsu, made a bid higher than the Publicis bid - which leaves room for speculation as to why Microsoft would turn down a higher offer from a very reputable agency.
Why the Deal Makes Sense
Still, this deal unloads a company that wasn't part of Microsoft's core competencies. It acquired aQuantive as a countermeasure to Google's acquisition of DoubleClick, but while aQuantive's ad technology has served Microsoft, owning the Razorfish ad agency didn't really make sense.