Merger and Acqusition Activity Hits $67.5 Billion In 2013

Media, information, marketing and related technology sectors merged and acquired to the tune of $67.5 billion -- about 1,057 deals -- during the first three quarters in 2013, according to The Jordan Edmiston Group (JEGI).

Although slightly down in number of deals, the marketing and technology sector remained the most active in the number of deals and the deal value, with 348 transactions announced at a total value of $34.2 billion. Aside from the $21.9 billion Publicis/Omnicom merger that drove up total deal values, Salesforce.com acquired ExactTarget for $2.25 billion; Baidu acquired 91 Wireless Websoft in China for $1.8 billion; Google acquired Waze for $1.3 billion; and Yahoo acquired Tumblr for $1.1 billion, reports JEGI. "We expect the M&A market to continue to be dominated by small strategic transactions, due to the uncertain environment in the US caused by political gridlock, a sluggish economy and the implementation of Obamacare and numerous other government regulations," JEGI reports.