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AOL expand 'Platform-A' operations by buying Bebo

AOL has revealed plans today (March 13th) to acquire teen social networking site Bebo for $850 million (£418 million) in cash.

The internet service provider has described the move as "the perfect compliment to AOL's personal communications network", putting the company in a leading position in the fast expanding world of social media.

Randy Falco, chairman and chief executive of AOL, said: "What drew us to Bebo was its substantial and fast-growing worldwide user-base, its vision of a truly social web, and the monetisation opportunities that leverage Platform-A across our combined global audience.

"This positions us to offer advertisers even greater reach and marketers significant insights into the desires and needs of consumers."

AOL launched 'Platform-A' in September last year, which the company described as a "new entity", offering advertisers access to "the most sophisticated targeting and measurement tools available in the marketplace" across a network of third-party sites and AOL-owned and operated sites.

According to analyst eMarketer, an estimated $4.1 billion (£2.01 billion) will be spent worldwide on social network advertising by 2011. ADNFCR-1536-ID-18508707-ADNFCR