As these things go, the money's not much. But Ticketmaster Online-CitySearch thinks it's a pretty big deal anyway.
Ticketmaster's $35.2 million all-stock acquisition of TicketWeb means that the online ticket seller gobbles up another independent broker, extending its reach into a market it clearly wants to own.
Ticketmaster, which operates Ticketmaster.com and CitySearch's network of local city guides, will issue more than 2 million shares to acquire TicketWeb, making the Berkeley, California company a wholly owned subsidiary.
In practical terms, Tuesday's acquisition gives Ticketmaster a bigger presence in local markets.
TicketWeb -- which has about 700 customers, including New York's Bowery Ballroom and the San Diego Zoo -- will maintain its separate brand, business model, and staff, Ticketmaster said.
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Riding high: After winning the battle to acquire Germany's Mannesmann AG last month, Vodafone AirTouch paved the way for that deal to go through by selling off Orange Plc to France Telecom for $37.61 billion.
The sale of Orange, Britain's third largest mobile phone group, was required in order to comply with regulations and clear the way for the acquisition of Mannesmann.
Chris Gent, Vodafone's CEO, said that the Orange deal, coupled with the sale of shares in other businesses, would more than offset the billions of pounds the company will have to pay to run broadband services in Britain, Germany, and Italy.
This means that Vodafone will be able to pursue third-generation, or 3G, mobile licenses without fresh funding from shareholders.
Nevertheless, Gent slammed the way Britain organized its 3G auction to maximize bids and hinted that he would consider moving his headquarters out of the country unless the government changed proposed tax rules.
For its part, France Telecom said that it intends to take the Orange brand global.
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Ivy-covered site: After picking up a minority stake in notHarvard.com, Barnes & Noble said Tuesday that the two companies will create Barnes & Noble University.
This online "university" will use the promise of a free online education as a sales and marketing tool, a noble endeavor if ever there was one. B&N customers will be able to take courses through the website beginning this summer.
Financial terms were not disclosed, but Barnes & Noble was one of several new investors in notHarvard.com, which raised $26 million in its second round of financing.
No word on whether the university plans on fielding a football team.
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Looking elsewhere: In the maelstrom of e-commerce, Intel and Microsoft have always stood out like a couple of boulders in a rushing river: You got your chips from one and your operating system and software from the other.
As a sign that things are beginning to change, Gateway -- the second leading U.S. seller of personal computers -- said Tuesday that it will use an operating system and a processor from Transmeta Corp. in the Internet-access appliances it is developing with America Online.
The devices, which will be portable and offer continuous Internet access, will feature Transmeta's Crusoe chips and a version of the Linux operating system, Gateway said.
Reuters contributed to this report.
