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As for M&A, eBay's (NASDAQ: EBAY) strategy has been mostly helter-skelter. In some cases, the deals were brilliant, such as for PayPal. But in other cases, the transactions have been wacky.
Well, it looks like eBay is cleaning up the M&A mess. And the first action-item: getting rid of StumbleUpon.
In the overall scheme of things, the transaction wasn't very material -- coming to $75 million (two years ago). But the site – which allows for the recommendation of sites -- did have lots of traffic and some brand in the marketplace. Under eBay's control, Stumbleupon increased registered users from 2.5 million to 7.5 million. What's more, the site plans to launch some new features, such as a search engine and a Twitter-friendly URL shortener.
However, it was unclear as to the synergy with the core eBay business.
If anything, Stumbleupon was a distraction. Interestingly enough, the founders of the company will buy it back (the price has not been disclosed).
Until now, it's been mostly speculation that eBay is going to refocus the company. But now it looks more like a reality. And, it gives some credence to rumors that Skype is the next property to be unloaded.
Tom Taulli is the author of various books, including The Complete M&A Handbook
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