• by John Capone , June 3, 2010

Hearst, Thursday morning, announced it had come to terms with iCrossing on an agreement for the publisher to acquire the independent digital marketing agency and search specialist. Hearst had been pursuing iCrossing for some time. Reports surfaced in January that Hearst had offered $250 million for iCrossing. At that time, the offer reportedly prompted iCrossing to seek other suitors, feeling it was worth more. Terms of the current deal were not disclosed.

For the time being, the 11-year old Scottsdale, Az.-based iCrossing, which took honors as OMMA magazine's Search Agency of the Year last year, will stay intact and run as is. The acquisition does give Hearst global digital marketing capabilities, especially in paid search and search engine optimization, which it will no doubt also find useful for its editorial products.

Frank A. Bennack, vice chairman and CEO, Hearst Corporation, said in a statement: "Search and online marketing expertise will be an important asset for us as we continue to look for new ways to reach key audiences through digital marketing for our brands and our clients." He added, "We plan to effectively bolster iCrossing's strengths with future investments that add complementary capabilities and services, and expect this new line of business to grow very well for Hearst."

Matthew Petersen, senior vice president of Hearst Magazines, will head a new line of business, Hearst Marketing Services, which will include oversight of iCrossing. "iCrossing has proven itself to be one of the best at creating compelling, branded online experiences. We see tremendous opportunities across Hearst to leverage these skills in innovative and relevant ways," Petersen said.

Peterson came to Hearst in March from Meredith, where he had been senior vice president of Meredith Integrated Marketing. Meredith in the past year had acquired O'Grady Meyers, GENEX, New Media Strategies and Big Communications to create an integrated marketing division.