Last month, web hosting provider GoDaddy (NYSE: GDDY) announced its acquisition of Neustar’s Registry business. Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed, but now it has become clear that GoDaddy is paying $218 million for the business. GoDaddy expects the transaction to close in the coming months.
The Neustar Registry business features a “high-performance” backend registry technology platform and enhanced domain security systems that would enable people and brands to seamlessly connect and transact online “with speed, security and reliability.” By acquiring Neustar’s Registry business, GoDaddy would now control both the wholesale and retail side of many domain names. Neustar operates .us, .co, .in and .biz, for example, among other domain names, while supporting more than 215 TLDs and approximately 12 million domains.
The new service will be called GoDaddy Registry and will be led by Nicolai Bezsonoff, currently Senior Vice President and General Manager of Neustar’s Registry business. As part of the transaction, GoDaddy would strictly adhere to a governance model that maintains independence between the GoDaddy registry and registrar businesses.
Enhanced Scalability
“GoDaddy is committed to helping everyday entrepreneurs bring their ideas online with the best possible domain name choices,” said Andrew Low Ah Kee, Chief Operating Officer (COO), GoDaddy. “Neustar’s registry platform enables us to accelerate that commitment and provides enhanced scalability for future growth. For more than two decades, GoDaddy has used its consumer insight to drive innovation in the domain industry and we’ll continue to do so by creating more choice and value for consumers.”
Neustar is owned by a private equity consortium led by Golden Gate Capital. This consortium bought the business in 2017.
“We share a strong history of partnership and collaboration with GoDaddy that spans two decades,” said Nicolai Bezsonoff. “Additionally, we have the same values, a common culture of innovation, and a mutual vision for empowering individuals, businesses and brands to succeed online.”
