Rumor: Tencent Acquires Comsenz
Time Weekly, 6/17/10
An internet industry insider has revealed that Chinese internet company Tencent (0700.HK) is preparing to acquire Comsenz, a Chinese online community solutions provider. The source said that the two companies have already reached an agreement under which Tencent will acquire Comsenz in a cash-and-stock deal. The source estimated the value of the deal in the tens of millions of USD, but declined to give a more specific figure.
Rumors that Tencent would invest in Comsenz began more than half a month ago. The earlier rumors said that Tencent had already made a strategic investment of around USD 10 mln to buy all of Google's shares in Comsenz, and that Tencent might make further investments in the future.
Comsenz VP Li Mingshun did not respond to the rumor. A Tencent PR employee surnamed Liu similarly refused to respond, saying that the matter was "outside the jurisdiction of the PR department," and recommending that the reporter contact Tencent's Investor Relations division.
Comsenz is a Beijing-based supplier of social platforms and services. Its most widely used product is Discuz.
Editor's Note: A Techweb report quotes Comsenz VP Li Mingshun denying the rumor. For more background on this topic, please see "Rumor: Tencent Invests in Comsenz" MD 5/26/10 issue.
Keywords: Li Mingshun Internet Comsenz online community Tencent 0700.HK M&A