Avast to buy antivirus rival AVG for $1.3 billion

MADRID: Avast Software a greed to buy AVG Technologies NV for $1.3 billion in cash to add software to protect mobile phones from malware as it aims to tap into the growing number of physical devices connected to the internet.

Avast, which is backed by private-equity firm CVC Capital Partners, will begin a tender offer for Amsterdam-based AVG at $25 a share in cash, the companies said in a statement on Thursday.

That’s 33 per cent above AVG’s closing price on Wednesday on the New York Stock Exchange. The deal will give Prague based Avast more opportunities in internet security-related business, providing it with more scale and an increased geographical reach in both its core business and newer areas such as Internet of Things, according to the statement.

The Internet of Things is the name used to refer to the network connecting physical devices, ranging from fridges to cars and clothes, to the internet, a growing area of focus for companies.

The deal between the two companies, both of which were founded in the Czech Republic more than 20 years ago, will provide Avast with 400 million so-called endpoints, 160 million of which are mobile. Avast says it protects 230 million people and businesses with its applications.