JULY 8, 2016 – Avast, Czech antivirus software maker is acquiring one of its biggest rivals, AVG Technologies for $1.3 billion in cash, part of a wave of merger in computer security. The deal will give Avast access to hundreds of millions of devices.
In a statement on Avast blog, Avast CEO Vincent Steckler said the deal will give Avast access to over 400 million devices that currently use Avast or AVG’s software. This includes 250 million PC and Mac users, and 160 million mobile users. The actual acquirement process will take a few months, says Steckler, but you can expect positive changes for the company in the near future, especially when it comes to their threat detection efficiency.
Avast will be able to gather more threat data to improve user protection on PC, Mac, mobile, and even start branching out into Internet of things hardware. And Avast will have access to AVG’s Zen mobile technology that’s used to protect an entire family’s devices from just one primary device.
The combo also means they’ll be able to improve technical support to business users. You can learn more at the link below.
Industry players expect more deals, as larger players with established revenue streams look to build out their product lines to take on a new generation of cyberthreats.
“What you see happening here is you see a number of old-guard companies trying to find ways to consolidate and buy new technologies and get access to growth in new markets,” said Matt Miller, a partner with venture-capital firm Sequoia Capital.
Companies are spending more for computer security, following a rash of data breaches in recent years. Research firm Gartner Inc. expects world-wide security spending to increase almost 10% this year, to $91.6 billion.
Historically, though, large security companies have struggled to develop breakthrough products, said Jeremiah Grossman, chief of security strategy with Sentinel One Inc., a three-year-old security startup that competes with Avast and Symantec.
Symantec’s Blue Coat acquisition gave the antivirus company new cloud-computing capabilities, as did Cisco Systems Inc.’s 2015 acquisition of OpenDNS, valued at $635 million. Last month, the Financial Times reported that Intel Corp. is considering the sale of its Intel Security business, which produces McAfee antivirus software. Intel declined to comment on Thursday.
With the acquisition of Netherlands-based AVG, Avast gets more scale to compete with larger security companies such as Symantec.
