[December 18, 2014]

CommerceHub to Acquire Mercent to Deliver Enterprise-Scale Omni-Channel Commerce Solutions

Leading ecommerce provider CommerceHub today announced that it has signed an agreement to acquire Seattle-based Mercent, a retail technology company. The deal is expected to be finalized in January 2015, subject to customary closing conditions.

CommerceHub's virtual-inventory platform integrates North America's largest retailers with a vast network of over 8,500 drop-ship suppliers. In the prior 12 months, the company enabled more than $8 billion in annual gross merchandise value. Mercent's platform enables enterprise-scale retailers to optimize digital marketing campaigns to ensure success on the largest shopping channels. By combining capabilities, CommerceHub and Mercent will allow clients to orchestrate the entire omni-channel commerce experience from demand to doorstep.

"We evaluated all the providers in this space and consulted a number of large retailers regarding their current solutions. Mercent stood out as the only combination of enterprise-scale platform and services that are ready for the caliber of retailers we support," said CommerceHub CEO Frank Poore. "By combining CommerceHub and Mercent, we will have an offering that enables retailers to radically expand their product assortment, generate greater demand, and optimize customer delivery from any source of supply - including stores, warehouses, drop-shippers or third-party sellers."

The two organizations plan to combine teams and retain a presence on the East and West coasts. Eric Best, Mercent founder and CEO, will remain with the company, reporting to Poore as the company's chief marketing officer.

"We are excited to join forces with CommerceHub," said Best. "As one of the fastest-growing ecommerce infrastructure providers, the company is on track to solve the complexities of omni-channel operations and marketing to keep retailers growing. CommerceHb will enable us to achieve our vision. I look forward to working with Frank and the team to continue building a great company."

Once combined, the companies' end-to-end offering will enable leading global retailers to:

• Expand product assortments through a vast network of drop-ship suppliers and marketplace sellers
• More effectively promote products via the top marketing and digital advertising channels like Google (News - Alert) Shopping and Pinterest
• Deliver a true omni-channel experience, distributing goods to and from stores, warehouses, drop shippers or third-party sellers
• Launch marketplaces featuring third-party seller assortment with full monitoring and control of the entire delivery process

As of 2014, an estimated $10 billion of retail GMV (News - Alert) flows annually through the two companies' platforms. Collectively, CommerceHub and Mercent are integrated with more than 200 enterprise retailers, all major North American marketplaces, and over 8,500 brands and distributors, enabling massive promotional reach and product supply. Delivery excellence is achieved through partnerships with all major carriers and a network of geographically distributed 3PLs. Meanwhile, the two companies optimize approximately 50 million unique product SKUs for data compliance, channel syndication and sales performance.

About CommerceHub

For more than 15 years, CommerceHub has been providing cloud-based technologies and services that enable retailers to radically expand their product offering without inventory risk. CommerceHub makes it possible to integrate with any product source, and provides all of the tools necessary to identify new sources of products, rapidly build SKUs, and ensure the smooth the delivery of goods to customers. Providing an unparalleled platform and scalability, CommerceHub in 2013 helped top online retailers in the U.S. and Canada achieve $7 billion in retail sales through drop-ship fulfillment. These expanded assortment orders were successfully processed and fulfilled directly to consumers by more than 8,000 integrated suppliers, distributors, manufacturers and third-party sellers. CommerceHub is a subsidiary of Liberty Interactive Corporation attributed to the Liberty Ventures Group (Nasdaq: LVNTA, LVNTB). For more information, visit www.commercehub.com.

About Mercent

Through its award-winning Mercent Retail technology, Mercent helps large brand name retailers, including 1-800-Flowers, HSN and GUESS? profitably reach and convert online shoppers. Supported consumer shopping destinations include Amazon.com, Google, eBay (News - Alert), Bing, Pinterest, Rakuten and Newegg Marketplace; and paid search, product ads, comparison shopping engines (CSEs), affiliate networks, social shopping sites and display advertising campaigns. The ecommerce marketing company was founded by Amazon.com (News - Alert) veterans, is venture backed by Madrona Venture Group, The Hillman Company, and TVC Capital, and based in Seattle, WA. For more information, visit www.mercent.com.

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