Commerce One Adds Auctions With CommerceBid.com

E-commerce software and solutions company Commerce One (Nasdaq: CMRC) announced today that it has agreed to acquire privately held CommerceBid.com, which develops business-to-business auction and reverse auction solutions.

Commerce One will issue approximately 785,000 shares of unregistered common stock and approximately $4.5 million (US$) in cash to CommerceBid.com’s stockholders.

The transaction is expected to close in a few business days, the companies said.

Shares of Commerce One were up 1-13/16 to 251-13/16 in early trading today. At that level, the deal would be worth about $202 million.

Commerce One will use CommerceBid.com’s technology to enable buyers and sellers to participate in standard online auctions and reverse auctions through the Commerce One MarketSite e-commerce portal, as well as other sites that are part of Commerce One’s online network.

Reverse auctions allow buyers to receive quotes from a variety of sellers who are attempting to win their business. Request-for-proposal and request-for-quote processes, which are typically conducted by purchasing organizations, can be simplified with reverse auctions.

Services Will Be Used For GM, BT sites

In addition to the Commerce One MarketSite, CommerceBid.com’s technology will be used on GM TradeXchange, the recently announced joint venture between Commerce One and General Motors, as well as a joint venture between Commerce One and British Telecommunications.

“With this technology, market makers such as BT or General Motors will be able to bring together large numbers of buyers and sellers and improve the flow of goods and services throughout various regional or industry-specific trading communities,” said Liron Petrushka, chairman and CEO of CommerceBid.com.

Burgeoning Market

According to Forrester Research, business-to-business auction sales will grow from $8.7 billion in 1999 to $52 billion in 2002. In addition to CommerceBid.com, sites like BizBuyer.com, which is backed by CMGI and also offers reverse auctions, are vying for a piece of the big pie.

“Auction services will soon become a core requirement for global trade, and it is therefore critical that we offer trading communities the very best auction technology and expertise as a core competence of Commerce One,” said Mark Hoffman, president and CEO of Commerce One.

Commerce One Stock Has Scorched

Commerce One has been among Wall Street’s top performers in recent months. The stock is up more than 1,000 percent from its July initial public offering price of $21.

Shares of Commerce One got a tremendous boost on Wednesday after its deal with General Motors was announced, climbing46-15/16 to 254.