This acquisition has been covered in all the usual places. I’d check out the official press release on Monsoon. After that, listen to AuctionBytes’ podcast with Kanth Gopalpur.
As anyone involved in ecommerce knows, there are many very valuable online marketing channels. Most merchants start out with SEO. Then they move to PPC, which is dominated by Google AdWords. After that are a hodgepodge of opportunities including email, affiliate programs, marketplaces, and shopping engines. Because of the growing importance of the Google Merchant Center data feed (it ties in with AdWords, Google Affiliate Network, Local/Mobile, Google Commerce Search, and of course, Google Shopping), my bet is that shopping engines will move up the food chain in the coming years. At the same time, because of Amazon’s ecommerce dominance as well as the economics of the 3rd party seller program, Amazon is moving up the food chain too.
So why am I talking about this?
Well, the Monsoon deal is a sign of things to come in 2010. There will be more acquisitions in the online marketing services space as the economy improves. The data feed providers are looking to expand to other marketing channels (most are already doing so) and search agencies large and small need additional services beyond SEO and PPC. ChannelAdvisor and TrueAction (a GSI Commerce Company) have been some of the most acquisitive companies in the online marketing services space, but expect to hear from other companies soon. If marketing services company XYZ is already offering services A, B, and C to its merchants, then it makes a lot of sense for them to add/up-sell services D, E, and F, if the company can leverage the same core system and take advantage of the data that its merchants are already submitting.
Posted by Brian Smith 
