LinkedIn Links Up with Bizo

LinkedIn has entered into an agreement to acquire Bizo, which will help the social network strengthen its B2B marketing platform for brands.

The acquisition is currently valued at approximately $175 million and is expected to close during the third quarter of 2014. Bizo is a B2B marketing platform that helps marketers target prospects and nurture them throughout every stage of the sales and marketing funnel. Plus, the platform's data management and targeting technology enables marketers to launch precise and measurable multi-channel marketing programs.

"We have been a LinkedIn partner for a while now and it became clear that our respective missions and cultures are really well aligned," said Russell Glass , Bizo's co-founder and CEO. "I couldn't be more thrilled that we are coming together to accelerate our ability to reach professional audiences, nurture prospects, and acquire customers in truly powerful ways."

In a LinkedIn blog post, the company notes that it plans to incorporate Bizo's Media Solutions and Multi-Channel Nurturing products into its portfolio. Moreover, once the acquisition is complete, many members of the Bizo team are expected to join LinkedIn.

"It's exciting for us to bring Bizo's expertise and technology into our ecosystem," said Deep Nishar , LinkedIn's SVP of product and user experience. "Our ability to integrate their B2B solutions with our content marketing products will enable us to become the most effective platform for B2B marketers to engage professionals."