Yandex buys mobile software maker SPB Software
NEW YORK—Yandex, the most popular search engine in Russia, on Monday said it bought mobile software maker SPB Software as it grows its mobile business.
No price was given for the deal.
SPB Software, which is headquartered in St. Petersburg, Russia, makes software for smartphones and tablets. Yandex said it will integrate its "cloud" services into SPB's software, and its search engine will be accessible on a variety of mobile devices after the acquisition.
Yandex also said buying SPB could help it partner with other companies involved in Internet-enabled mobile devices.
"Mobile is a vital part of our growth strategy. The acquisition of SPB Software creates new market potential for us and a plethora of possibilities for innovative solutions for our partners," said Yandex CEO Arkady Volozh in a statement.
Yandex last week said that it would be the default search engine on phones running the Windows operating system in Russia.
The company also operates in Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Belarus and Turkey.
Shares rose $1.32, or 6.7 percent, to $21.07 in afternoon trading. The broader market was up sharply, with the Standard & Poor's 500 index gaining 3 percent.
Yandex went public in May at $25 per share.
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