Amazon To Buy Two Net Companies

Amazon.com said Tuesday it will issue stock worth an estimated $280 million to buy PlanetAll and Junglee Corp.

PlanetAll, based in Cambridge, Mass., operates a Web-based address book, calendar and reminder service. Junglee, in Sunnyvale, Calif., has developed software agents which facilitate comparison shopping on the Internet.

Amazon.com founder Jeff Bezos, announcing the online retailer's expansion, said "PlanetAll is the most innovative use of the Internet I've seen. It's simply a breakthrough in doing something as fundamental and important as staying in touch."

Amazon.com said it intends to operate PlanetAll as a wholly owned subsidiary located in Cambridge, and said founders Warren Adams and Brian Robertson will remain with the company.

Junglee's database technology tools are being used on the Net by various sites to facilitate online shopping and job hunts. Its customers and partners include Yahoo! and Compaq Computers.

Signaling that Amazon.com's intentions in online retailing go far beyond selling books and music, Bezos said "Junglee has assembled an extraordinary team of people. Together we'll empower customers to find and discover the products they want to buy."

Written By Frank Barnako