Two months after striking the deal, Publicis Groupe has closed its $530 million acquisition of digital agency Razorfish from Microsoft. As part of the terms of the sale, Microsoft got a 3.3% stake in Publicis, which paid Microsoft $286.8 million in cash and handed over 6.5 million ordinary shares in the ad holding company. The buyout finally makes good Publicis CEO Maurice Levy’s vow to have digital comprise 25% of the company’s revenues.
Seattle-based Razorfish, which has roughly 2,000 staffers spread across three continents, is being integrated into VivaKi, the Publicis Groupe media and digital umbrella that covers Starcom MediaVest Group, ZenithOptimedia, Denuo, Digitas and VivaKi Nerve Center. David Kenny, VivaKi’s managing partner, has been managing that process.
