Relizon Agrees to Acquire Epsilon

BOSTON–Relizon said it has reached an agreement to acquire Epsilon, a Burlington, Mass.-based database, direct and interactive marketing company.

According to a Relizon representative, Epsilon-owned CGN Marketing & Creative Services, a Boston ad agency with $75 million in billings, is also part of the deal and becomes a unit of Relizon. CGN clients include Eastern Bank, Phoenix Investment Partners, the Massachusetts Office of Travel & Tourism. Recently the agency added added Veritude, a unit of Fidelity Investments specializing in job placement. CGN grew nearly 40 percent last year and has been among the New England region’s hottest mid-sized agencies.

Terms of the deal between privately held Relizon and Epsilon were not disclosed. Epsilon, which has been owned for four years by DMDA of Carrollton, Tx., reported revenue of $120 million in 2000; Relizon’s revenue for 2000 was about $800 million. Based on Epsilon’s revenue, a sale price of $100 million or more is not out of the question.

Relizon, Dayton, Ohio, is looking for the deal to help strengthen its capabilities in customer relationship management and will merge its eCRM Group into Epsilon, whose clients include Citrix Systems, Hilton Hotels and others. The company has 700 employees in offices in Burlington, Dallas and Washington, D.C.

Epsilon will keep its name and its current management structure, including president Corey Torrence.