Avast to swallow up antivirus rival AVG in $1.3bn buyout

Avast has announced its intention to acquire rival antivirus firm AVG, with the company floating a buyout offer of $1.3 billion (1 billion).

The addition of AVG's userbase will allow Avast to gather more threat data to improve its security services, Avast CEO Vincent Steckler said.

AVG, which is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange, will be recommending that its investors and shareholders take the deal, according to Avast.

"If the AVG shareholders do accept, following the various governmental regulators approvals, AVG will become part of Avast and we will jointly work on a great future together," Steckler wrote in a blog post. "We expect this to take a few months."

The company cannot reveal too much of its post-merger plans due to regulatory issues surrounding the acquisition, he wrote, but after the deal concludes, Avast will have a total of 250 million users spread across PCs and Macs.

He also cited plans to move beef up protection for mobile users, which he described as "an important stepping stone into the Internet of Things."

SMBs will be better supported too, thanks to an increased geographical footprint, technological innovation and improved technical support, Steckler claimed, also referencing "exciting mobile technology designed to protect families on line".

One of the reasons behind the buyout, Steckler said, was the high level of similarity between the two companies, including their shared Czech heritage and their names.

The companies get confused for one another so often, wrote Steckler, that "it is only natural that they be combined".

IT Pro has approached AVG for comment.