Insure.com Sells Its Name, Media Assets For $16 Million

NU Online News Service, Oct. 13, 3:38 p.m. EDT

Insure.com Inc., the Web-based insurance quote service and brokerage, announced today it has sold its Insure.com brand name and related media assets for $16 million in cash to QuinStreet Inc.

The Darien, Ill.-based firm said it intends to change its corporate name to Life Quotes Inc., make its primary Web site www.lifequotes.com and will continue business under the Life Quotes and Consumer Insurance Guide brand names.

QuinStreet Inc., based in Foster City, Calif., provides online direct marketing and media services. The company offers online messaging, e-mail broadcasting, search engine marketing and brand management services. The firm's Web site says by employing "innovative technologies" it uses the Internet to connect client firms to customers.

Insure.com said under its new name it will put more focus on broking activity. It offers comparison quotes and sales of life, auto, home, health, business, identity theft and pet insurance.

The company said it will retain all of its remaining balance sheet assets, national brokerage contracts with 25 life insurance companies, 50 fully licensed insurance agents, call center operations, customer and prospect lists, and nearly all of its current inbound affiliate and traffic partnerships.

The company originally acquired the Insure.com name and Web site for $1.6 million in December 2001. It said revenue from the asset sale transaction will be recorded as an extraordinary, one-time gain in the fourth quarter.

No federal income taxes are anticipated on this gain because the firm said it has a current federal tax loss carry forward of $49 million.

Robert Bland, chairman and chief executive officer, said, "We have sold our Insure.com name and specified Web site content in a significant cash transaction that we think is in the best long-term interest of our shareholders."

He said in a statement that the transaction "has other benefits to our shareholders and employees in that it will allow us to focus on our brokerage operation and insurance marketing businesses. As a result of this transaction, we are projecting reduced revenues of approximately 10-to-15 percent with increased marketing expenses for the next two-to-six quarters as we rebuild under a new brand name and move from a content-based Web site to a transaction-based Web site."

Phil Perillo, chief financial officer for the company, said, "This transaction, which calls for a $15 million cash payment now and a $1.0 million payment in 365 days, significantly increases our shareholders' equity and stockpile of cash. As a result of this asset sale, the company now has approximately $24 million of cash and investments, no debt, stockholders' equity of $31.4 million and a book value of approximately $4.98 per share."

The company said its board of directors voted unanimously in favor of the asset sale and intends to hire an investment banker and review all of its options for use of the transaction proceeds, which the company intends to return to shareholders in some fashion.

Insure.com was originally founded in 1984 as Quotesmith Corporation. Insure.com offers instant quotes from insurers on car, life, home, business and health insurance lines. Customers can buy online or by phone from any company shown. The site also offers articles on consumer insurance topics and provides free insurance decision-making tools.