Alibaba And Chinese Internet TV Platform Youku Tudou Agree To Merge

Chinese e-commerce company Alibaba Group Holdings Ltd. said Friday it has entered a merger agreement with Chinese Internet TV platform Youku Tudou . Alibaba will pay $27.60 per Youku American Depositary Share in cash, equal to a 35.1% premium over the ADS' closing price on Oct 15, a day before Youku revealed a "going private" proposal from Alibaba. The companies expect the deal to close in the first quarter of 2016. "We are confident that we will strengthen our market position and further accelerate our growth through the integration of our advertising and consumer businesses with Alibaba's platform and Alipay services," Youku Chief Executive Victor Koo said in a statement. Youku ADS rose 8% in premarket trade, while Alibaba shares were up 0.5%.