Visa to Acquire PlaySpan for $190M

Visa (NYSE:V) will pay about $190 million plus milestones to private online payment company PlaySpan in an effort to further delve into the booming multi-billion-dollar e-commerce business.

PlaySpan provides payment and monetization solutions for developers and consumers of online games, digital media, mobile apps and social networks.

The Santa Clara, Calif.-based company, which provides Monetization-as-a-Service and UltimatePay platforms, enabling customers to make risk-free transactions, generated roughly $25 billion in consumer spending last year.

That number is expected to reach $280 billion by 2014.

With global e-commerce sales reaching about $948 billion last year, the business segment remains a large growth opportunity for Visa. Roughly 45% of U.S. online spending takes place on Visa’s network today. The company saw 25% year-over-year growth in online payment  volumes in the first quarter of 2011.

Pending customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals, the acquisition is slated to close in Visa’s current quarter. The deal is expected to slightly dilute the San Francisco, Calif-based payment company’s 2011 earnings.

PlaySpan is currently backed by Easton Capital, Menlo Ventures, Novel TMT Ventures, STIC Investments, Silicon Valley Bank Capital, Softbank China & India, TimeWarner Investments, Vodafone Ventures and GE Asset Management.