Go Daddy sells for $2.25bn

A CONSORTIUM OF INVESTORS has bought web hosting and domain name service Go Daddy for a reported $2.25bn, only three months after the company faced public revulsion when its CEO shared a video of him killing an elephant.

The buyers included investment firms KKR, Silver Lake and Technology Crossover Ventures, which clearly saw potential in the 9.3 million customer base and 48 million domain names that Go Daddy claims it has.

Go Daddy entered the media spotlight in early April after the revelation that its founder and CEO, Bob Parsons, shot a - according to him - "problem" elephant during a trip to Africa and subsequently broadcast the video.

The news sparked cries of outrage from many, and a number of Go Daddy customers decided to end their hosting with the company over the incident. Rival service Namecheap claimed that 20,000 people jumped ship, but Go Daddy claimed it saw "no significant impact" on its business.

That is, of course, until now. It's not entirely clear why it sold, but we can guess that the bad reputation it earned in that incident might have had something to do with it. Go Daddy is still a good earner, but Parsons might have thought it better to cash in before profits started to drop.

The new ownership might result in changes at the company. Parson's private life could be considered a threat to the company's image, so he could potentially be replaced as CEO.

Parsons said he agreed to the deal because he wanted to "do the right thing" for customers and employees. It appears that doing the right thing did not apply when shooting elephants, however.

Financial details of the deal were not disclosed, but the Associated Press has reported that the price is $2.25bn. µ