Blackbaud Completes Acquisition of Kintera

Blackbaud announced today that is has completed the acquisition of Kintera. This means that we can begin moving forward on several important initiatives to better meet your needs.

When the deal was first announced we were not allowed to comment or make any further announcements according to government regulations. This meant having to be less transparent than we preferred, but those are the rules.

Now that the acquisition has formally closed there are probably a lot of questions that clients and those in the broader nonprofit community might have. Let me try to address some of the ones I've heard specifically related to our Internet products.

Will Blackbaud keep the Kintera CMS (Sphere) Product?
Yes. We will support all of Kintera's current offerings, including Sphere, FundWare, and P!N. There are several aspects of the Sphere system, in particular "Friends Asking Friends" and advocacy capabilities, which enrich Blackbaud’s drive to provide products that are ideal for nonprofit organization that are ideal for nonprofit organizations. We believe nonprofits want robust online solutions, regardless of whether or not your current CRM happens to be from Blackbaud.

Will Blackbaud keep the Kintera Connect initiative?
Yes. We will continue this program. It's been very successful, and it's a great fit with some of the Blackbaud NetCommunity API initiatives already in place. We intend to explore ways to encourage both clients and partners to develop extended functionality for our online solutions. This underscores our efforts to increase the use of our products and their ability to meet the unique needs of the nonprofit community.

Will Blackbaud integrate the Kintera CMS (Sphere) to The Raiser's Edge?
Yes. Blackbaud plans to develop an integration solution from Sphere to The Raiser's Edge that is the best in the industry. Nonprofits place a high value on having a truly integrated solution combining online and offline interactions in a single database. This is one of our highest priorities now that the acquisition is complete and will be available before the end of the calendar year.

Will Blackbaud NetCommunity continue to be offered and supported?
Yes. BBNC continues to grow extremely well. In just four years it has been chosen by more Raiser's Edge customers than any other major provider serving nonprofits today. The combined R&D resources of Kintera and Blackbaud will allow us to continue to deepen BBNC's functionality. We think there is a lot of value that clients will realize from the combined experience, knowledge, and technology we have gained from working with the more than 4,500 customers using one of our Internet solutions.

I am sure that there will be additional questions that come up as we move forward. I will continue to post relevant and important information as it becomes available. I encourage you to send questions or post comments.