Joe over at Vpop sent this link: Tucows (AMEX:TCX, TSX:TC) purchases It’s Your Domain (also know as Innerwise), a registrar with wholesale focus and 700,000 domains under management.

Tucows will pay US$10.35 million in cash for IYD with the opportunity for IYD to realize a further US$1.05 million based on specific targets. The acquisition is expected to add approximately US$7 million in yearly revenue and between US$1 and $2 million in adjusted net income in the first 12 months.

Here are the reasons emphasized by Elliot Noss in a video podcast.

• Great existing Customer Relationships
• Hosted Reseller Interface
• Opportunity to introduce new services to IYD’s customers.

From my perspective as a former Tucows employee, the hosted interface is especially an important factor, since the smaller Tucows resellers (and some of the larger ones) have long been asking for a feature like this. Basically this allows resellers to quickly set up an brand a domain name registration site, a feature already offered by competitors such as eNom and GoDaddy/WildWest.

The founders, James McKenzie & Ted Cucci, will move on to their new venture, Network Merchants. Tucows will also be a customer of the company. Employees are kept on for a transition period and will then move to the founder’s new business.

[Press Release]