Squarespace acquires Google Domains assets

Squarespace Inc. (NYSE: SQSP) announced it has entered into a definitive asset purchase agreement with Google, whereby Squarespace will acquire the assets associated with the Google Domains business, which will be winding down following a transition period. This purchase includes approximately 10 million domains hosted on Google Domains spread across millions of customers.

The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter of 2023, and is subject to certain regulatory approvals and customary closing conditions.

“We are exceptionally proud to be chosen to serve the customers of the Google Domains business,” said Anthony Casalena, Founder & CEO of Squarespace. “Domains are a critical part of web infrastructure and an essential piece of every business’s online presence. We look forward to serving these new customers as we have served millions using our domain products and are committed to ensuring a seamless transition.”

“In keeping with our efforts to sharpen our focus, we have entered into a definitive agreement with Squarespace for the acquisition of customer accounts of the Google Domains registrar business,” said Matt Madrigal, Vice President and General Manager, Merchant Shopping of Google. “Supporting a smooth transition for customers over the coming months, with the help of the Google Domains team, is our top priority. Squarespace can provide an integrated experience of purchasing and managing domains along with offering other tools that these customers may need to build their online presence.”

Under the terms of the agreement, Squarespace will honor all existing Google Domains customers’ renewal prices for at least 12 months following the closing of the transaction, as well as provide additional incentives to encourage Google Domains customers to build a website with Squarespace and adopt other Squarespace offerings. Further, Squarespace will be leveraging Google’s infrastructure powering the Google Domains product during the migration period in order to ensure the seamless transfer of domains.

Upon closing, Squarespace, a long- time reseller of Google Workspace, will become the exclusive domains provider for any customer purchasing a domain along with their Workspace subscription from Google directly for a minimum of three years. Squarespace will also provide billing and support services to Google Workspace customers that signed up for the service through Google Domains. Customers will continue to have the option to make changes to their domains account at any time.

While the majority of the benefits of this deal will be realized in 2024 and beyond, Squarespace believes this deal will be meaningfully accretive to its business from both a revenue and free cash flow perspective over time.