Toys 'R' Us, Inc. has acquired its formal rival, eToys.com, from The Parent Co., which filed for bankruptcy protection in December. In addition to the etoys.com website the deal also includes BabyUniverse.com and ePregnancy.com.
"eToys.com is a highly respected brand with a rich heritage of innovation and growth, and we look forward to championing the next phase of its evolution," said Jerry Storch, Chairman and CEO, Toys"R"Us, Inc. "We believe the acquisition of eToys.com, together with BabyUniverse.com and ePregnancy.com, will advance our leadership in the toy and baby products sectors and position the company for strong market share growth. We are committed to providing loyal customers of these sites with an enhanced online experience, while continuing to offer a differentiated merchandise assortment and the service excellence they have come to expect."
Toys 'R' Us says all three of the acquired websites will continue to operate under their current domain names. Toys 'R' Us, Inc. will assume responsibility for all operations of the sites including merchandising, site management, distribution and marketing. The company did not disclose how much it paid for the websites. Presently, only ePregnancy.com is operational. The other two sites - etoys.com and babyuniverse.com - say the website is in the process of "revitalizing, re-energizing and re-launching."