R.H. Donnelley to buy online search engine

Yellow pages publisher R.H. Donnelley Corp. has agreed to acquire a fast-growing online company for $345 million.

Cary-based Donnelley said this morning that it has signed a definitive agreement to purchase Business.com, which is used by businesses to search for business services, vendors and potential customers. The business-to-business search engine is profitable and expects to generate more than $50 million in revenue this year, Donnelley said.

Donnelley also reported second-quarter earnings that fell short of analysts’ expectations, Bloomberg News reported. The stock fell nearly 10 percent in morning trading.

Business.com, based in Santa Monica, Calif., is headed by founder and CEO Jake Winebaum, who previously led the Internet business of The Walt Disney Co. Winebaum was chairman of Disney’s Buena Vista Internet Group, which managed Disney.com and ESPN.com.

Business.com posted a 50 percent increase in site traffic in the first quarter compared to a year earlier, attracting 20.1 million visits. In October it launched Work.com, which features how-to-guides compiled by business experts.

“With this transaction, R.H. Donnelley takes another significant step forward in the online local commercial search marketplace,” said Donnelley CEO David Swanson in a prepared statement.

In a conference call this morning, Swanson said the acquisition is the latest chapter in the company’s push over the last two years to bolster its Internet business. Prior deals include the $4.2 billion acquisition of Colorado-based Dex Media — a yellow pages publisher that also was a leader in online local searches — and last year’s acquisition of LocalLaunch, a search engine marketing and optimization company based in Chicago.

In April, Donnelley announced that it was consolidating its online presence under the Dex brand name at a single site, DexKnows.com.

Swanson said the Business.com deal will enhance what the company calls its “Triple Play” initiative — selling ads in print and online, plus helping companies enhance their visibility on the Internet by boosting their rankings on Web searches. He said acquiring Business.com “brings to Donnelley some of the best minds and technology” in the industry.

Donnelley shares fell $6.59 to $66.49 in midday trading. The stock is up 29 percent in the past year.