Adobe is to acquire Marketo for $4.75 billion.

Marketo – which serves 5000 customers – will be added to the Adobe Experience Cloud. Adobe hopes the deal will widen its reach across B2B as expectations for great customer experience grow.

Currently Marketo provides enterprises of all sizes with marketing applications. It has more than 500 partners and an ‘engaged’ marketing community with more than 65,000 members.

Brad Rencher, executive VP and general manager, digital experience at Adobe, said it was imperative for all marketers to have a laser focus on providing personalised and engaging experiences. “The acquisition of Marketo widens Adobe’s lead in customer experience across B2C and B2B and puts Adobe Experience Cloud at the heart of all marketing,” he said.

Significant increase in value

The deal represents a significant increase in

the $1.79 billion paid when private equity firm Vista Equity Partners bought Marketo in May 2016

.

Marketo’s CEO Steve Lucas will join Adobe’s senior leadership team but continue to lead the Marketo team, and will report to Rencher.

Lucas said: “Adobe and Marketo both share an unwavering belief in the power of content and data to drive business results. There is no better home for Marketo to continue to rapidly innovate than Adobe.”

The deal is expected to be completed during the fourth quarter of Adobe’s 2018 fiscal year. Until then both companies will operate separately.

In May, Adobe also announced it was acquiring e-commerce platform Magento for $1.68 billion. In a blog, Rencher said the additions illustrated Adobe’s commitment to enhancing its platform and solutions.