Though our gut tells us it might be wise for online photo service Shutterfly Inc. to find a buyer, we'll defer to company CEO Jeffrey Housenbold, who tells Reuters that the company expects to remain independent despite increasingly tough competition. Not only that, Housenbold expects the company to make acquisitions outside its core photo-sharing venue, targeting greeting-card companies and stationery makers. "We are looking at assets across the Internet that help people express themselves and self-publish," explains Housenbold.

Diversifying from its core offering seems like a wise idea, considering heavy hitters Yahoo! Inc., Eastman Kodak Co. and Hewlett-Packard Co. are offering competing photo services. —David Shabelman 

See Oct. 2006 story on TheDeal.com
See Sept. 6 Reuters story

Tags: shutterfly, photos, ipo, web2.0, photo, photography, deals, m&a, mergers