Publicis Groupe is a French advertising group and one of the largest media companies, with over 44,000 employees. The company has recently agreed to buy Razorfish from Microsoft for $530 million. They will pay in cash and stock and Razorfish will keep its brand name. This is Microsoft’s preferred provider for Internet advertising and will remain so even after it is acquired by Publicis Groupe. At least this is what the company stated on Sunday in a joint statement.

This deal also hides a strategic alliance between Publicis Groupe and Microsoft. Microsoft will provide Publicis Groupe with display and text advertising for 5 years. “The purchase of Razorfish is a new step in our strategic plan to be the unquestionable leader in digital communication,” – Publicis Groupe Chief Executive Officer Maurice Levy.

There were a number of companies interested in Razorfish, including top ad firms WPP, Omnicom Group, and agencies Interpublic Group and Dentsu. Currently, Razorfish has over 2,000 employees and has Dell, Nike, and Disney among its customers. It was also credited with the logo design for Microsoft’s search engine Bing and its publicity campaign. It looks like Publicis Groupe made a very good deal with Microsoft, from which both giants will benefit.