8x8, Inc. (NASDAQ: EGHT) announced that it has acquired Maven Lab, a Singapore‑based leader in mobile marketing and enterprise messaging, on January 6 2026. The deal brings Maven Lab’s Moobidesk platform into 8x8’s cloud‑native customer engagement suite, expanding the company’s end‑to‑end messaging capabilities across SMS, WhatsApp, and RCS in the Asia‑Pacific (APAC) region.
The acquisition is strategically timed to accelerate 8x8’s push into APAC, a market that accounts for nearly 40 % of the company’s total revenue and is growing faster than its U.S. operations. By integrating Maven Lab’s high‑volume, secure messaging and automation tools, 8x8 can deliver more comprehensive customer journeys for enterprise and public‑sector clients, while leveraging its existing CPaaS, contact‑center, and unified‑communications platforms to offer a single, scalable solution across multiple channels.
Financially, 8x8 has recently posted modest revenue growth but faces margin pressure. In Q2 FY2026, total revenue rose to $181.1 million, up 1.7 % from $177.95 million in the prior quarter, and beat analyst estimates by $3.15 million. However, non‑GAAP operating margin fell to 9.4 % from 11.9 % year‑over‑year, a decline driven by the company’s shift toward usage‑based revenue, which carries lower margins, and increased go‑to‑market investments. The company’s gross margin remained strong at 65.7 %, but the operating‑margin squeeze signals that the expansion into APAC and the acquisition will require careful cost management to preserve profitability.
Investors have reacted cautiously to the earnings beat, focusing on the margin compression rather than the revenue growth. While the company’s earnings per share of $0.09 surpassed the consensus of $0.07 by $0.02, analysts noted that the lower operating margin reflects the higher cost of scaling the new messaging platform and the need to invest in local infrastructure and talent in APAC. This headwind has tempered enthusiasm for the acquisition, even as the company’s leadership emphasizes the long‑term upside.
Management highlighted the strategic fit of Maven Lab in several statements. Sylvain Chaperon, 8x8’s CPaaS General Manager, said the partnership “brings deep experience delivering packaged, outcome‑oriented messaging solutions that customers can deploy quickly.” Hiew Wee Soon, Maven Lab’s CEO, added that the deal “sets a clear direction for a more unified platform that helps enterprises move from sending messages to orchestrating end‑to‑end customer engagement.” Samuel Wilson, 8x8’s CEO, noted that the company’s Q2 FY2026 results “marked meaningful progress against our strategic goals and continued to strengthen the foundation for durable, profitable growth.”
The acquisition positions 8x8 to capture APAC’s high‑growth messaging market, where demand for usage‑based communication services is rising faster than in the U.S. By combining Maven Lab’s local expertise and infrastructure with 8x8’s global scale and security, the company can offer a more compelling, end‑to‑end solution that differentiates it from competitors such as RingCentral, Vonage, and Twilio. The deal also signals 8x8’s commitment to investing in high‑return verticals and maintaining a competitive edge in a fragmented market, while the company continues to monitor margin pressures and invest strategically to sustain long‑term profitability.
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