Google to buy social media startup Meebo

The world's biggest search engine, Google Inc, will buy Meebo Inc, a startup that helps online publishers connect their websites with social network sites, Meebo said on its blog.

Last month, technology blog All Things Digital reported that Google was in talks to buy Meebo in a deal worth about $100 million.

California-based Meebo provides software that lets users share pages on social networking sites, including Facebook, allowing publishers and advertisers to promote products in interactive ways.

"We are always looking for better ways to help users share content and connect with others across the web, just as they do in real life," a Google representative said.

"We look forward to closing the transaction and working with the Meebo team to create more ways for users to engage online."

Meebo, founded in 2005, says it reaches half of the US Internet population, allowing users to build their own web experiences around the things that interest them the most.