Early indications are that the deal will go through as 69.5% of Research Now shareholders have already given irrevocable undertakings or signed letters of intent to say they will vote in favour of the takeover at a meeting in late November.

Once complete, Research Now CEO Chris Havemann (pictured) will take over the running of the enlarged e-Rewards Group as well as taking a seat on the board. Research Now chairman Geoff Westmore will also take a seat on the board.

At the time of publication it was not clear what would become of e-Rewards’ current management team, headed by chairman and CEO Hal Brierley.

Brierley said: “The acquisition of Research Now by e-Rewards represents the coming together of two well-regarded companies to form a significant global firm that will be well positioned to serve the international online fieldwork and online panel sample services needs of marketing decision makers and market researchers.”

E-Rewards said it “attaches great importance to the skills and experience” of Research Now’s management and staff.

Westmore said: “Against the backdrop of a consolidating market, e-Rewards and Research Now are highly complementary companies and their combination is very exciting. Bringing together these two leading quality players in the online fieldwork market will create a unique global offering for our combined customer base.”

Talks between the two firms were first announced earlier this week.