How times change. Tradus, the one-time darling of the UK dotcom sector under its former moniker QXL Ricardo, has accepted an £18-a-share cash offer from Naspers, the South African media group. Tradus’ management, accustomed to the highs and lows of the technology roller-coaster over the past decade, can breathe a sigh of relief.

The shares had already more than doubled this year, but memories of more challenging times have not entirely faded. At the height of the technology boom, internet auctioneer QXL Ricardo had a market capitalisation of £2bn. After the crash, a combination of failed private equity bids, shareholder conflicts and legal wrangles meant that by 2005 the company was worth less than £30m. Tuesday’s offer presents a pleasing contrast, valuing Tradus at £946m, a 37 per cent premium to its average value over the month before the potential deal was announced. The price represents 30 times enterprise value to consensus 2008 earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation, a considerable premium to even perennially highly valued global media companies.