By Mike Boyer
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Shares of Cincinnati's Convergys Corp. closed up 4 percent Thursday after it announced the acquisition of an online education provider for $120 million.

The billing and customer care provider said it was buying DigitalThink Inc. of San Francisco for $2.40 a share, which represented about a 30 percent premium over DigitalThink's $1.84 a share closing price on Wednesday. The deal is expected to be completed in about 60 days.

Convergys said the acquisition would allow it to expand its growing employee care business by offering Web-based training to its corporate clients.

Convergys said the deal would reduce its 2004 earnings by 2 cents a share. Convergys shares closed Thursday at $15.59, up 66 cents. DigitalThink's shares rose 51 cents closing at $2.35.

DigitalThink recently lost its largest customer, Electronic Data Systems Corp., in a contract dispute. But it also announced it had signed Microsoft as a client earlier this month.

DigitalThink, which employs 375, made its initial public offering in 1999. Its revenues last year were $42 million.

E-mail mboyer@enquirer.com