(Bloomberg) -- Private equity firm Hellman & Friedman has agreed to buy a majority stake in Information Resources Inc., a market-analytics business backed by Vestar Capital Partners and New Mountain Capital, with plans to merge it with portfolio company NPD Group. 

The deal values the combined entity at more than $8 billion, including debt, according to a person familiar with the matter, who asked to not be identified because the terms are private. Bloomberg News reported in March that NPD was in talks to buy IRI for more than $5 billion, including debt. Vestar and New Mountain will remain investors, according to a statement Thursday. 

“As the global retail landscape continues to evolve, IRI and NPD will have innovative technology, analytics, data resources, talent and geographic reach to best support the growth of the world’s leading brands and retailers,” IRI Chief Executive Officer Kirk Perry said in a statement. 

Perry is set to run the combined organization as CEO as part of the deal, and will join the company’s board alongside NPD’s Executive Chairman Tod Johnson and CEO Karyn Schoenbart.

“Both NPD and IRI share similar client-focused, innovative and collaborative cultures, making this combination a natural fit,” Schoenbart said in a statement. 

Hellman & Friedman agreed to acquire NPD last year. NPD is the eighth-largest research company in the world, covering more than 20 industries, according to a statement at the time of the deal.

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