Leading maker of graphic design programs, Adobe Systems Inc., said Tuesday that it would acquire Omniture Inc., a web analytics company, in a deal worth $1.8 billion.

Speaking on the acquisition, Shantanu Narayen, CEO of the Adobe, said, "Clearly, we believe this enables us to participate in a large, growing market opportunity and become even more mission critical to our customers."

California-based Adobe announced that it would pay a 24 per cent premium to Tuesday's closing price to acquire Omniture.

Adobe has high hopes from its upcoming version of the software, which will include Adobe's well-liked Photoshop, Flash and Illustrator. The company said that its new version of software would attract big ad agencies and smaller customers will also follow suit.

Adobe's revenue fell to $697.5 million in the third quarter from $887.3 million in the same quarter of previous year.

In the after-hours trading, Utah-based Omniture witnessed its shares soar above the offer price of $21.50 to settle at $21.67.

Shares in Adobe closed at $35.62, gaining 1.2 per cent.

The deal is subject to regulatory approval.