Credit-checking company Experian has canceled the proposed sale of its price comparison website Pricegrabber eight months after putting it on the market, admitting it failed to find a buyer that finance the deal, according to Reuters. It’s yet more evidence that the seizing up of credit markets and a lack of confidence among the banks is making media deals increasingly scarce—or is at least providing a convenient excuse for companies who can’t get their price. Experian bought the site for 485 million (£281 million) in 2005. It announced the non-sale in a trading update that also showed it enjoyed a 13 percent rise in revenue in H108. Chief executive Don Roberts told a conference call: “We received many expressions of interest, but given the financing environment, these did not convert into bankable transactions.” This is the same problem, on a smaller scale, being experienced by Reed Elsevier (NYSE: RUK) which continues to encounter difficulties financing the sell-off of its UK B2B division Reed Business Information.

—The economic situation and the pressure it puts on consumers should make this a healthy time for price comparison sites, or that’s what ITV (LSE: ITV) will be hoping after launching PriceTerrier.com as a JV with Yahoo-owned Kelkoo last month. Back in February DMGT-owned price comparison site Simply Switch was shut down.

• ITV’s PriceTerrier Goes Live; This Dog Stands Alone
• Daily Mail Closing SimplySwitch Comparison Site