In one of the largest tech deals of the year so far, Facebook on Monday announced the acquisition of Instagram, a popular photo-sharing app, for a price of $1 billion.
Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg first broke the news on his Facebook page, writing: “I’m excited to share the news that we’ve agreed to acquire Instagram and that their talented team will be joining Facebook.”
Preemptively countering fears that Facebook would rebrand the app as its own product, the CEO added: “We’re committed to building and growing Instagram independently. Millions of people around the world love the Instagram app and the brand associated with it, and our goal is to help spread this app and brand to even more people.”
Instagram co-founder Kevin Systrom, who first launched the app exclusively for the iPhone back in 2010, took to his company’s official blog to re-assure users as well, writing: “It’s important to be clear that Instagram is not going away. We’ll be working with Facebook to evolve Instagram and build the network. We’ll continue to add new features to the product and find new ways to create a better mobile photos experience.”
Instagram counts at least 31 million users now, 30 million on the iPhone alone, which was the only way to access the app until an Android version was launched to rave reviews on Tuesday, April 3.
The company also recently reportedly participated in a fundraising round to the tune of $50 million valuing the company at $500 million. The acquisition by Facebook likely has all investors in smiles.
