Today Facebook agreed to purchase beloved messaging service, WhatsApp, for a cool $16 billion.
The move from Mark Zuckerburg and crew comes in a bid to expand into the growing mobile messaging market. WhatsApp services 450 million monthly users, and according to Reuters, is adding more than 1 million new users every day.
Laying his dollars on the table, Mark will pay $4 billion in cash and $12 billion in stock for WhatsApp.
In a statement announcing the deal Facebook CEO, Zuckerburg, said: “WhatsApp is on a path to connect 1 billion people. The services that reach that milestone are all incredibly valuable.”
In a Facebook status update, (sure where else would he announce it), Mark said the company’s mission is “to make the world more open and connected.”
But what does this mean for WhatsApp?! Fret not. In this statement tonight, Facebook explained the deal and confirmed that the service, as we know and love it, will continue as normal.
The acquisition supports Facebook and WhatsApp’s shared mission to bring more connectivity and utility to the world by delivering core internet services efficiently and affordably. The combination will help accelerate growth and user engagement across both companies.
“WhatsApp is on a path to connect 1 billion people. The services that reach that milestone are all incredibly valuable,” said Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook founder and CEO. “I’ve known Jan for a long time and I’m excited to partner with him and his team to make the world more open and connected.”
Jan Koum, WhatsApp co-founder and CEO, said, “WhatsApp’s extremely high user engagement and rapid growth are driven by the simple, powerful and instantaneous messaging capabilities we provide. We’re excited and honored to partner with Mark and Facebook as we continue to bring our product to more people around the world.”
Facebook fosters an environment where independent-minded entrepreneurs can build companies, set their own direction and focus on growth while also benefiting from Facebook’s expertise, resources and scale. This approach is working well with Instagram, and WhatsApp will operate in this manner. WhatsApp’s brand will be maintained; its headquarters will remain in Mountain View, CA; Jan Koum will join Facebook’s Board of Directors; and WhatsApp’s core messaging product and Facebook’s existing Messenger app will continue to operate as standalone applications.
Check out the full statement here.
Feel free to throw any loose change our way, Mark…
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