Snapchat might help you discover new places to hang out with friends or even keep you updated on trending news. The photo sharing app is reportedly buying Vurb, a search app for smartphones, for $110 million. The acquisition may increase with other add-ons, such as retention payout to Vurb employees. The transaction is yet to be finalized and made public by both the companies.
It will be a stock and cash deal with 75% stock and 25% cash, as reported by TechCrunch. Vurb CEO and Co-founder, Bobby Lo, would receive $75 million over the next few years if he decides to continue working for Snapchat. The retention payout that will be paid to Vurb employees is considered to be quite high.
Snapchat is interested in Vurb’s highly qualified team. Hence, it has agreed to pay a high retention amount to keep them on board. The photo sharing app has deep enough pockets to make this transaction; it has raised more than $2 billion from investors over the last five years. The company’s main Investors include Alibaba, Fidelity Investments and Light Speed Ventures.
Vurb boasts to provide the best recommendation of places and services which users can easily find on its platform. It has diverse content available on its app, which makes it possible for users to do more within the app. Moreover, it is also used for carrying out tasks like booking movie tickets or a ride from Uber or Lyft.
Last year, Vurb CEO said that his team would continue to “create a more cohesive mobile experience around finding, planning, and sharing information.” According to him, Vurb saves users time that often gets wasted in shifting from one app to another.
It is not yet known how Snapchat will use Vurb on its platform. The app will have access to all of Vurb’s data once the deal is completed. After that, it will look for ways to provide more information about places where its users take pictures and videos. More details will follow once the deal is announced.
Vurb enhanced its service with a new personal assistant, just like Google Now, which helps users discover new places. Currently, Vurb is struggling to attract more users, and Snapchat’s 150 million daily active users may give it a larger audience that it wants. Vurb said that its users have doubled over the last year but did not disclose the exact number.
This will be the Snapchat’s second biggest acquisition this year. It acquired emoji app, Bitmoji, for $100 million in March. Bitmoji stickers have already been introduced in its app. The company has continued to make smart acquisitions and has added more features to its photo sharing app since it acquired Looksery for $150 million last year.