Rakuten acquired Viber Messaging App for $900 million. Instant messaging and VoIP service operator Viber Media has been snapped by the Japanese electronics company in a bid. Viber will add 300 million users to Rakuten’s current 200 million user base as reported by CEO Hiroshi Mikitani and Viber founder Israeli businessman Talmon Marco.
The Japanese firm Rakuten reported its operating profit reached high 80 percent in 2013. The official announcement of the deal between Rakuten and the Cyprus-based Viber has just come after the company's remarkable profit reach.
Rakuten said in its press release about the sale which will strengthen its global platform through the use of Viber’s range of customers in the company’s eCommerce and digital contents services. Viber founder believes that the deal will become a platform for digital content..
The company stated that “In the past, consumers had been using conventional televisions and fixed line telephones for contents as a means of communication, but this has been shifting to mobile contents and apps. Viber’s globally popular messaging service is seeing a rapid increase in numbers of registered users, and this will strengthen our digital strategy. The Company aims to be the global No. 1 Internet services company, and in addition to our existing e-Commerce and Internet finance services, this acquisition will allow the Company to build on several digital contents services, and advance into new markets.”
‘Rakuten Ecosystem’ enables members to access a variety of services through common ID numbers and the company’s online Rakuten Super Points rewards program. So it is observed that it will complement Viber’s “fun approach” to messaging and VoIP services as per Rakuten report.
Rakuten’s Internet service offerings and its ‘Shopping is Entertainment’ has the potential to become the “world’s most comprehensive and engaging daily online platform.” Hence it seems that this acquisition will serve its customers with better offerings.
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