facebook to buy messaging app
Thursday, 20 February 2014
Facebook has bought messaging app Whats App in a deal worth a total of $19bn (£11.4bn) in cash and shares. It is the social networking giant's biggest acquisition to date. Whats App has more than 450 million monthly users and is popular with people looking to avoid text messaging charges. Whats App allows users to send messages over internet connections, avoiding text messaging fees. The company claims it is currently registering one million new users a day. It makes money by charging users a subscription fee of $1 per year, although it offers a free model as well. The deal to buy it includes $4bn in cash and approximately $12bn-worth of Facebook shares, plus an additional $3bn in stock to Whats App's founders and employees at a later date, according to BBC.