Whats App, One Of Facebook’s Biggest Acquisitions

Whats App is one of the most popular applications in use today, but you would be surprised to know that 50% people using this app are not aware of the fact that Whats App application is owned by Facebook.

According to a recent survey, over half of US citizens are unaware that the popular mobile messaging platform is owned by Facebook. Majority of people using Whats App have been using the platform without realizing that all their information including travel time, routes, messages, location and photos, are all privy to Facebook.

Although the companies like Google and Facebook can definitely lean on the products they have picked up to stay ahead in the competition, but even the big fishes in the ocean suffer blowback from privacy crises.

A Sneak Peak At Facebook’s History & Its Acquisitions

Facebook Inc. is one of the most thriving social networking website started by Mark Zuckerberg in 2004. In the year 2010, it became a profitable business and then in 2012, the company sold over 388 million shares for about $38 per share prior to its initial public offering and raised nearly $15 billion for the company founders.

As on today, the company has a market cap of over $460 billion and since its inception, Facebook has purchased many different companies like Instagram and Whats App. To stay innovative and continue developing products that their customers need, the company has acquired many new technologies and companies.

Companies like Karma and Face.com were taken over by Facebook to improve its social networking service. In 2007, it acquired FriendFeed and borrowed new technologies like newsfeed or “like” button. Later, it acquired Nextstop, Drop.io, and Hot Potato and improved its social recommendations, file exchange service and “check-in” option to a place or event.  

In 2012, Facebook paid an astounding amount of $1 billion to acquire Instagram and then it bought over, Whats App for $19 billion in 2014. Today the multi-billion company has completely engrained in our society and our everyday lives.