Yahoo continuous its assault on mobile as it adds popular
to-do-list app Astrid in its growing list of mobile company acquisitions. The
announcement was made on Astrid’s website in which the company stated its course
of action for the next few weeks.
Astrid which made its name as a collaborative to-do-list app
was first established in 2008 by Tim Su and Jon Paris and has amassed
approximately 4 million users worldwide.
As with recent Yahoo acquisitions, the entire team of Astrid
will be absorbed by Yahoo to work on its projects. As for the app, the company
said it will continue to work for the next 90 days but will no longer accept
any new premium subscriptions. The company has also stated that they will soon
contact users to help them download their data and that any users who have
existing annual subscriptions will be able to receive refunds after they shut
down the app.
Details about the deal have not been revealed yet but
sources say that Yahoo paid a hefty price for Astrid in contrast to other
acqui-hire arrangements. This might be due to Astrid’s nature as a social
network. Unlike Summly which Yahoo bought for a reported $30 million, Astrid
comes with an existing base of mobile users on top of the productivity
technology that it utilizes for its app which makes it a bit more valuable.
Both companies are highly optimistic about the acquisition
with Astrid’s CEO Jon Paris saying that he and his team are really excited in
joining Yahoo’s team and in helping the company realize its goal of making the
world’s daily habits more inspiring and entertaining.
