Business social networking goliath LinkedIn is reported to be in the late stages of talks to acquire popular newsreader Pulse in a deal worth “tens of millions.” The purchase is seen as part of a larger push by the network into content creation and consumption.
Citing people close to the negotiations, AllThingsD reported that LinkedIn will buy San Francisco-based Alphonso Labs, creators of Pulse, which supposedly boasts a readership of 20 million users who read some 10 million stories via the service each day. While a price has yet to be divulged, sources say the acquisition is worth at least $50 million, with a high end of $100 million.
AllThingsD had mentioned earlier Monday that Pulse was being wooed by a “platform” company, with rumored suitors ranging from Microsoft to Yahoo. Deeper investigation turned up indications that LinkedIn was most likely the interested party, and could announce the acquisition as soon as this week.
LinkedIn has been anxious to expand its influence beyond networking, as it has recently purchased CardMunch, SlideShare and Rapportive, which are all content and consumption services. Pulse would make sense as an addition to the already acquired firms, as it serves up a smorgasbord of content feeds from a variety of sources via iOS and Android apps, as well as through a web version.
