Ex-Facebook CTO sells word processor Quip for $582 million to Salesforce
A young word processing app just found a new home — for a pretty hefty price tag.
Salesforce, the cloud software giant, has acquired Quip for $582 million, according to the company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission Monday.
Founded in 2012, Quip began as a mobile-oriented word processor and collaboration tool that competed with the likes of Microsoft Office and Google Docs. Quip works on PCs, yet the company said in blog post that it "shines on phones and tablets." Collaboration was also easier to visualize through a highlighted feed of updates.
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The mobile focus is not surprising given the founder's history. Quip CEO Bret Taylor was the co-creator of Google Maps, founder of social network FriendFeed (which was acquired by Facebook in 2009) and later the chief technology officer of Facebook during its aggressive push to mobile.
Taylor also joined Twitter's board last month.
Quip announced the news in a blog post, saying Salesforce's strategy aligned with its own.
Salesforce and Quip share the same philosophy about software: it should be in the cloud, built for the mobile era, and be inherently social. Salesforce pioneered the shift to enterprise cloud computing—and Quip has been working since 2012 to reimagine a productivity platform for teams that allows them to be more connected, more collaborative and get more work done.
Quip has not recently released user numbers. It offers a free version and premium versions for small companies at $12 per user per month and larger enterprises at $25 per user per month.
Salesforce's move to purchase Quip comes after a reported failed attempt to purchase LinkedIn, which sold to Microsoft for $26 billion last month.
Having its own word processing tool gives Salesforce another boost in its competition with Microsoft's Office 365. Salesforce Ventures was an investor in Quip's $45 million funding round.
The operation will still be run by Taylor and his team.
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Kerry Flynn is a business reporter for Mashable covering the tech industry. She previously reported on social media companies, mobile apps and startups for International Business Times. She has also written for The Huffington Post, Forbes and Money magazine. Kerry studied environmental science and economics at Harvard College, where she led The Harvard Crimson's metro news and design teams and played mellophone in the Band. When not listening to startup pitches, she runs half-marathons, plays with puppies and pretends to like craft beer.
