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Verizon is selling Tumblr to WordPress’ owner

Verizon is selling Tumblr to WordPress’ owner

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Verizon have decided to sell Tumblr, a loved social media platform, to the owner of blogging king WordPress.

Tumblr is a social media platform which is known to all. It has always known for its devoted fan base and has been home to angry posts from celebrities like Taylor Swift. Last year, the site had gathered a lot of hatred from the users when they decided to banned “porn and adult content” on the site. The decision didn’t go well with the users as adult content formed a large part of its highly visual and meme-friendly online presence.

Tumblr served as a safe haven for many LGBTQ members who used the platform to express and explore their sexuality and to find an online community that shared those interests. But the decision to ban adult content made many of them boycott the site.

From a long time Tumblr have been facing very stiff competition from the other social media giants such as Instagram, YouTube and Facebook. Not just that but Tumblr even got overshadowed by Twitter.

Tumblr was acquired by Verizon in 2017 when they purchased it from Yahoo. Yahoo had bought Tumblr for $1.1 billion in 2013, but couldn’t utilise it much to benefit the company. Terms of Verizon’s sale to WordPress owner Automattic weren’t disclosed.

Verizon media CEO Guru Gowrappan said in a statement, “Tumblr is a marquee brand that has started movements, allowed for true identities to blossom and become home to many creative communities and fandoms.”

He also added, “We are proud of what the team has accomplished and are happy to have found the perfect partner in Automattic Inc., whose expertise and track record will unlock new and exciting possibilities for Tumblr and its users.

However, it does make sense as Tumblr was once a hugely influential force in the social media and blogging sphere. But sadly, it lost a lot under Yahoo and then Verizon’s ownership. Meanwhile other social media platforms such as YouTube, Instagram and Snapchat moved to fill the void and turned to be much larger cultural forces as a result. Despite that Tumblr still has a very dedicated and active community.

Earlier Verizon had planned to create an ad business to compete with Facebook and Google but their plan failed as their media business ran into trouble. It has cut jobs and also sold some Yahoo properties, including the photo-sharing site Polyvore and Flickr, a fashion and collaging site that was shut down.

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