Facebook has reportedly made a move to acquire the popular photo-sharing app Snapchat with a $1 billion offer. Surprisingly, the company's CEO declined the deal.
Facebook needs to find a way to make peace with the young crowd after making some changes to its privacy rules, allowing teens to make their posts open to public. But the latest report suggests that the world's largest social network is making a sincere effort. Facebook reportedly offered $1 billion to acquire photo-sharing app Snapchat, in an attempt to attract the young crowd.
According to the Wall Street Journal, sources familiar with the matter disclosed Facebook's interest in the photo-sharing app. But Facebook's offer was turned down by Snapchat CEO Evan Spiegel for unspecified reasons, same sources said. This could have been a huge win for the social network after a recent finding from the Pew Research Center suggested teens are losing interest in Facebook.
Facebook's offer to acquire Snapchat for a sum of $1 billion is the exact same amount it had acquired another photo-sharing app, Instagram, last year. But the offered sum may not have convinced Spiegel enough to sell off his service, which is reportedly looking to raise its fundraising to $200 million at a valuation of $3 - $4 billion. This could be a clear reason for the company to harness its potential rather signing off a deal with Facebook.
Snapchat has grown immensely in recent months. In June, the company reported that it was processing up to 200 million "snaps" or messages each day. But the numbers have mounted since, and it reported nearly 350 million messages per day in September.
Both the companies declined to comment on the status of the report.