Well, there goes the neighborhood. Zite — the personalized magazine for iPad — just got gobbled up by CNN.
We love Zite here at CoM. Basically, you tell it what you’re interested in and it serves you up a daily digest of news; if you don’t like a story or a source, you vote it down, and it personalizes a magazine just for you.
As a guy who hates CNN as much as he loves Zite, this deal concerns me. Here’s what KC Estenson, GM of CNN Digital says about the deal:
Zite represents the next generation of content discovery and personalized publishing and CNN wants to help lead in that space. We think we can advance the industry in a meaningful way that helps content creators grow their businesses while growing the distribution of a product that people already love. Zite’s technology can also be used to help CNN’s Websites and apps serve more personalized content, making our current digital services even better.
And here’s what Mark Johnson, CEO of Zite, has to say:
Zite is thrilled about combining forces with CNN to create a world-class news discovery platform. In CNN, we have found a partner who shares our vision and passion. Being part of the CNN family gives us the capital to grow Zite’s business and continue to innovate in the space.
Apparently, CNN paid up to $25 million for the acquisition. I guess congratulations to the Zite guys are in order.
John Brownlee is a writer for Fast Company, and a contributing writer here at CoM. He has also written for Wired, Playboy, Boing Boing, Popular Mechanics, VentureBeat, and Gizmodo. He lives in Boston with his wife and two parakeets. You can follow him here on Twitter.
10 responses to “CNN Buys iOS App Zite For $25 Million”
i have become a big fan of zite in the last month. love it. i hope this doesn’t affect it negatively.
Big fan of Zite too, but I’m afraid it’s doomed now. In light of this, I may use FlipBoard more.
It’s all a matter of independence for operation. If CNN turns it into another lack luster means of dolling out their drivel, then Zite is hosed. If CNN lets them function as before but provides resources to the product, even if it takes on a fair bit more CNN content, then it might just be a very good thing for the platform.
‘…hates CNN as much as he loves Zite….’ I’m with you… This deal concerns me a LOT! CNN is at the bottom of the barrel when it comes to reporting ‘news’ and has done WORSE in it’s use of technology.. It won’t take long to find out.
I’m a fan of both Zite and FlipBoard. If FB would allow more feeds I could certainly forget about Zite though.