Verizon, which has been trying to get rid of Tumblr for months and allegedly considering selling it to Pornhub in May, has finally unloaded the once-mighty blogging platform… for a mere $3m.
WordPress’ parent company, Automattic, made the purchase
Automattic, which is privately owned and is said to be considering an IPO, likely bought the beleaguered blogosphere to tack on a well-known, public-facing division to it business.
Automattic will reportedly also take on Tumblr’s 200 remaining staffers and plans — to the frustration of many bloggers — to continue the controversial ban on porn that Verizon implemented last year.
But Tumblr may survive after all…
In spite of the chaos surrounding its numerous ownership changes, Tumblr still hosts more than 450m blogs.
So, depending on Automattic’s plans, this latest purchase could finally give the platform enough stability to let its users do what they really want… blog about ugly renaissance babies in peace.
Unlike Yahoo (which bought Tumblr for the now-infamous price of $1.1B in 2013) and Verizon, Automattic is known for its commitment to open source web design — which could help the company succeed where so many others have failed.
