Mozilla, the non-profit global Internet community has acquired Pocket, a save-for-later service originally known as Read It Later, for an undisclosed amount. This is reportedly Mozilla’s first strategic acquisition, and the company plans to operate Pocket as an independent subsidiary.
With this move, Mozilla hopes to pave its way into mobile devices, an area where it is yet to make a mark. It further aims to provide its users with powerful tools to discover and access high quality web content, on their terms, independent of platform or content silo.
“We believe that the discovery and accessibility of high quality web content is key to keeping the internet healthy by fighting against the rising tide of centralization and walled gardens. Pocket provides people with the tools they need to engage with and share content on their own terms, independent of hardware platform or content silo, for a safer, more empowered and independent online experience,” said Chris Beard, CEO, Mozilla.
Pocket provides a platform to users through which they can save, share, and consume the content worthy of their time and attention. It first launched itself as a Firefox extension, after which it expanded its team to build a suite of apps for every major browser.
“We’ve really enjoyed partnering with Mozilla over the past year. We look forward to working more closely together to support the ongoing growth of Pocket and to create great new products that people love in support of our shared mission,” said Nate Weiner, CEO, Pocket.
With this acquisition, Pocket is making a homecoming by joining Mozilla’s product portfolio as a new product line alongside the Firefox web browsers with a focus on promoting the discovery and accessibility of high quality web content. According to Beard, Pocket’s core team and technology will also accelerate Mozilla’s broader Context Graph initiative.
According to a Mozilla blogpost, Pocket brings 10 million unique monthly active users on iOS, Android and the Web, with more than 3 billion pieces of content saved to date.