Twitter has announced its acquisition of Scroll, a startup service that enables Internet users to read articles with all of the extraneous bits like advertisements removed. The company notes that Scroll will play a role in its subscription service plans, joining Twitter's newsletter plan with its recent Revue acquisition.
AOL and Yahoo can perhaps be considered relics of the Internet's past. One of the first communication platforms and search engines, respectively, the two have long been displaced from their markets and have never fully recovered. There has been no shortage of attempts to revive their brands or embark on new ventures but those might have finally come to an end now that Verizon has sold the two off, along with the rest of Verizon Media, to an equity firm better known for owning one of Las Vegas's most popular resort hotels.
Google quietly acquired Dysonics, a 3D audio startup, back in December 2020, according to a new report. The discovery was made via a recent USPTO filing and seemingly confirmed by multiple employees who now list Google as their employer on LinkedIn. Though Google hasn't commented on the acquisition, the nature of the startup hints at a bright future for Pixel Buds and Nest speakers.
The anti-Instagram, VSCO, may be acquired by photo board company Pinterest, according to a new leak. Though the sources caution that a deal may not ultimately materialize, they claim that talks are taking place between the two companies about a potential acquisition, one that would put VSCO under Pinterest's control.
Microsoft already has at least two communications platforms so what's the harm in having one more. For a time, Skype seemed to be its one chatting and calling solution until Slack and later Zoom forced it to grow Microsoft Teams. Now it might be taking on yet another communication, this time with a bent towards gaming, as Redmond gets deep into talks about buying Discord for a lot more than its recently valued worth.
Dish Network has announced plans to acquire Republic Wireless, the ultra-cheap MVNO wireless service that offers data-only plans and more. Once the acquisition deal closes, Dish will have control over the Republic Wireless brand and various 'supporting assets,' earning itself around 200,000 wireless customers.
Electronic Arts today announced that its acquisition of Codemasters is complete. That acquisition was wrapped up pretty fast, as it was only announced back at the beginning of December. The deal sees Electronic Arts buying up Codemasters in a $1.2 billion deal, getting all of the franchises Codemasters owns in the process.
Online publishing platform Medium has acquired Glose, a Paris-based online ebook store that includes some robust social features. The company announced the business deal on Friday, stating that it will integrate Glose with its platform to bring more than 1.5 million ebooks -- and the related Glose features -- to its users.
Gaming accessories company Turtle Beach has acquired Neat Microphones, the company behind a variety of uniquely-designed analog and USB microphones. Demand for microphones has increased as more consumers take up gaming streaming, podcasting, and other activities that require high-end microphones. The announcement comes ahead of Neat's 2021 product launches.
This week Niantic announced that they'd acquired the company called Mayhem. This acquisition was made for what Niantic described as a reinforcement of their commitment to "real-world social as the centerpiece of our mission." In other words: They're aiming to take a more firm grasp on the masses of gamers playing Pokemon GO out there in the real world.
![Twitter buys Breaker social podcast app to boost new Spaces [UPDATED]](https://www.slashgear.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/0_OARaC8VMq7rmOXew-1280x720.jpg)
Twitter has long been trying to find ways to grow beyond its core nature of broadcasting short snippets of text. It bought Vine long before short looping videos became a fad and Periscope when live streaming was just beginning to gain traction. Both are now dead (Periscope shuts down in March) but Twitter has again branched of with Instagram Stories-like Fleets and audio chat Spaces, the latter of which might just get a bit of boost with Twitter's latest acquisition.
Soon after a leak revealing as much, Amazon has officially acquired Wondery, an independent podcast network that'll help the Internet retailer take on Spotify and other big competitors. The news comes only weeks after Amazon greatly expanded its podcast offerings through Music, the company's streaming service, and around a year after Spotify acquired Gimlet Media.