The application of free calls and messages over the Internet, the well-known Viber , has just been acquired by a Japanese giant named Rakuten A movement focused on expanding the possibilities of what is known as the Japanese version of Amazon, in order to grow beyond Asian borders. A transaction valued at an amount of 900 million dollars and that does not stop catching the media off guard after the recent rumors about the possible purchase of Viber by an Asian company.
However, now the rumors are coming true, and far from being a communication company and offering between 300 and 400 million as a speculated price, the result has been 900 million paid by a company dedicated to commerce over the Internet A company whose name is known for its growing presence not only in Japan, where it comes from, but also because of the recent purchases it is making to extend its influence outside the Asian market.
And it is that Rakuten, in addition to being the Japanese Amazon , has been in charge of acquiring the platform Kobo e-reader or electronic books, the service Spanish of videos on the Internet Wuaki.tv and being the main investor in the social network Pinterest , among other businesses. A name that is beginning to be known and that seeks to break through in the different Internet services.
Thus, its CEO or Executive Director, Hiroshi Mikitani, affirms that Viber "perfectly complements" your goals to “access new markets where you can offer different digital content” All this while welcoming Viber within the Rakuten family, and praising high-quality content and the VoIP service (Internet calls) that this application offers its users.
Viber continues to be one of the top alternatives in the field of applications of messaging. And it is that in the last year it has been working on presenting itself as a company with its own business model and renewing itself to be up to date. Proof of this is not only the visual change that was introduced several months ago, but also the introduction of stickers or emoticons for conversations.With them would also come his content store, where he could present new collections for users, in addition to getting direct income and continuing to avoid the and a payment model for the use of the application.
A tool that is also multiplatform and that stands out for going beyond messages, giving the option to free calls over the Internet without limits. In addition, it has also introduced a paid calls service to be able to contact landlinesfrom anywhere on the planet for a minimal cost. A feature called Viber Out and which was released after the disaster caused in Philippines by the passage of a typhoon Issues that have led it to have a base of 300 million users all over the world. Something that could now be enhanced thanks to the support of the giant RakutenAt the moment it is unknown if the purchase of this application will directly affect its operation or its users.
