Google has purchased smartphone app maker Bump. The 5-year-old startup is responsible for creating an app that allows users to wireless share files, photos, videos and contacts simply by “bumping” devices together.
Bump CEO and co-founder David Lieb announced the acquisition on the company’s official blog earlier today which was later confirmed by Google. Terms of the deal were not made public although at least one source said the deal was valued between $30 million and $60 million.
Bump got its start in 2008 with the self-titled app, managing to raise nearly $20 million in funding from multiple high profile venture firms including Andreessen Horowitz and Sequoia Capital. Interest in Bump waned over time, however, prompting the company to launch the more recent app called Flock – an app for group photo albums.
A Google spokesperson told CNET the Bump team has demonstrated a strong ability to quickly build and develop products that users love and thus, will be a great fit at Google. Lieb said Bump couldn’t be more thrilled to join Google, a company that shares their belief that the application of computing to difficult problems can fundamentally change the way that we interact with one another and the world.
The timing of the acquisition is interesting in that it comes just ahead of Apple’s iOS 7, the company’s latest mobile operating system that includes a feature called AirDrop to wirelessly share content between iOS devices.
Both apps will remain operational under Google’s ownership, at least for the immediate future. The Bump blog post encourages visitors to stay tuned for future updates.
