Skip to main content

Flipboard acquires news reader app Zite from CNN

Flipboard acquires news reader app Zite from CNN

Share this story

Flipboard announced today that it has acquired magazine app Zite from CNN, and will begin syndicating CNN's content inside Flipboard beginning today. The company didn't disclose the price tag on the acquisition, but CNNMoney reports that it's $60 million. CNN paid about $25 million when it acquired Zite in mid-2011.

$60 million is the price tag

Flipboard says that it will stop updating Zite, but will add some of its capabilities to Flipboard. This includes magazines and content from CNN sources like Fareed Zakaria. "Flipboard has proven to be one of the biggest drivers of traffic so syndicating out content into Flipboard will see us creating custom magazines for our shows and talent," CNN's head of digital KC Estenson says. In addition, Flipboard also announced that it would soon debut new full-page brand ads to its users built around CNN content. "[It's] the kinds of advertising you see in print magazines," Estenson added.

Flipboard, which generates 2.5 billion page views per month and adds 250,000 new users every day, says that the deal is about both content and technology. Zite's personalization technology was of particular interest, which customizes content based on each user's interests. As Flipboard positions itself as the news reading app of the future, owning your social feeds as well as premium news feeds like CNN and Vogue could be the name of the game.