Yahoo! CEO Marissa Mayer's bold move to buy online blogging forum Tumblr for $1.1 billion was announced on Monday as she tries to rejuvenate an Internet icon that had fallen behind the times.

The deal is Yahoo!'s most expensive acquisition since the California company bought online search engine Overture a decade ago for $1.3 billion in cash and stock.

Yahoo'!s board of directors agreed on Sunday to buy the wildly popular blogging platform from the 26-year-old founder David Karp.

The deal for Tumblr, which boasts 100million users and 90million posts per day, was struck for $1.1billion cash.

The deal makes Karp, a native New Yorker, the latest 20-something tech tycoon, even though he was publicly opposed, even just last year, to selling the company he founded out of his mother's small Manhattan apartment in 2007.

On Monday morning, Mayer publicly announced the purchase of Tumblr with a post on her own Tumblr page - including an animated GIF image that acknowledged the public questions about the acquisition.

Her first words about the deal were: 'We promise not to screw it up.'

Mayer announced that Karp will stay on as CEO of Tumblr and continue to run and develop the site.

Despite a massive user base, Tumblr's revenue was only $13million last year. Even that figure was only made possible after $125million in capital investments.

The deal also faced almost immediate backlash from Tumblr users, who feared Yahoo!'s ownership would change the character of the site and water down the features that make it successful.

Mayer sought to allay concerns on both sides - and even used an internet meme to make light of the criticism. The GIF she posted reads: 'Yahoo. Tumblr. Now Panic and Freak Out.'

Instead, Mayer urged users and Yahoo! investors alike the 'Keep Calm and Carry On' - a reference to a famous British propaganda poster produced during World War II.

Tech news site AllThingsD reports that Mayer, who took over as Yahoo! CEO in July, wanted to quickly snatch up Tumbler as 'the stake in the ground of what her strategy is going forward for Yahoo!.'

Tumblr, which is a mico-blogging platform for quickly posting pictures, text and video, also functions as a social media site.

Its platform manages to blend elements of all of the major social networking sites. Sharing and posting photos is simple and easy, like Instagram. GIFs and videos are all easy to share, as well. But, the site also has a new feed function, allowing users to follow other Tumblr blogs like social media networks Facebook and Twitter.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2326998/Yahoo-buys-Tumblr-1-1billion-Founder-David-Karp-tech-tycoon.html

When is Seun going to sell Nairaland?

oh boy

We don hear oh, anyway first to comment

Black Peni5: When is Seun going to sell Nairaland?

And what has nairaland got to do with the topic at hand?

Shouldn't Yahoo be selling rather than buying?

SimonAndal: [size=18pt]I wanna say over-priced, but knowing how these things work.....

Good job, lad![/size]

It's not overpriced cos the possibilities are endless.

David karp dun furrk up
upon the 75 naira wey I promise am.

Hearing about 26 year olds selling billion dollar companies is making my 20-something self feel old.

Abeg sweet little baby Jesus please make me accomplish my dreams!

See money!

My own blog shall also get there.
http://somuchtake..com/2013/05/nigerias-simplest-internet-money-making.html

But I don pass 26 by far sha.

i want to buy nairaland for 8.8 trillion naira.i earnestly hope seun would change his mind this time and do business. nairaland would make a nice garri selling joint to the world.

I dey go create my own, I go name am amunna !

if you still think you must get a Phd before you get rich or that you must waste the next 10years of your life climbing up the career ladder, then you would be spending the money inside your grave. IT is the way!!!

I thought I saw yahoo boys

adeaugustus: if you still think you must get a Phd before you get rich or that you must waste the next 10years of your life climbing up the career ladder, then you would be spending the money inside your grave. IT is the way!!!

If I go into ICT, my generator bill will be too high!

i don't think yahoo can manage it the way the guy is managing it.
is just like NAIRALAND na... if Oga Seun no dey, dis place is dead
i hop say these mods no go ban me

bobthebuilder99:

If I go into ICT, my generator bill will be too high!

Lame excuse!!! This country is fcked up, agreed! but that's not gonna change overnight.

I will have to pay more attention to my programming skills, young guys are hitting it big.

Very bad business deal

alpha conde: I thought I saw yahoo boys

Me too. I actually thought it saw " Yahoo boys tumble for $1.1 billion"

Oga Seun, are you thinking what I'm thinking?

yahoo shld also buy Yahoo boys na

take as much as u can abeg..naija is at end

alpha conde: I thought I saw yahoo boys

Very funny

I saw this coming

martinseme: i want to buy nairaland for 8.8 trillion naira.i earnestly hope seun would change his mind this time and do business. nairaland would make a nice garri selling joint to the world.

U no go crack person ribs dude

I guess they could generate a lot of money by placing their ads on tumblr blogs, but their ad tech isn't very good; they would be better off putting google ads on those tumblr blogs.