Facebook finalizes purchase of Instagram, 5B photos shared
updated 05:00 pm EDT, Thu September 6, 2012
Deal completed after regulatory approval
The purchase of Instagram by Facebook has finally completed. The deal, initially worth $1 billion but now slightly devalued, sees staff from Instagram moving into Facebook's offices, with Facebook VP of Engineering Mike Schroepfer claiming the company is "committed to building and growing Instagram independently."
The deal endured a significant amount of scrutiny from regulatory bodies the Federal Trade Commission and the UK's Office of Fair Trading, who closed both their respective investigations and allowing the purchase to go through. The finalization comes at the same time as Instagram passing the 5 billion photo barrier, an average of 62 images being taken for its reported 80 million users.
Although the initial deal was worth $1 billion, it is believed that it is now $736.5 million, based on the $300 million in cash and 23 million in Facebook shares used for the purchase. [via TechCrunch]
