Micro blogging giant Twitter has acquired third-party client TweetDeck in a deal worth $US40 million, according to TechCrunch, with an announcement expected over the next few days.
The report claims that, based on knowledge from sources “close to the deal”, TweetDeck will be acquired for a combination of cash and Twitter stock.
The report also comes after a previous acquisition was almost closed off in February. But TechCrunch reports that Twitter made a generous counter-bid and the company felt it was a more generous offer.
It reports the deal was in some ways defensive, as Twitter attempts to stop TweetDeck from taking too much power in the third-party client space.
TweetDeck is a prime example of how many Twitter users organise their feeds, using clients rather than the Twitter.com site or official app. TweetDeck users enjoy a combination of iOS and desktop clients to read their tweets.
These third-party clients have become a problem for Twitter, as they cannot display the promoted tweets that serve as advertising for the company. Perhaps a reworked version of the TweetDeck client will integrate ads.
Patrick Stafford is a freelance journalist and a former deputy editor of SmartCompany.
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