Purch Acquires AnandTech, Dominates Tech Expert and Enthusiast Market
Leading content and commerce company adds respected mobile, computing, and IT reviews site to its brand portfolio
NEW YORK, NY (December 17, 2014) – Purch today announced the acquisition of AnandTech.com, a leader in mobile, computing and IT analysis and reviews. Purch’s industry-leading combination of high-quality content and integrated commerce experiences makes complex buying decisions easy for more than 100 million consumers and professionals monthly. With the acquisition of AnandTech, Purch furthers its mission to simplify purchase decisions for in-market tech consumers by adding one of the most popular computer components, hardware, and mobile reviews sites to a brand portfolio that already includes category heavyweight, Tom’s Hardware.
AnandTech has been at the forefront of the technological evolution, providing groundbreaking reviews and trend coverage of cutting-edge mobile and computing products since Anand Shimpi, one of the tech industry’s most authoritative and respected figures, founded it in 1997 at age 14.
“AnandTech has grown by leaps and bounds over the past several years, but we were nearing what’s possible as an independent company,” said Ryan Smith, editor-in-chief, AnandTech. “The challenge has always been that there are very few players in the publishing space these days who value deep, high-quality content. We wanted a partner that understood our values, had a sound business model to ensure AnandTech’s legacy would continue for years to come, and would allow us to grow and expand our readership without compromising the quality that made us who were are today. Purch provides all of these things. I am beyond excited about what we’ll be able to do with their support.”
“The addition of AnandTech to a brand portfolio that includes Tom’s Hardware, Tom’s Guide, and Top Ten Reviews unquestionably establishes Purch as the dominant provider of in-depth, quality technology content, serving technology buyers who want to ensure the value of their potential investments,” said Greg Mason, CEO, Purch. “Technology manufacturers, too, can be assured that their messages will reach any serious buyer. The two editorial teams represent the finest, most expert group of content talent in the technology space. ”
“AnandTech represents much of my life’s work over the past 18 years,” said Anand Shimpi, founder, AnandTech. “I am happy to see it end up with a partner committed to taking good care of the brand and its readers. I wouldn’t have had it any other way.”
Purch offers brands and advertisers unmatched reach to tens of millions of discerning in-market tech consumers and professionals each month. These tech “enthusiasts” look to the kind of detailed research, benchmark testing, and advice from category experts during their buying process for which Tom’s Hardware and AnandTech are known. Readers trust that advice because it is backed by nearly two decades of testing every mobile and PC component imaginable, and is supported by unprecedented input and guidance from the biggest, passionate community of like-minded enthusiasts.
Purch’s acquisition of AnandTech is the company’s most recent move in a series of strategic acquisitions and partnerships aimed at furthering its mission to ease complex buying decisions for shoppers and deliver branding and performance results to advertisers. In 2013, the company acquired the renowned “Tom’s” brand of tech media sites and, earlier this year, purchased BuyerZone, the leading online marketplace for SMB buyers and sellers. Purch’s ability to trigger buying decisions in an array of product categories is evidenced by the more than 7,000 marketers and sellers that come to Purch to connect with ready-to-buy consumers. Each year, Purch’s content-commerce combination drives more than one billion dollars in commerce transactions.
In addition to the acquisition, Purch is now the number one technology publisher in the U.S., [1] with a global readership of more than 100 million monthly unique visitors.
Terms of the agreement were not disclosed.
To find out more about Purch, visit www.purch.com or follow the company on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook.
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About Purch
Purch is a portfolio of digital brands and services that helps make complex buying decisions easy for 100 million consumers monthly. Its respected sites such as Top Ten Reviews, Tom’s Guide, Tom’s Hardware, and Live Science natively integrate commerce and content in more than 1000 product categories so consumers can make better choices before, during, and after an important purchase.
The company helps marketers achieve their branding and performance objectives in a high-quality, brand-safe context. Its sites connect in-market shoppers with more than 7,000 marketers and sellers, driving industry-leading conversion rates and $1 billion in commerce transactions annually.
Purch is a high-growth, privately held company with more than 350 employees and offices across the U.S. and Europe.
For more information on Purch, visit www.purch.com or follow the company on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook.
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[1] Source: comScore U.S. Media Metrix, Tech-News category ranking by unique visitors, PC audience, September 2014
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Impulses - Wednesday, December 17, 2014 - link
Because Kristian would probably never finish a comment otherwise...I kid! Is the site manager getting a raise and does it come with a side if edit button? :p
michal1980 - Thursday, December 18, 2014 - link
Kristian you know that's not true. Business and editorial are not separate. Google adsense called complaining about youtube downloaders, and you purged the forums.Kristian Vättö - Thursday, December 18, 2014 - link
Forums have absolutely nothing to do with editorial. Some of us editors are registered and post there, but we have no mod/admin rights or any say regarding what happens in the forums, including the recent Google issue (for the record, I didn't even hear/know about it until yesterday when reading through the acquisition thread).FlyTexas - Thursday, December 18, 2014 - link
Kristian,I get what you're saying, but to make such comments tells me that you've never lived through a corporate buy out.
I have... you're in for some enlightenment, if you're paying attention. It won't all come at once, it won't be an overnight shock, the idea is to ease everyone into the "new normal".
You can't toss a frog into boiling water, it jumps out. But you slowly turn up the heat and you're eating Frog Legs for dinner.
There is too much money to be saved by moving the deck chairs around, the hopeful comments by people in this form are rainbows and unicorns, the comments leaning towards "R.I.P." are likely from those who have lived it.
At the end of the day, always remember... "It isn't personal Sonny, it's just business".
Kristian Vättö - Thursday, December 18, 2014 - link
You are right that I haven't lived through an acquisition. Do I have concerns? Sure. Am I scared about the future? Hell yes. But at the same time I trust what Ryan has told us i.e. that we will remain editorially independent and there won't be any significant changes for us editors. I also trust that what Purch is feeding Ryan is true because I trust that Anand wouldn't do a deal that would hurt his work that he spent nearly 18 years building. Heck, the site still carries his name.If I had no belief for the future I might as well find the exit right now. I'm willing to give Purch the benefit of the doubt that they will handle this well and I think more of the commenters here should do so as well. Tom's isn't a good example because they had been acquired several times before, so the original team that built Tom's and its reputation has been long gone. We, on the other hand, are the same people who worked here under Anand and more importantly were trained and taught by Anand.
Nothing has changed for now -- I'm still working on the same review as I was earlier this week. If things change over time, then it's time for us both, readers and editors, to re-evaluate the situation. But let's not make any rushed conclusions yet.
alacard - Wednesday, December 17, 2014 - link
The almighty dollar wins again. Greed might be one of the most powerful forces in the universe.Anandtech, by doing this you've taken everything that made your site worth reading and have chucked it carelessly into the fire. I will take no joy in watching your decline into the clickbait abyss, but by selling yourself to the highest bidder i can't say it wasn't earned.
And the gradual decline of the fourth estate continues.
KPOM - Wednesday, December 17, 2014 - link
I'm sure Anand joining Apple was a big part of this. Now that he has no financial interest in AnandTech it frees him from conflicts of interest, and may actually improve independence at AT since it can't be claimed that Ryan et al were secretly acting to support Anand's new employer.Fx1 - Wednesday, December 17, 2014 - link
I have never seen a company get sold which ended up being a better company or a better place to work. Anand has cashed out. This was basically for his benefit and no one elses. Give it 18 months and this site will be finished.MonkeyPaw - Wednesday, December 17, 2014 - link
Just to be devil's advocate here, you most likely are going to hear about company buy outs that were bad for a reason--it gets more attention than the other way around. I worked at a place that bought out another company, and that old company seemed great, but it was managed unsustainably and was headed for bankruptcy. In that case, "the good ol' days" weren't going to last either way.So what of Anandtech? It's a wait and see game. Personally, I think most tech sites have fallen into a rut lately. Many aspects have flatlined because of the mobile push. Who buys desktop CPUs anymore? GPU tech is at a crawl. SOC advancement is slowing down. Much of this is due to process node barriers that are getting quite expensive to overcome. New smartphones are largely just spec bumps with needless increases in pixel density. With all of the above, tech sites start becoming product review sites (of which there are too many options to thoroughly review).
lopri - Wednesday, December 17, 2014 - link
It is perplexing that people take this news as a "sellout" of AnandTech. Isn't it the opposite? The previous owner was an Apple employee. Surely there would be an appearance of impropriety had he remained as an owner of the site while working for a company whose products he reviews. And it would be ridiculous for any of you to demand Anand to quit working at Apple and to keep running this site.