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.

[1] Source: comScore U.S. Media Metrix, Tech-News category ranking by unique visitors, PC audience, September 2014

AnandTech Acquired By Purch
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  • Ilias78 - Friday, December 19, 2014 - link

    Ok then on a more serious note and on a politely manner: From my experience from working in three different companies in all my years of employment, when people leave its either because A) they fumbled big time or B) they found something better with more money. And im guessing that B) is the answer here when it comes to Anand, Dustin, Vivek and Brian. I was mostly surprised by Anand's choice, because its litteraly the other way around of what you would expect him to do: Most people get employed by someone else, with the aspiration to build something of their own in the future. Anand LEFT something that he built on his own and went to work under somebody else. As much as i try to understand it, i cant (so you can understand that my "outrage" earlier, came from a lot of dissapointment from seeing Anand go). Now as for the PC hardware coverage... you guys still do the BEST motherboard, CPU and Videocard reviews out there, clean and thorough. I liked your work and i was sad to see it diminishing over the years. Thats all. My apologies for the previous rant.
  • at80eighty - Sunday, December 21, 2014 - link

    That's sobering to hear. Keep fighting the good fight Jarred & team. Fuck the haters
  • FunBunny2 - Thursday, December 18, 2014 - link

    To be fair: Anand's new (old?) employer there in Cupertino stopped being a computer company and morphed into an appliance company about a decade ago. "Fast enough" applies across the board. 3-D NAND might change the plateauing of semi-conductor tech a bit, but the fact is: humans know all there is to know about how the universe works. We've just made the parts a tad smaller. Has that made any real difference in our lives? Well, you can not only pop your pimples on the subway, but play games on a device that you may never actually use to talk to another human being. You could, if you wanted to, of course. This is progress?
  • ABR - Wednesday, December 17, 2014 - link

    I can't think of anything good to say so I won't say anything.
  • MikeMurphy - Wednesday, December 17, 2014 - link

    Thank you all for the many years of hard work and excellent reviews.
  • frozentundra123456 - Wednesday, December 17, 2014 - link

    Trying to keep an open mind, but cant see much good coming of this. Reading the release, it seems like the focus is going to shift even more to mobile, which is the exact opposite of what I would like to see. I pretty much just follow the site now for the forums anyway, since in depth testing and benchmarking have been getting less and less common for a long time now.
  • coburn_c - Wednesday, December 17, 2014 - link

    Let me guess, Anandtech will become the mobile site and TomsShillware will take over true hardware.
  • savagemike - Wednesday, December 17, 2014 - link

    When Anand left the day-to-day my initial reaction was fear that a long time resource for me would decline in value. Now the fear strikes anew I must say.
    Still - only the future knows. I'm still reading Anandtech for deeper insights and hopefully I'll be able to continue to do that and have faith in the information for a long time to come.
  • plonk420 - Wednesday, December 17, 2014 - link

    did you guys click on the Purch link? they own Tom's.
  • jmunjr - Wednesday, December 17, 2014 - link

    I already see DailyTech content missing.. As annoying as a lot of their stuff could be I liked seeing it listed on AT. I'm likely going to be coming here less often.

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