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Episode 38: Automattic Buys Tumblr from Verizon
Released: Aug 13, 2019
The Wall Street Journal reported on Monday, August 12, 2019 that Verizon is selling social media and blogging platform Tumblr to Automattic for an undisclosed sum, though rumors state that it may be as low as $3 million dollars. After the announcement, Automattic CEO Matt Mullenweg discussed the news on PostStatus, stating that they plan to migrate infrastructure off of Verizon, move Tumblr's backend to WordPress, and support the same APIs on both WP.com and Tumblr. Mullenweg noted on PostStatus that this acquisition is "by far the largest investment or acquisition Automattic has ever made." In this episode, we discuss the implications for Tumblr, WordPress, and Automattic.