Yahoo buys social data platform Vizify
Yahoo recently acquired Vizify, a startup that turns social media data into visual aids such as infographics and videos. The plan has been in the works for several months, but details about the terms of the technology merger were not disclosed.
In a statement on its website, Vizifiy said that the company's founders began meeting Yahoo representatives last summer to discuss ways that data could be displayed.
"As our conversations progressed, we realized we'd found a partner who shared our passion for user experience, design, and visualizing information," the statement reads. "Ultimately, we just couldn't say no to the opportunity to bring our vision to the hundreds of millions of people who use Yahoo every day."
Portland, Oregon-based Vizify was founded in 2011 and raised $1.4 million before its July 2012 launch. With the service, users are able to promote themselves to recruiters on a personal website that contains an infographic that highlights important aspects of their work histories. The information on the page is culled from several social networking sites.
Vizify said that it is shutting down its service in its current form, but will be giving out refunds to all users of the platform. Subscribers will also be able to claim ownership of their existing domains for free.
This latest technology acquisition is just the latest in a string of recent purchases that Yahoo has made. Last year it bought personalization technology startups Stamped, Summly and Sparq, in addition to forming a $10 million partnership with Carnegie Mellon University to further its goals with machine learning algorithms.