Both Google Inc. (GOOG) and Yahoo Inc. (YHOO) have started talking with Flipboard Inc. about a potential acquistion. This all comes after negotiations with Twitter broke down in mid-April. According to WSJ, Flipboard's valuation is hovering around $1 billion. Meanwhile, the app's growth is almost entirely attributed to it being preinstalled on Samsung smartphones for the last 4 years. However, those days are now over as Samsung looks to clean up its act this year.
One might think that Flipboard's technology might be driving the valuation, but no, it's probably not. Despite its unique user interface and user experience, the app recently open sourced its secret sauce React Canvas and there are several copycat repositories available on GitHub. A college CS major could reverse engineer Flipboard in a week with Parse.com or Meteor.js.
This whole thing appears to just be about user acquisition and talent. A $1 billion price tag for 65 million MAUs translates to $15.38 per user.
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Read more at The Wall Street Journal
Chart courtesy of Statistica.com.
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