

IPad mag app Zite to be acquired by CNN with a $20-25M pricetag - bond
http://venturebeat.com/2011/08/22/zite-acquisition-rumor/

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kwis
Congrats to the Zite team. You made one of my favorite apps, and whether you
continue development at CNN or move on to other ventures, I wish you the best
and look forward to seeing what you do next.

Zite is one of the most used apps on my iPad, and has been for ages. I
would've happily given you a few dollars for it, but I guess this worked out
well for everyone.

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bstar77
I think I use Zite more than any other app on my iPad. I just removed Pulse
after realizing Zite suited me much better. Not crazy having CNN owning the
app, I'll have to see if the sources and quality changes. If I see one CNN
article loaded inappropriately the app is gone.

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rjd
Yep exactly the same boat as you. My heart sank a little when I read the head
line, I hope the quality stays in place.

I still use pulse for visual stuff and high traffic blogs (like engadget doign
a hundred articles a day). But Zite was right on the money for me, and no
gimicky crap like flipboard. That false page turning rubbish ruined the
immersion for me.

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tchock23
I'm a huge fan of the Zite app. In fact, it's one of the only apps I use on my
iPad. I'm surprised at the $20-$25M price tag (assuming that is what it sells
for). Not sure how you would monetize something like this, although I gladly
would have paid something for it.

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rjd
If I was in charge of the strategy of it I wouldn't monetise the app directly,
I'd probably work on a click through model. Tempt people to open full articles
laden with paid ads. Try and push targetted content.

But alas the content on Zite was part of its charm, so it will probably ruin
it :/ I'd rather pay a few dollars and have the same content.

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deyan
Quite disappointing to hear that they didn't swing for the fences - especially
given that Zite was doing well, is arguably better than Flipboard, and news
consumption is a major use case for tablets in general.

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jbail
Swing for the fences?

I'd say they swung for the fences and knocked it out the park. The app is
great and it doesn't surprise me to see them get acquired. $25 million ain't
chump change and it's definitely well deserved.

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deyan
Respectfully and realizing it is all relative, $25M is not swinging for the
fences. By a very long shot. It is a great outcome for them certainly, but not
swinging for the fences.

