Professional social network LinkedIn has agreed to acquire the news reader and mobile content distribution platform, Pulse.
LinkedIn is expected to pay about $90m in a combination of stock and cash, with about 90% stock issued in a private placement and about 10% in cash.
Subject to the completion of customary regulatory conditions, the acquisition is expected to be completed in the second quarter of 2013.
LinkedIn Products and User Experience SVP Deep Nishar said: "To continue to deliver that value to our members, our vision for content is that LinkedIn will be the definitive professional publishing platform, and Pulse is a perfect complement to this vision."
With the acquisition, the current Pulse apps will continue to be supported as the Pulse and LinkedIn teams will jointly work to make future generations of professional content consumption products.
Pulse was founded in 2010 by two Stanford University students, Akshay Kothari and Ankit Gupta. It currently has more than 30 million users on iOS and Android-based platforms in more than 190 countries.
Pulse co-founder Akshay Kothari said: "Over the past three years, Pulse has established itself as a key part of that conversation; it has grown from a small project, to a platform for millions of readers to access their favourite content."
Pulse co-founder Ankit Gupta said, "Now that our team is part of LinkedIn, we’ll work together to expand the possibilities for content discovery, helping readers engage in conversations with colleagues, mentors, industry leaders, and beyond."
