In what could be construed as the biggest deal in the Chinese internet history, well-known Chinese internet giant Alibaba has acquired the popular mobile browser maker UCWeb.
Alibaba has announced the acquisition of UCWeb, which is known for its UC Browser, for an undisclosed sum. While Alibaba already had a 66 percent share in the company, considering the revenues, it decided to fully acquire the company. While the exact amount of the deal is unknown, sources in the know claim that compensation was in the form of a mixture of cash and stocks.
As part of the acquisition, UCWeb CEO Yu Yongfu will join Alibaba’s strategic decision-making committee and all the 3000 UCWeb employees would be taken by Alibaba as the Ali UC mobile business group. Alibaba will control operations of the browser, mobile search, location-based services, mobile gaming, app store and mobile reader services.
Announcing the acquisition, Alibaba and UCWeb released a joint statement stating, “The move highlights the comprehensive integration of Alibaba and UCWeb following Alibaba’s investment in UCWeb in 2009 and 2013, and will enable deeper synergies between the companies by marrying Alibaba’s strengths in e-commerce, cloud computing and big data technology and UCWeb’s leading market position and technology in mobile.”
