Purch Acquires AnandTech, Dominates Tech Expert and Enthusiast Market
Leading content and commerce company adds respected mobile, computing, and IT reviews site to its brand portfolio
NEW YORK, NY (December 17, 2014) – Purch today announced the acquisition of AnandTech.com, a leader in mobile, computing and IT analysis and reviews. Purch’s industry-leading combination of high-quality content and integrated commerce experiences makes complex buying decisions easy for more than 100 million consumers and professionals monthly. With the acquisition of AnandTech, Purch furthers its mission to simplify purchase decisions for in-market tech consumers by adding one of the most popular computer components, hardware, and mobile reviews sites to a brand portfolio that already includes category heavyweight, Tom’s Hardware.
AnandTech has been at the forefront of the technological evolution, providing groundbreaking reviews and trend coverage of cutting-edge mobile and computing products since Anand Shimpi, one of the tech industry’s most authoritative and respected figures, founded it in 1997 at age 14.
“AnandTech has grown by leaps and bounds over the past several years, but we were nearing what’s possible as an independent company,” said Ryan Smith, editor-in-chief, AnandTech. “The challenge has always been that there are very few players in the publishing space these days who value deep, high-quality content. We wanted a partner that understood our values, had a sound business model to ensure AnandTech’s legacy would continue for years to come, and would allow us to grow and expand our readership without compromising the quality that made us who were are today. Purch provides all of these things. I am beyond excited about what we’ll be able to do with their support.”
“The addition of AnandTech to a brand portfolio that includes Tom’s Hardware, Tom’s Guide, and Top Ten Reviews unquestionably establishes Purch as the dominant provider of in-depth, quality technology content, serving technology buyers who want to ensure the value of their potential investments,” said Greg Mason, CEO, Purch. “Technology manufacturers, too, can be assured that their messages will reach any serious buyer. The two editorial teams represent the finest, most expert group of content talent in the technology space. ”
“AnandTech represents much of my life’s work over the past 18 years,” said Anand Shimpi, founder, AnandTech. “I am happy to see it end up with a partner committed to taking good care of the brand and its readers. I wouldn’t have had it any other way.”
Purch offers brands and advertisers unmatched reach to tens of millions of discerning in-market tech consumers and professionals each month. These tech “enthusiasts” look to the kind of detailed research, benchmark testing, and advice from category experts during their buying process for which Tom’s Hardware and AnandTech are known. Readers trust that advice because it is backed by nearly two decades of testing every mobile and PC component imaginable, and is supported by unprecedented input and guidance from the biggest, passionate community of like-minded enthusiasts.
Purch’s acquisition of AnandTech is the company’s most recent move in a series of strategic acquisitions and partnerships aimed at furthering its mission to ease complex buying decisions for shoppers and deliver branding and performance results to advertisers. In 2013, the company acquired the renowned “Tom’s” brand of tech media sites and, earlier this year, purchased BuyerZone, the leading online marketplace for SMB buyers and sellers. Purch’s ability to trigger buying decisions in an array of product categories is evidenced by the more than 7,000 marketers and sellers that come to Purch to connect with ready-to-buy consumers. Each year, Purch’s content-commerce combination drives more than one billion dollars in commerce transactions.
In addition to the acquisition, Purch is now the number one technology publisher in the U.S., [1] with a global readership of more than 100 million monthly unique visitors.
Terms of the agreement were not disclosed.
To find out more about Purch, visit www.purch.com or follow the company on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook.
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About Purch
Purch is a portfolio of digital brands and services that helps make complex buying decisions easy for 100 million consumers monthly. Its respected sites such as Top Ten Reviews, Tom’s Guide, Tom’s Hardware, and Live Science natively integrate commerce and content in more than 1000 product categories so consumers can make better choices before, during, and after an important purchase.
The company helps marketers achieve their branding and performance objectives in a high-quality, brand-safe context. Its sites connect in-market shoppers with more than 7,000 marketers and sellers, driving industry-leading conversion rates and $1 billion in commerce transactions annually.
Purch is a high-growth, privately held company with more than 350 employees and offices across the U.S. and Europe.
For more information on Purch, visit www.purch.com or follow the company on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook.
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[1] Source: comScore U.S. Media Metrix, Tech-News category ranking by unique visitors, PC audience, September 2014
345 Comments
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kizh - Tuesday, December 23, 2014 - link
you guys don't see it.He couldn't afford to compete with bandwidth. Instead of arguing if the site went downhill before now or it will after. Thing about this, its about net neutrality. And tech sites aren't the only things being consolidated its EVERYTHING from fast food to slow ass internet dualoplies at 10x the cost outside the United States. I've been around when toms was the place to go, I went here when it was bought out and turned to crap. Next I guess I go to HardOCP until they get bought out. Hopefully I'll die before I run out of sites :p
Wwhat - Tuesday, December 23, 2014 - link
Oh well, it was fun while it lasted and now we can see another entity sink into the world of corporate crap.dsumanik - Wednesday, December 24, 2014 - link
Lol we all know how "good" toms hardware become after its takeover... Get your ad blocker ready... And u guys are kidding yourselves this will not have en effect on the journalism. You have a boss now that will tell what to write when it means more clicks/ profits or payoffs from a vendor. Bye bye ATDFA-Havoc - Wednesday, December 24, 2014 - link
This makes me sick to my stomach.I believe the staff when they say they have no intentions of changing how they do things, and that they will walk if asked to compromise their integrity. However, like others who have posted, I have zero faith in AT's new corporate overlords supporting the autonomy of the staff indefinitely.
As AT's own staff have stated many times, competition is good for consumers. AT and Toms being under the same roof forebodes only ill. There's no way that Purch is going to keep paying two different teams to cover the same material forever, and I fear that AT will get pushed into focusing solely on mobile while Toms gets the entire PC hardware pie.
I also worry about AT becoming a cesspit of hostile advertisement like Toms. Using their site without some sort of adblock makes me want to rage-vomit uncontrollably and never return. You say that Purch should be given the benefit of the doubt, that much of the damage done to Toms was before they took the wheel, but consider this: They could have swept the site clean of the insidious/invasive advertisement fungus Day 1 of ownership, and instead it has remained in place for over a year.
The situation at Toms has not improved in the last year. Why should we believe that they will have any positive impact on AT instead of simply milking it for all the value it has studiously built over these many years, until both the readers and the writers walk away in disgust?
The AT staff may have good intentions, but they are no longer at the wheel. Purch may be allowing them to drive for now, but how long will that last?
I'm going to keep coming back, and I hope that I'm proven wrong... but I doubt it. :/
angryemo - Thursday, December 25, 2014 - link
Can i get back the news column / area that existed on the right side of the pane on the home page? It has been replaced by an ugly face book related area :(marvdmartian - Tuesday, December 30, 2014 - link
@angryemo, suggest you simply change your bookmark to read "dailytech.com". I've already added that to mine, and if AT doesn't hold onto its old ways, it will be leaving the list.kizh - Thursday, December 25, 2014 - link
to hear the truth:http://jakemkh.wordpress.com/2014/12/26/a-repeatin...
Ryan Smith - Monday, December 29, 2014 - link
"Keep comments here, not on Anand’s site please, you know they won’t last."To be exceedingly clear here, I have deleted a single comment from this thread. It was a piece of spam. No comments are being removed on the basis of content. That's not something we do.
Matt Campbell - Friday, December 26, 2014 - link
Best of luck guys, hope the transition goes smoothly and opens up new opportunities.ex_User - Saturday, December 27, 2014 - link
Yeah, baby, take the money and RUN!