Ebay Aquires Stumbleupon

Ebay has acquired Stumbleupon for $75 Million (approx £40 Million) in what some observers are critisising as a “me too” kid running around the Web 2.0 playground. Not necessariy so, read on…

What is Stumbleupon? 

In a nutshell, it’s a site that suggests web sites based on reader reviews and personal preferences of its members.

This is what Bill Cobb, president of Ebay N. America had to say about the purchase:

“StumbleUpon offers a unique finding experience that introduces people to interesting and relevant web content that has been recommended by others in the community with similar interests. StumbleUpon is a great way to explore the Internet when you’re not sure what you are looking for, or when you want to make discoveries around your particular interests.”

 Smart Move?

I think so, as the purchase gives Ebay access to over 2.3 million people who have eagerly filled out profiles at StumbleUpon.   More importantly, it allows Ebay to take the lead in the latest hype… Web 3.0 -yup, you heard right, web3.0!- I didn’t even know it existed until I read about this purchase! 

What’s Web 3.0? 

Well is basically smarter search, pairing your run of the mill internet search capabilities with users’ personal data and aggregated community data, to deliver more relevant and accurate results than a standard search engines such as Google.

At the end of the day, what is $75 million for a company that has cash reserves of over $3.5 Billion!  Well done Ebay!