After several years of what the two companies call “friendly competition” social media management software vendor Hootsuite announced the acquisition of one of its main competitors, Seesmic.
Announced in a blog posting on the Hootsuite web site, the vendor said it will continue to support the Seesmic platform while transitioning business users to HootSuite’s larger social media management toolset. Consumer users of Seesmic will be encouraged to explore new tools, apps and features available at Twitter.com. Eventually, users will be transitioned to one platform.
“I have always had a lot of respect for Seesmic’s CEO, Loïc Le Meur and the role Seesmic has played in advancing social business.” said HootSuite CEO, Ryan Holmes, in a statement. “We are thrilled to welcome Seesmic’s users into the HootSuite family.”
LeMeur added Seesmic hasalways been big fans of Holmes and the HootSuite team.
“We’re thrilled today to announce that Seesmic is joining HootSuite, and we’re excited for our users: they are becoming part of the HootSuite family, and they will be able to continue to build their brand and social business,” said Le Meur.
Vancouver-based Hootsuite Media Inc. sold a $20 million stake in its social media monitoring software in March to equity fund OMERS Ventures, valuing the firm at $200 million. Holmes said at the time it would allow the vendor to continue to grow, removing the pressure for an early exit.
