On Monday, Facebook Inc. (Nasdaq: FB) announced the acquisition of start-up Onavo Ltd., named as one of Israel's most promising start-ups by "Globes" in 2012. The acquisition is reportedly for $150 million. Onavo's office in Ramat Gan will stay open and it will become Facebook's development center in Israel. Onavo plans to continue offering its current apps under its own label after the acquisition.
Onavo's exit is impressive, with a tenfold return on investment. The company raised $13 million, from Li Ka-shing’s Horizons Ventures, Motorola Mobility Ventures, Sequoia Capital and Magma Venture Partners.
Onavo's founders, CEO Guy Rosen and CTO Roi Tiger, will rake in $50 million on the company's sale.
Onavo was founded in 2010 and has 40 employees at its offices in Ramat Gan and at Palo Alto. The company develops mobile analytics apps for users to save money on their smartphones. A problem with smartphones is that they are profligate with their consumption of data, which is not a big problem if the user is in Israel and has fixed plans, but becomes critical when the user is overseas and can result in thousands of shekels in charges.
Onavo's solution is an app for iPhone and Android devices, which can cut data consumption by 80% by reducing the data that the smartphone transfers online. A few months ago, it expanded into IT security, with its Protect app to protect smartphones from malware-infected sites and fraudulent sites seeking to steal private information.
Facebook plans to integrate Onavo with its Internet.org project. A Facebook spokesperson told "AllThingsD", “We expect Onavo’s data compression technology to play a central role in our mission to connect more people to the Internet, and their analytic tools will help us provide better, more efficient mobile products.”
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on October 14, 2013
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