Photo Credit: PR

Mobli Media, the Israeli startup behind the photo sharing app by the same name, and the single syllable texting platform phenom YO announced the acquisition of content sharing platform Pheed in a cash and stock deal today.

Pheed was founded in 2012 by O.D. Kobo, Bruce Witz, Phil Haus and Tony DeNiro. Since then the social network has managed to capture the attention of news outlets who have heralded the young startup for its full-stack sharing platform that includes voice notes, music, video, photos, and of course, text.

In the wake of such praise, the company has seen modest results and now boasts a respectable though hardly eye catching 5 million users.

It is about the money

In contrast to user driven crazy purchase prices, as seen most notably with Facebook’s bank breaking $19B purchase of WhatsApp, what has attracted Mobli to Pheed is their pioneering concept of content monetization.

Moshe Hogeg, Founder and CEO of Mobli, confirmed this assertion, saying, “Content monetization is a continuous challenge. We are passionate about giving our users possibilities to monetize their content and Pheed has taken strides in this direction. We are excited for the future of Pheed as a part of the Mobli family.”

Mobli plans to invest $10 million in the remake of Pheed, which will remain a stand-alone platform.

Though this may be a pittance in the grand scheme of the texting wars, Facebook should still be taking notes. After a few more large-scale acquisitions, it may need to start pinching its pennies like the rest of us.