What's up Facebook? Zuckerberg buys WhatsApp for $19 billion

Social media giant Facebook has announced plans to acquire WhatsApp, a rapidly growing cross- platform mobile messaging company, for $19 billion in stock and cash. The acquisition will however, see WhatsApp run semi-independentally much like Instagram.

Facebook has posted on its blog, citing reasons behind the acquisition. The post states that the acquisition supports Facebook and WhatsApp's shared mission to bring more connectivity and utility to the world by delivering core internet services efficiently and affordably. The combination will help accelerate growth and user engagement across both companies.

Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook founder and CEO, said that WhatsApp is on a path to connect 1 billion people. The services that reach that milestone are all incredibly valuable.
WhatsApp co-founder and CEO, Jan Koum posted on WhatsApp blogpost about the acquisition saying that "WhatsApp will remain autonomous and operate independently. You can continue to enjoy the service for a nominal fee. You can continue to use WhatsApp no matter where in the world you are, or what smartphone you're using. And you can still count on absolutely no ads interrupting your communication."

Facebook's acquisition move is bigger than Google, Apple or Microsoft has ever done. Google's biggest acquisition Motorola Mobility was at $12.5 billion while Microsoft's largest was Skype at $8.5 billion. Apple has never done a deal above $1 billion.

Here we list down reaction tweets from around the world on the big money acquisition of WhatsApp by Facebook.

WhatsApp cofounder was turned down after interviewing @ FB & Twitter in '09. He stayed positive & made hella lemonade

- Roy Rodenstein (@royrod) February 20, 2014

And here's the tweet from WhatsApp owner Brian Acton from 2009, when facebook had turned his offer down.

Facebook turned me down. It was a great opportunity to connect with some fantastic people. Looking forward to life's next adventure.

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Superhandle -- Metallic Photo & Video Shooting Assistant---TECHNOBLOG

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Valve Steam controller review: Hands-on

Valve's has finally announced the hardware for its Steam gaming PC OS at CES .Check out our Valve Steam Controller hands-on

The long awaited Steam controller is designed to work with Valve's Steam OS, with the company unveiling a launch line-up of 14 Steam machines from various manufacturers at CES. The controller will be bundled with all of the new machines, though the brands will all have the option of designing their own controller as well. Valve Steam controller: Size and build The first thing we noticed about the light grey unit was how light it was - certainly lighter than the Xbox One and Sony PS4 controllers, although it does have a similar shape to the two next-gen controllers. We were told that the final units will probably be very slightly heavier once the wireless unit is in place, plus the battery (the demo unit was charged via micro USB) but the build will still be relatively light and comfy to hold. Valve Steam controller: Controls There are a staggering 16 buttons in total - you'll find the usual A, B, X, Y lineup - though they're not together, as you'd expect. Instead, they're placed around four central buttons. These sit in place of the touchscreen that was originally announced. You'll also get three pairs of triggers - one pair on the underside of the controller - plus two circular trackpads which are designed to produce the same movements as a PC mouse. All of the controls can be configured to different functions depending on your preference. One thing's for sure - it's going to take a while to get used with so many buttons and triggers on board. Valve Steam controller: Verdict We can't help but think that the controller we saw will change considerably before the final product arrives, but it sat comfortably in the hand and was very light. It'll certainly take some getting used to for PC gamers who are used to a keyboard and mouse, but we look forward to giving it a proper test when we can get our mitts on the finished article. Keep your eyes peeled for a full review. Valve Steam controller release date: 2014 Valve Steam controller price: TBC

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