AOL Acquires TechCrunch to Bolster Its Blog Network

As rumored, AOL has announced that it bought TechCrunch, the company behind the eponymous tech blog and a number of related blogs. No financial details have been discussed.

The blog and AOL insist that the acquisition will have no effect on the editorial content of TechCrunch. AOL already owns a number of popular tech blogs, with Engadget standing out, but also mainstream blogs like TMZ.

“Michael and his colleagues have made the TechCrunch network a byword for breaking tech news and insight into the innovative world of start-ups, and their reputation for top-class journalism precisely matches AOL’s commitment to delivering the expert content critical to this audience,” Tim Armstrong, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of AOL, said.

"Tim Armstrong and his team have an exciting vision for the future of AOL as a global leader in creating and delivering world-class content to consumers, be it through original content creation, partnerships or acquisitions," Mike Arrington, TechCrunch founder and leading figure said.

The acquisition was officially announced, fittingly, on TechCrunch by Tim Armstrong. Later, Arrington explained why AOL was a good fit for the tech blog and why the deal made sense.

One reason TechCrunch sold, Arrignton says, is that AOL's tech platform and expertise enables the blog to focus on the writing and the more important engineering problems than just trying to keep it running.

It also makes business sense, he says, since AOL already has an established ad network and dedicated ad sales team. The fact that they also have a great events team also helped, since AOL will also be taking over the conference business.

The first announcement was actually made on stage at the TechCrunch Disrupt conference. The team will stay on for at least three years and Arrington has said that he plans to stay "forever."

Arrington ensured his readers that there will be no change in the way TechCrunch handles stories even if they involve AOL. In fact, he said that, most likely, there will be less positive stories about their corporate parents than regularly, just to make sure people don't jump to conclusions.

Neither side discussed the financial details, but reports say that the price tag was between $25 million to $40 million. The first figure probably doesn't include earnouts and other bonuses, so the full price should be closer to the second number.