By Kelly Faircloth 5/21 11:30am

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Couldn't miss it.

With Tumblr in the Bag, a Triumphant Marissa Mayer Takes a Victory Lap

Chief Yahoo Marissa Mayer looked pretty damn chipper as she took the stage in a small room overlooking Times Square, late yesterday afternoon.

Technically, the press had gathered for the announcement of a revamped Flickr. (It’s biggr! It’s spectaculr!) An entire lounge had been papered over with giant images pulled from the service, and in the square below a mob of T-shirt-wearing fans/paid actors were jumping up and down and hollering and waving Flickr signs in celebration.

But with David Karp slouched in the front row, it was clear this was about more than the addition of full-bleed photos to a decade-old service.  Read More

By Jordan Valinsky 5/21 10:45am

press tour

Good Morning Mayer. (Photo: Mediaite)

‘Hipster High School Drop Out’ David Karp Hits the Morning Show Circuit With Marissa Mayer

You could wrap yourself in a grey hoodie, but there’s no way to avoid the David Karp-Marissa Mayer PR charm offensive. Taking a breaking from reading US Weekly to moms, ABC News’ Good Morning America had the pair on earlier today to discuss their “match made in digital heaven.” Anchor George Stephanopoulos breathlessly proclaimed the $1.1 billion deal “could change” the way we use the Internet and labeled Mr. Karp as a “hipster high school dropout” before introducing them for an in-studio interview. Read More

By Kelly Faircloth 5/20 4:15pm

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Probably not the key to a new castle on the moon. (via)

Let’s Not Pop All the Bottles at Once: This Tumblr Deal Isn’t a Total Cinderella Story

In Pride and Prejudice, before achieving her happy ending with Mr. Darcy, Lizzie Bennett receives a marriage proposal from Mr. Collins, a toadying little man who offers a lifetime of a) stability and b) teeth-grinding annoyance. She turns him down, and her friend Charlotte promptly snaps him up. A 27-year-old woman of limited means in 18th century England, she’s realistic about her options and grabs her best bet with both hands.

Let’s not kid ourselves that Yahoo! is anything other than a Mr. Collins. Read More

By Kelly Faircloth 5/20 8:16am

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It’s Done: Yahoo Just Announced the Acquisition of Tumblr

The official announcement just hit the newswires. Yahoo has acquired Tumblr for $1.1 billion, “substantially all of which is payable in cash.” Because really, who wants to bet on the stability of Yahoo’s stock price?

In the press release, CEO Marissa Mayer tries desperately to explain the acquisition in any way she can besides admitting Yahoo wants to drink the blood of the young: ”Yahoo is the Internet’s original media network. Tumblr is the Internet’s fastest-growing media frenzy. Both companies are homes for brands – established and emerging.” Read More

By Kelly Faircloth 5/19 3:48pm

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Tumblr's Mr. Karp (Photo: wikipedia.org)

Report: Yahoo/Tumblr Deal Is a Go, For $1.1 Billion in Cash

Here we go, folks! The Wall Street Journal is reporting that Yahoo’s board has approved a rumored deal to purchase Tumblr for $1.1 billion in cash money. Forbes reports Tumblr’s board, which includes reps from Union Square Ventures, Sequoia Capital and others, has already voted to approve the deal. If it’s true that the company has only a few months of runway left, they’d be fools not to.

It’s a happy enough ending for Tumblr’s investors (and employees lucky enough to have a significant amount of stock), sure, but it’s not exactly the stirring success story the New York startup scene might’ve wished for. (A YouTube’s nice, but a Google would be better.) Yahoo’s got a long history of snapping up startups and frittering away their potential, and $1.1 billion must dash a few hopes for Silicon Alley’s flagship. The company only made $13 million in revenue last year, but as of March it had 117 million unique users worldwide. Read More

By Kelly Faircloth 5/17 9:45am

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He's staring at a large pile of money, shimmering in the distance like an oasis.

Yahoo’s Futile Search for the Fountain of Youth Continues, With Talk of Acquiring Tumblr

Looks like there might be a suitor waiting in the wings for Tumblr, that scatterbrained belle of the ball. He’s a real gray-hair, though. According to AllThingsD, the blogging site is talking to Yahoo about the possibilities for an alliance, an investment or even a lock-stock-and-barrel purchase. Ad Week says the highly hypothetical price tag could be as much as a billion dollars.

At this point, it might be easier to keep a list of the startups Yahoo hasn’t considered acquiring. Read More

By Kelly Faircloth 4/24 10:41am

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He's staring at a large pile of money, shimmering in the distance like an oasis.

Tumblr Reportedly Plans to Talk COO/Babysitter Candidates at Today’s Board Meeting

Sounds like it’s a big day for the little GIF engine that could. Business Insider reports that Tumblr has a board meeting this afternoon. On the agenda: sorting through COO candidates, plus a chat about revenue and maybe even hitting up the VC ATM for more investment.

Business Insider reports there are two final candidates in the running for the position of COO, and board member Roelof Botha is meeting with one of them this morning so the team can discuss. For what it’s worth, Mr. Botha: seems like almost anyone who considers profitability an important metric would be a valuable addition. Read More

By Nitasha Tiku 4/19 10:45am

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Storyboard Speaks: Laid-Off Tumblr Staffers Discuss David Karp’s Decision

Earlier this week, Tumblr CEO David Karp took the stage at PaidContent Live for a panel called “Tumblr and the Future of Media.” It was a poignant title considering that one of the topics discussed was Mr. Karp’s recent, rather brusque blog post announcing the end of Storyboard, a high-profile editorial experiment that hired journalists to write features or film documentary video about Tumblr’s community of “creators.”

For example, this Storyboard piece about a photojournalist documenting a gang truce in El Salvador (on his Tumblr) was published by Mother Jones. One about activists and feminists using nail art (and the growing subculture on Tumblr) was produced in partnership with the Daily Beast. Read More

By Jordan Valinsky 4/17 12:35pm

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Man with the plan? (Photo: Twitter/SuccessMag)

Tumblr’s David Karp Apparently Doesn’t Consider Profitability a Particularly Important Metric

When you’re as stylish as Tumblr CEO David Karp, who needs to sweat the small stuff? Case in point: his company’s profitability. During an interview at a conference hosted by paidContent, he informed the audience that Tumblr isn’t making money—but it’s “not a metric that is particularly important to us.”

But don’t panic, investors: Mr. Karp added that the company will “absolutely” become profitable, eventually. At some point. Read More