China Sees Biggest Merger In Nation’s Internet History

Alibaba, the popular Chinese ecommerce site, has been making headlines recently for everything from launching a U.S. ecommerce site to announcing that it would soon go public. Now, Alibaba will also be known for being part of the “biggest merger in the history of China’s internet.”

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    It was reported earlier this week that Alibaba purchased UCWeb, which makes the UC Browser. Previously, Alibaba owned 66 percent of UC Web. It was not reported how much the deal was actually for, however it is believed to be greater than $1.9 billion.

    “The move highlights the comprehensive integration of Alibaba and UCWeb following Alibaba’s investment in UCWeb in 2009 and 2013, and will enables deeper synergies between the companies by marrying Alibaba’s strengths in e-commerce, cloud computing and big data technology and UCWeb’s leading market position and technology in mobile,” the companies said in a statement.

    According to TechCrunch, UCWeb has more than 50 percent of China’s web browser market share. The acquisition will not only oversee Alibaba’s browser, but also its mobile search, location-based services, mobile gaming, app store and mobile reader operations.

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