Purch Acquires AnandTech, Dominates Tech Expert and Enthusiast Market

Leading content and commerce company adds respected mobile, computing, and IT reviews site to its brand portfolio

NEW YORK, NY (December 17, 2014) – Purch today announced the acquisition of AnandTech.com, a leader in mobile, computing and IT analysis and reviews. Purch’s industry-leading combination of high-quality content and integrated commerce experiences makes complex buying decisions easy for more than 100 million consumers and professionals monthly. With the acquisition of AnandTech, Purch furthers its mission to simplify purchase decisions for in-market tech consumers by adding one of the most popular computer components, hardware, and mobile reviews sites to a brand portfolio that already includes category heavyweight, Tom’s Hardware.

AnandTech has been at the forefront of the technological evolution, providing groundbreaking reviews and trend coverage of cutting-edge mobile and computing products since Anand Shimpi, one of the tech industry’s most authoritative and respected figures, founded it in 1997 at age 14.

“AnandTech has grown by leaps and bounds over the past several years, but we were nearing what’s possible as an independent company,” said Ryan Smith, editor-in-chief, AnandTech. “The challenge has always been that there are very few players in the publishing space these days who value deep, high-quality content. We wanted a partner that understood our values, had a sound business model to ensure AnandTech’s legacy would continue for years to come, and would allow us to grow and expand our readership without compromising the quality that made us who were are today. Purch provides all of these things. I am beyond excited about what we’ll be able to do with their support.”

“The addition of AnandTech to a brand portfolio that includes Tom’s Hardware, Tom’s Guide, and Top Ten Reviews unquestionably establishes Purch as the dominant provider of in-depth, quality technology content, serving technology buyers who want to ensure the value of their potential investments,” said Greg Mason, CEO, Purch. “Technology manufacturers, too, can be assured that their messages will reach any serious buyer. The two editorial teams represent the finest, most expert group of content talent in the technology space. ”

“AnandTech represents much of my life’s work over the past 18 years,” said Anand Shimpi, founder, AnandTech. “I am happy to see it end up with a partner committed to taking good care of the brand and its readers. I wouldn’t have had it any other way.”

Purch offers brands and advertisers unmatched reach to tens of millions of discerning in-market tech consumers and professionals each month. These tech “enthusiasts” look to the kind of detailed research, benchmark testing, and advice from category experts during their buying process for which Tom’s Hardware and AnandTech are known. Readers trust that advice because it is backed by nearly two decades of testing every mobile and PC component imaginable, and is supported by unprecedented input and guidance from the biggest, passionate community of like-minded enthusiasts.

Purch’s acquisition of AnandTech is the company’s most recent move in a series of strategic acquisitions and partnerships aimed at furthering its mission to ease complex buying decisions for shoppers and deliver branding and performance results to advertisers. In 2013, the company acquired the renowned “Tom’s” brand of tech media sites and, earlier this year, purchased BuyerZone, the leading online marketplace for SMB buyers and sellers. Purch’s ability to trigger buying decisions in an array of product categories is evidenced by the more than 7,000 marketers and sellers that come to Purch to connect with ready-to-buy consumers. Each year, Purch’s content-commerce combination drives more than one billion dollars in commerce transactions.

In addition to the acquisition, Purch is now the number one technology publisher in the U.S., [1] with a global readership of more than 100 million monthly unique visitors.

Terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

To find out more about Purch, visit www.purch.com or follow the company on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook.

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About Purch

Purch is a portfolio of digital brands and services that helps make complex buying decisions easy for 100 million consumers monthly. Its respected sites such as Top Ten Reviews, Tom’s Guide, Tom’s Hardware, and Live Science natively integrate commerce and content in more than 1000 product categories so consumers can make better choices before, during, and after an important purchase.

The company helps marketers achieve their branding and performance objectives in a high-quality, brand-safe context. Its sites connect in-market shoppers with more than 7,000 marketers and sellers, driving industry-leading conversion rates and $1 billion in commerce transactions annually.

Purch is a high-growth, privately held company with more than 350 employees and offices across the U.S. and Europe.

For more information on Purch, visit www.purch.com or follow the company on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook.

[1] Source: comScore U.S. Media Metrix, Tech-News category ranking by unique visitors, PC audience, September 2014

AnandTech Acquired By Purch
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  • soccerballtux - Wednesday, December 17, 2014 - link

    he's pro enough we're ok with it. I think. Spiritually, he owned us and is free to do with us as he likes. We will still love him.
  • Impulses - Wednesday, December 17, 2014 - link

    No, as soon as some latched unto it they'd scream bloody murder and ever comments section would be about nothing but that... Besides, I imagine Anand took a full time job over there and running the site was already a full time job, unless he clones himself he can't possibly devote the time to both.
  • lopri - Thursday, December 18, 2014 - link

    Though on a second thought (thanks for the reminder), I can't help but think that he made sure to put like-minded folks in places that matter. Joshua Ho and Brandon Chest come to mind..
  • JKJK - Wednesday, December 17, 2014 - link

    I really wish this was good news. But I've NEVER seen a sellout like this add something good. I give you maximum a year.

    All anand-like sites that I've loved SO much over the years since the 90's (heck, I even tried to start one myself) have declinen and ended up like crap. Every ****** single one.

    I had a feelin this would happen when Anand quit, so I've looked for substitutes since then.

    Please, please prove me wrong (I really wish I could bet money on this .... and loose).
  • ezridah - Wednesday, December 17, 2014 - link

    Maybe now they'll have the budget to actually buy something they want to review (or we want them to review) instead of just depending on what vendors give them to review.

    That's the only positive outcome I can possibly see right now... Hopefully all the negatives I can see coming will not come to fruition.
  • CaedenV - Wednesday, December 17, 2014 - link

    To the new owners of Anandtech:
    I love Anandtech not only for the content, but because it is one of the few sites on the internet that has proper use of advertisements. Because of this I, and I suspect many others, who typically use ad-blocking software specifically turn it off in support of this kind of responsible use of ads.

    If you flood one of the last great websites with advertisements I will visit it less often, and I will re-enable ad-blocking on the site. Please do not ruin a good thing. We are much more tech savvy when it comes to how we consume content, and if your crank up the ads, we will simply turn them off and ruin the revenue stream. Of course you could be like Tom's Hardware and dumb down your content to attract an audience who does not care... but then you would no longer be Anandtech in the first place.
  • garbagedisposal - Wednesday, December 17, 2014 - link

    Toms and top 10 reviews are both garbage. Please don't learn from them.
  • magreen - Thursday, December 18, 2014 - link

    Agree that Toms has nothing to teach Anand in the writing and reviewing department. I've been reading AT since 2005. I discovered Tom's around the same time. I quickly realized that Tom's was garbage and stopped reading it around 2006. Please do not learn from them.
  • Sabresiberian - Wednesday, December 17, 2014 - link

    Remember Tomshardware before Purch (for those of you like me that can), and look at it now.

    There are going to be changes. A lot of them won't have anything to do with keeping the content quality at the same level. That being said, bottom line, for me, while Tomshardware produces a lot more stuff I don't care about, it still has editors that do a good job, it still has the occasional well-written article I am interested in. I suspect the same will remain true of Anandtech.

    And I already have NoScript set to block out the majority of those crap ad site links Tomshardware tries to connect me to.
  • SeannyB - Wednesday, December 17, 2014 - link

    Hopefully this will allow for more content. I really miss the AnandTech Podcast, and the off-the-cuff discussions & speculation & behind-the-scenes talk that allowed, as AnandTech in print can be rather clinical. I'd like to see more curiosity-driven reviews of esoteric/niche computing gear like Jarred Walton's fabulous series on radical ergonomic keyboards (I am now a Kinesis Advantage user as a result).

    I often felt that AnandTech didn't have the resources to cover _everything_ they might want to, so hopefully this acquisition makes their coverage more robust rather than watered down. AnandTech has a loyal long-term readership and a unique identity among tech sites. There are more inspired ways to leverage that than just plopping ads in every nook & cranny. (I often wondered if AnandTech could offer premium content a la Giant Bomb instead of depend solely on ads.)

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