Facebook to acquire Instagram for $1B

MENLO PARK, Calif. — Facebook announced Monday that it will acquire Instagram, the popular photo-sharing service for $1 billion.

Facebook will finance the acquisition of Instagram with a combination of cash and stock.

“For years, we’ve focused on building the best experience for sharing photos with your friends and family. Now, we’ll be able to work even more closely with the Instagram team to also offer the best experiences for sharing beautiful mobile photos with people based on your interests,” Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg wrote on his Facebook page.

“That’s why we’re committed to building and growing Instagram independently. Millions of people around the world love the Instagram app and the brand associated with it, and our goal is to help spread this app and brand to even more people,” he added.”

Zuckerberg said the event marked a milestone for the social network because “it’s the first time we’ve ever acquired a product and company with so many users.”

“We don’t plan on doing many more of these, if any at all,” he added.

The deal comes ahead of Facebook’s highly anticipated initial public offering, which is expected to come in May, according to The Wall Street Journal.

The company initially filed for its IPO in early February. The offering could raise as much as $10 billion and value the eight-year-old company at $100 billion.