Apple Buying Israeli Startup Matcha.tv for an Estimated $1.5 Million
Apple is buying the Israeli start-up Matcha.tv, reported the website VentureBeat, a move that would make Matcha the multinational’s second acquisition in Israel.
Matcha, which was founded by Guy Piekarz, is being bought for a relatively small sum of about $1 million to $1.5 million, VentureBeat said, citing an unnamed source. But speculators say the actual sum could be much higher, given that Matcha was routinely ranked among the top 15 apps in Apple’s app. store.
Last week, TheMarker reported that Apple was likely to be expanding its operations in Israel, with a lease on 12,500 square meters of office space in Herzliya Pituach. The space, within Bayside Land Corporation’s new O2 development, could house 600-1,200 employees. Apple is believed to currently employ 400-600 people in Israel.
Matcha was founded in 2010 and raised $300,000 from private investors. Its product is an application that functions as a TV guide for the modern age – letting users know which shows are available on various sites such as Netflix and Hulu, it also contains a social aspect that shows friends’ viewing recommendations. The app also makes recommendations based on users’ viewing record.
For more, head to Haaretz.com.
A message from our CEO & publisher Rachel Fishman Feddersen
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.
At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse..
Readers like you make it all possible. Support our work by becoming a Forward Member and connect with our journalism and your community.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO