YouTube acquires Indian social commerce startup Simsim
23 Jul 2021
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YouTube has acquired social commerce startup Simsim, the Google-owned firm said on Tuesday, as the video streaming platform expands its presence in India, killing competition at every stride.
The terns of the deal were not made public but a TechCrunch report citing sources close to the development said the two-year-old startup was valued at over $70 million.
Gurgaon-headquartered Simsim had earlier raised about $17 million and was valued at $50.1 million in its 2020 Series B financing round.
The startup helps small businesses in India transition to e-commerce by using the power of video and creators. Its app acts as a platform to connect local businesses, influencers and customers.
“We started Simsim with the mission of helping users across India shop online with ease, enabled through small sellers and brands showcasing and selling their products using the power of content by trusted influencers. Being a part of the YouTube and Google ecosystem furthers simsim in its mission,” Simsim cofounders Amit Bagaria, Kunal Suri and Saurabh Vashishtha said in a joint statement.
“We cannot think of a better ecosystem in which to build Simsim, in terms of technology, reach, creator networks and culture. We can’t wait to be part of YouTube and are excited to build simsim within the most admired tech company in the world,” they added.
“For YouTube, the acquisition will enable the video streaming giant reach out to small businesses and retailers in India and help acquire new customers in even more powerful ways,” wrote Gautam Anand, VP of YouTube APAC, in a blog post.
“The video streaming service, which reaches over 450 million monthly active users in India, doesn’t plan to make any immediate changes to Simsim and the startup’s app will continue to operate independently “while we work on ways to showcase Simsim offers to YouTube viewers,” he added.
Tuesday’s announcement is Google’s latest push in India, where it has committed to invest $10 billion in the next couple of years. The internet giant has also backed Indian startups Glance and DailyHunt, both of which operate short-video apps.
“With over 2500 YouTube creators with over one million subscribers, and the success of YouTube Shorts, which we launched in India first, we’re committed to bringing the best of YouTube to India and growing the creator community by making it even easier for the new generation of mobile-first creators to get started,” he further stated.
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