Google buys GIF startup Tenor to bulk up image search

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Terms of the deal weren't disclosed.

Tenor has been used in Facebook's Messenger service as well as in WhatsApp to let users send GIFs more easily. Users are given the option to download a GIF in standard definition, high definition, or as an MP4; the content can also be directly shared via a URL or embedded into a page or post. "Since early 2017, GIF searches on Tenor have grown by 5X in key markets like Europe, South America and Southeast Asia, in part due to Tenor's investment in providing localized regional search content", the company said in a blog post last month.

Google says Tenor will keep running as its own separate brand, but it hints that it will be growing the platform in the future.

Three and a half years ago, Tenor brought GIFs to mobile messaging with the launch of the first GIF Keyboard on iOS. Tenor founder David McIntosh, who also serves as CEO, will continue to lead Tenor alongside his cofounders Erick Hachenburg and Frank Nawabi. Users will have to wait and see whether Google's acquisition will change that. The platform launched its first sponsored GIF late past year and now works with many big brands.

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Tenor had raised around $32 million in equity funding, according to Crunchbase data, while New York-based GIF engine Giphy has raised north of $150 million.

Put simply, GIFs are hot and monetizable, and Google wants in on the action.

Google Images initially focused on images, but the way people communicate has changed and GIFs have become a common way to express ideas or emotions.

Google goes on to state that they will use Tenor's expertise on all things GIFs to help Google Image searches return better GIF results, not only on the web but inside of the Gboard keyboard as well.

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