Pinterest Acquires Video Creation And Editing App Vochi

Image sharing and social media service Pinterest has acquired video creation and editing app Vochi for an undisclosed amount. The acquisition is Pinterest’s way of investing in creator tools and video and the deal will see the company bring in the whole of Vochi’s team including its founders and forty-man team, to expand Pinterest video creation tools and take Pinterest to the next level.

Vochi’s acquisition follows not too long after reports that Pinterest may be acquired by payments giant PayPal. PayPal, however, shortly announced that it was not looking to acquire Pinterest at that moment. Pinterest’s acquisition of Vochi comes amid efforts from evolving from just being an image sharing platform or a platform for “pinning” images. Pinterest, like any other platform, wants to evolve as it sees potentials in becoming a platform for creators who want to share their idea in video format irrespective of what topic that idea is centred on, be it fashion, home décor ideas, DIY craft projects, basically anything.

Earlier this year, as an attempt of delving into video, Pinterest launched Pins. Pins is a video-first feature that enables creators to tell stories and make videos using editing tools that include voiceovers, transition, music, etc. Recently, the platform launched a new “Tik-Tok inspired” way for users to view these videos and announced a $20 million creator award incentive to encourage usage and participation. Apart from these, it also introduced its own original video content, Creator Originals and has provided features that allow creators to make money from their videos with the ability to tag items for sale, brand partnerships, etc.

According to Pinterest, it will be able to bring more quality video tools and features to its users. Vochi was founded in 2019 by Ilya Lesun, Anna Buglakova, Vasily Kasnitsky, Sergei Malyutin, and incubated by Andrei Avsievich and Yury Melnichek from Bulba Ventures. As of the beginning of this year, Vochi had about 500,000 monthly active users and 20,000 who were subscribed users. Pinterest says it acquired Vochi because its technology aligned with its investment in video as a format to help creators express themselves, and it appreciated how quickly the effects could be applied to video.

A statement by Bin Liu, Head of Creators Engineering at Pinterest read “Our vision is to create a place where Pinners can go from inspiration to realization, and having more creator tools can help us further this vision. We’re excited to work with Vochi’s talented team to bring more video creation tools and quality content to our more than 400 million Pinners around the world.”