Sony Hack Reveals Snapchat Acquisitions

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The hack attack on Sony Pictures Entertainment has unearthed thousands of emails that Sony executives probably preferred to have been left buried in their inboxes.

The hacked emails, however, have turned a spotlight on Snapchat and two previously unknown acquisitions.

The disappearing photo messaging app, according to TechCrunch, paid $15 million in a cash-and-stock deal to acquire Vergence Labs, a company responsible for a smart eyewear product similar to Google Glass.

Snapchat also bought Scan.me for a total of $50 million in cash and stock, as reported by Business Insider. The company creates bar codes, QR codes and NFC tags that respond to mobile devices.

Also, financial terms for Snapchat’s June acquisition of video ad firm AddLive had not been disclosed. The deal, according to the leaked emails, went for a mix of $30 million in cash and stock.

Chief Executive Evan Spiegel has notoriously stayed quiet on the Venice startup’s new forays. Snapchat’s biggest update was the release of its peer-to-peer payments service Snapcash last month. But the leaked emails showed diverging interests such as starting a record label to promote artists internally through the app.

Spiegel took to Twitter on Wednesday to post an internal memo, titled “Keeping Secrets,” that was sent to employees in response to the leaked business deals.

“Secrets keep the space between our community and the public – space that we need to feel safe in our expression and creativity,” Spiegel said in the memo. “I am so sorry that our work has been violated and exposed.”

Staff reporter Melissah Yang can be reached at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter @MelissahYang for the latest in L.A. tech news.

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