Flickr Agrees to Be Acquired by Photo Storage Service SmugMug

Photo management platform SmugMug said on Friday it has agreed to buy image and video-hosting website Flickr for an undisclosed amount.

Flickr will continue to operate as a separate entity after the deal closes, SmugMug said.

"Uniting the SmugMug and Flickr brands will make the whole photography community stronger and better connected," SmugMug Chief Executive Don MacAskill said in a statement. "Together, we can preserve photography as the global language of storytelling."

Flickr announced the move to its users via email:

We're excited to announce that Flickr has agreed to be acquired by SmugMug, the photography platform dedicated to visual storytellers.

SmugMug has a long history of empowering people who love photography and who want to improve their craft, making them a perfect fit for Flickr and our creative community. With SmugMug, we'll continue to focus on you, the Flickr members who inspire us all with your work.

Nothing will change immediately with regard to your Flickr account. You will still access Flickr with your current login credentials and you will have the same Flickr experience as you do now. We will continue to work to make your Flickr experience even better.

We think you are going to love Flickr under SmugMug ownership, but you can choose to not have your Flickr account and data transferred to SmugMug until May 25, 2018. If you want to keep your Flickr account and data from being transferred, you must go to your Flickr account to download the photos and videos you want to keep, then delete your account from your Account Settings by May 25, 2018.

If you do not delete your account by May 25, 2018, your Flickr account and data will transfer to SmugMug and will be governed by SmugMug's Terms and Privacy Policy.

Read more detailed FAQs about this transition on the Flickr Blog.

We're happy that Flickr is your home for photography and we look forward to the next chapter in our adventure together as we join the SmugMug family.

Thanks,

The Flickr Team

Verizon bought Yahoo's core business for $4.48 billion (roughly Rs. 29,700 crores) last year and the acquisition included Flickr, among other web properties.

© Thomson Reuters 2018