Swype acquired for over $100 million

Andre Yoskowitz
7 Oct 2011 16:43

Swype, the popular smartphone input technology, has been acquired today for $102.5 million by Nuance.
Nuance is the company behind the FlexT9 keyboard, software that lets users speak, trace, write or tap "Dragon dictation" and "T9 predictive text input technologies" on Android tablets and phones.

Says one analyst of the move (via Reuters):

Nuance is bulking up on the mobile front so that they can have a bigger presence on the next-generation handsets. They can't just stand by and just stick to their core competency of being a voice recognition technology player on mobile.


Swype has quickly become the most popular alternative keyboard for Android and Symbian although rivals are a plenty. TouchType Ltd's SwiftKey X Keyboard, Dasur Ltd's SlideIT Keyboard, Beansoft's Thumb Keyboard and Dexilog LLC's Smart Keyboard Pro are just a few that have gained traction in the past year.

The move is also seen as a way for Nuance to acquire significant patents and create a nicer offering to OEM handset providers.

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