Blockchain Startup Tron Acquires File-Sharing Platform BitTorrent

Blockchain startup Tron has acquired the torrent platform BitTorrent, according to a blog post by the latter.

The specifics of the deal have not been released by any of the companies yet.

(Photo: The Quint)

Blockchain startup Tron has officially acquired the famous torrent platform BitTorrent, the company said in a blog post on 25 July. This official announcement confirms rumours that have been doing the rounds since last month. Although no official details have been released, TechCrunch reported that Tron was said to have paid about $126 million in cash.

BitTorrent was founded in 2004 and was a big hit with its easy and fast file-downloading abilities and claims to have around 100 million active users globally.

BitTorrent, however, will continue operating out of Tron's San Francisco office to "provide robust support for Tron's global business development and partnerships while continuing to work on its vision for the world's largest decentralised ecosystem, TechCrunch further reported.

The TechCrunch report cited Variety as saying that Tron has no plans to change what BitTorrent does or start charging for the services it provides.

BitTorrent also clarified that it has no plans to start mining cryptocurrencies in the future.

(With inputs from TechCrunch)