News Corp. Buys Photobucket, Flextor

May 30, 04:04 PM

Current Headlines: By Ryan Blitstein, San Jose Mercury News, Calif.

May 30--News Corp. announced today it bought photo- and video-sharing site Photobucket and Web 2.0 tools site Flextor for undisclosed amounts. The purchases come three weeks after the company's Fox Interactive Media division was rumored to be close to a deal to buy Photobucket for as much as $300 million.

The acquisitions will allow users of Fox Interactive's MySpace and other social networks to create, edit and share media with their friends.

"As a leading site for creative expression, Photobucket extends our reach among personal media sharing enthusiasts and the innovative new entrant Flektor brings highly-differentiated new tools to the table that will drive the next generation," Peter Levinsohn, president of Fox Interactive Media, said in a statement.

Photobucket, based in Denver, Colo., and with offices in Palo Alto, had more than 42 million users as of April, according to comScore Media Metrix. The company said its user community links to more than 300,000 other Web sites.

Flektor, headquartered in Culver City, provides tools that help users edit and publish video and audio content online. Fox Interactive Media's sites, including MySpace and FoxSports.com, collectively attract more than 45 billion page views per month, according to ComScore.

Contact Ryan Blitstein at rblitstein@mercurynews.com or (408) 920-5715.

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