A few days after Klout unveiled a new content-sharing service to burnish its fading brand, one report says the company is about to sell itself to another social media company, Lithium Technologies, for $100 million or more.
The deal is "signed but not closed," according to Re/code, and will be in the "low nine figures" when stock and cash is factored in. San Francisco-based Lithium, Klout's elder by seven years, sells social customer experience management software to businesses — which means it's most likely interested in the 200,000 customers Klout for Business has.
See also: Why Klout Had to Change — and Why You Shouldn't Count It Out
Klout's change of direction makes the service less about your Klout score, which is calculated from hundreds of factors including how much engagement your social media posts get. It has now become more of a social media dashboard, with a stream of content you're likely to want to share in order to boost your Klout score. As we wrote Monday, the company has effectively pivoted from being a referee to being a coach.
We've reached out to Klout and Lithium and will update this story as it develops.