Loading organizations...
Loading organizations...
Snaptu is a mobile application platform that aggregates popular web services into a unified interface for feature phones, essentially transforming websites into mobile applications. It provides a suite of web-based software for mobile devices, including news and weather, designed to enhance the mobile web experience on a wide array of handsets.
The company, originally known as Moblica, was founded in Israel in 2007 by Ron Makavy, Micha Berdichevsky, and Barak Naveh. Their insight centered on the pervasive need to improve mobile internet accessibility and utility for the vast market of non-smartphone users globally.
Snaptu targeted a broad global customer base, enabling users with various feature phones to access internet content and applications seamlessly. The company's vision focused on democratizing the mobile web, offering a free and accessible platform to significantly uplift the mobile internet experience for millions of users worldwide.
Snaptu has raised $6.0M across 1 funding round.
Snaptu has raised $6.0M in total across 1 funding round.
Snaptu was an Israeli mobile application platform that enabled access to web services like Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, and ESPN on basic feature phones by running apps server-side rather than on the device itself.[1][3] It served users in emerging markets with low-end phones, online service providers, media companies, and content owners by bridging the gap to mobile internet, bundling over 30 apps and 25 web links, and reaching 78 million users by January 2011.[1][2] Acquired by Facebook in March 2011 for $60–70 million, its technology powered innovations like Facebook Lite, targeting rural and low-connectivity areas.[1][3]
Founded as Moblica by an Israeli startup in Tel Aviv (with some records listing a London entity founded February 20, 1994), Snaptu emerged to connect rudimentary phones to the mobile web through server-assisted apps.[1][2][3] The idea stemmed from the need for cross-platform access on non-smartphones, initially rebranded from Moblica to Snaptu, bundling social networks, news, sports, and guides.[1] Early traction built quickly: by September 2010, it offered extensive app integration; by January 2011, 78 million global users; pivotal collaboration with Facebook led to its acquisition weeks later, accelerating product development.[1]
Snaptu rode the early 2010s trend of mobile internet democratization, targeting feature phones dominant in developing regions before smartphones proliferated.[1][3] Its timing aligned with explosive growth in social media and data services amid limited device capabilities, influencing Facebook's expansion to 2 billion+ users via low-bandwidth tools like Facebook Lite (2 MB vs. 51 MB standard app).[3] Market forces like rural connectivity gaps and operator demands favored its model, shaping ecosystem-wide shifts to server-assisted apps and lightweight experiences still relevant in emerging markets.[3]
Post-2011 acquisition, Snaptu ceased independent operations but its Tel Aviv-honed tech endures in Meta's infrastructure, evolving Facebook Lite with video modules and startup-like agility in Israel's high-startup-density hub.[3] Next steps likely involve deeper integration into Meta's low-data ecosystem amid 5G/edge computing trends, sustaining influence on global access for underserved users. This server-offload pioneer set the hook for inclusive mobile tech, proving early bets on accessibility yield lasting scale.
Snaptu has raised $6.0M in total across 1 funding round.
Snaptu's investors include Cyberstarts VC.
Snaptu has raised $6.0M across 1 funding round. Most recently, it raised $6.0M Series B in March 2010.
| Date | Round | Lead Investors | Other Investors |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 1, 2010 | $6.0M Series B | Cyberstarts VC |