More than 1.2 billion people actively use the Site each month on the web and, on mobile devices.

每個月有超過12億人口透過電腦網路或及行動裝置 成為臉書重度使用者

And it's this particular market that Facebook stept in with its latest purchase, WhatsApp.

正是如此的市場潛力讓臉書定下 這筆破天荒收購案：WhatsApp

WhatsApp allows users to send text messages on phones for free making it extremely popular.

WhatsApp這款手機應用程式讓使用者能 傳免費訊息因而紅遍全球

450 million people currently use WhatsApp,

目前為止全世界已有4億5千萬人使用WhatsApp

and it's growing rapidly by roughly 1 million new users each day.

並以將近每天1百萬名新用戶的成長速度持續暴增

Facebook has agreed to pay $16 billion for it,

臉書已同意支付160億美金

a quarter of which in cash and the rest its stock.

四分之一為現金其餘為臉書股票

WhatsApp founders will receive a further $3 billion worth of restricted stock,

而WhatsApp的創辦者將會額外獲得價值30億美金的限制性股票

bringing the overall deal to $19 billion.

使這場交易總額高達190億美金(約合新台幣5,700億元)

This dwarfs some of its previous acquisitions.

相較之下之前幾起併購案

including photos showing app Instagram and the face recognition platform, face.com.

包括照片分享軟體Instagram(10億)及臉部辨識公司 Face.com(傳8千萬~一億)都只是小蛋糕

In Silicon Valley where I am right now,

我目前所在的矽谷

there are a lot of very smart entrepreneurs who are doing exciting things.

那裡有許多聰明的企業家在做些令人感到興奮的事業

And often the most exciting project don't come from the big company,

但最令人興奮的計畫通常不是來自大公司

but from the small startup.

而是那些小的新創公司

Then, so the best way to get the talent is to acquire them,

那麼 獲得這種才能的最佳方法便是收購他們

usually not at that price tag but whatever it takes to get that kind of talent,

通常不會砸下如此天價 不過也會想盡辦法 得到那種天賦巧思

that kind of user base.

以及龐大的用戶基礎

Now, although facebook says it will keep WhatsApp a separate service,

雖然臉書表示WhatsApp將維持獨立運作

the purchase allows it to continue gathering valuable data from its customers,

這次收購使臉書得以持續獲得其珍貴的用戶相關資料

which can eventually turned into revenue-generating services.

最終可望成為獲利成長的網路服務