Alibaba Enters Messaging Market With $215 Million Investment in Tango

Why let Facebook have all the fun?

Chinese online retail giant Alibaba has jumped into the messaging market with a $215 million investment in Tango, a four-year-old messaging and social-networking app.

Part of a total fundraising round of $280 million, the investment provides Tango with capital to compete in the increasingly high-stakes competition between messaging apps that has blossomed outside the U.S.

Tango offers users the ability to text, make voice and video calls, play games and stream music from Spotify — all free of charge. The app operates over 3G, 4G and Wi-Fi networks, and currently boasts more than 200 million users. Read more...