Twitter Acquires Niche, A Startup That Helps Advertisers Work With Social Media Celebrities

Twitter just announced that it has acquired social marketing startup Niche.

Founded by Rob Fishman and Darren Lachtman, Niche helps advertisers work with influencers on Vine and other platforms. (Random connection: Lachtman is the cousin of TechCrunch writer Josh Constine.) It pitches itself as a place where marketers can find “all the world’s creators, in one place.”

I first wrote about the company in 2013, after the company a small seed round from investors including David Tisch (Box Group), Michael Kassan (MediaLink), Chris Altchek (PolicyMic), Bryan Goldberg (Bleacher Report/Bustle), and John Alderman. It subsequently raised a $2.5 million Series A led by SoftTech.

I also interviewed Fishman and Lachtman, as well as Vine star Robby Ayala (who manages Niche’s strategic partnerships), on-stage at AOL over the summer, where Fishman explained that the company is “not a talent agency,” but rather a technology provider that connects with creators “on a campaign-by-campaign basis.”

Niche offers free analytics to social media creators so they can see what is and isn’t working, while allowing brands to browse leaderboards and collaborate with top creators on marketing campaigns.

Twitter says it will be sharing more details about the integration between the companies soon, and in the meantime, it notes:

Niche has been a key partner to both Twitter and Vine over the last year. The company has helped fuel the creator economy by developing leading technology, consisting of free, cross-platform analytics, as well as connecting the creative community directly with the world’s biggest brands.

Niche says it now works with more than 6,000 creators. Post-acquisition acquisition, it plans to “continue our commitment to creators: more tools, more platforms, and even more opportunities to team up with the best advertisers in the world.”

The financial terms were not disclosed, but Recode is reporting that the price was “at least $30 million.”

Update: We’ve heard from a source with knowledge of the financials that with the retention package, the price could reach $50 million.