Path sells to Asian tech giant to pursue the only country where it’s still popular

Path, the ailing social network that launched in 2010, has sold the app to Korean tech giant Daum Kakao. Path founder Dave Morin confirmed the move today in a Medium post (via The Verge) but didn’t reveal the financial terms of the deal.

The acquisition covers only the Path and Path Talk apps, but not Morin’s entire startup (Path Inc) which continues with its newer products, such as the selfie app Kong.

Daum Kakao operates the KakaoTalk app, which itself is struggling to assert itself anywhere other than in South Korea up against a host of messaging app rivals, such as Line, WhatsApp, Viber, and WeChat. Daum Kakao has offices in Indonesia.

Only hope

While Path has struggled and shed users in its native US and other western markets in the past couple of years, the minimalist social network has proved popular in Indonesia. That resulted in Morin appointing a full-time country manager for Indonesia and opening a local office in late 2014.

“We have reached a tipping point on our journey and for Path to truly grow we need more resources and a larger local team that deeply understands Southeast Asian markets,” Morin wrote today. “We are very proud that Path found a home with over 10 million people a month around the world.”

PandoDaily last year dismissed Indonesia’s affinity for Path as a “kiss of death,” but the nation has proved to be the sole salvation for the social network other than being shut down.