Qihoo Invests in Flipboard-Like App Maker, Wants You to Read More

Chinese software maker – and disruptive new search engine competitor – Qihoo 360 (NYSE:QIHU) has invested in VIVAme, which makes a magazine subscriptions app and a Flipboard-style reader (pictured above).

The Qihoo investment comes as part of VIVAme’s new funding round, which also saw input from Highland Capital Partners. The news is confirmed by Beijing-based VIVAme, but the total funding amount has not been disclosed. Qihoo’s founder and CEO, Zhou Hongyi, now sits on the board of VIVAme. It raises the possibility of the aggressively-expanding Qihoo using the strategic investment to bring new content into its product offerings, and perhaps into its Android-based mobile software.

VIVAme has partnerships with over 300 magazine titles and claims to have 14 million monthly active users who read over 120 million mobile magazines each month. Its two core mobile apps are VIVAme, which is like a Flipboard-style reader only for iPad (here), and VIVA for in-app magazine downloads (here) which supports eight OSes, including Android, iOS, and Windows 8.

[Source: Sina Tech – article in Chinese]