Adding Wickr gives AWS a secure communications service it can place in front of existing cloud customers, rather than treating messaging as a separate consumer-app market.
First-order effects
Wickr continues operating under AWS, while AWS customers gain access to an encrypted messaging offering from their cloud provider.
AWS adds Wickr to its portfolio of workplace communications tools, bringing the acquired service under Amazon's customer and sales umbrella.
Second-order effects
AWS's prospective productivity-suite positioning gains a secure-messaging component, increasing the pressure to present WorkMail, WorkDocs, Chime, and Wickr as a more coherent business offering.
Wickr's prior censorship-circumvention use case now sits within a major cloud provider, shifting its distribution focus toward AWS customer relationships.
Third-order effects
If cloud platforms continue acquiring communications products, encrypted messaging is likely to become a bundled enterprise-cloud capability rather than a standalone service category.
The deal points toward workplace-software competition being shaped by how tightly communications, document tools, and cloud accounts are integrated.
The trend: Cloud providers are broadening from infrastructure into bundled workplace communications, with secure messaging becoming another account-level service.
Amazon just acquired the popular encrypted chat app Wickr. Curious to see what users think of this. App is used by journalists, hackers, and people who care about privacy in general. I can't imagine they will be thrilled. https://www.vice.com/...
Another thread in Amazon's ever-expanding web. A really smart acquisition and one that is immediately complementary to AWS's offering. https://techcrunch.com/...
🎶You watch the world exploding every single night Dancing in the sun, a newborn in the light I wonder how they're gonna try to market it this time? “You should go try Wickr man; at least it isn't Chime” 🎵 https://twitter.com/...
We are pleased to share that Wickr has been acquired by Amazon and is now part of the Amazon Web Services (AWS) team. From our founding ten years ago, we have grown to serve organizations across a wide range of industries, all over the world. Read more: https://aws.amazon.com/...
Weird segue but: AWS has acquired encrypted messaging app Wickr to boost its enterprise offerings for companies that want more secure communications during hybrid work. https://aws.amazon.com/...
Amazon Acquires Encrypted Messaging App Wickr Wickr is a popular encrypted messaging platform used by journalists, criminals, governments, and businesses. H/T @amys_here https://www.vice.com/...
Why is Amazon acquiring an encrypted messaging app? Why is Amazon doing this at a time Govts around the world want access to encrypted messaging for law enforcement purposes? https://twitter.com/...
Wickr is very big in the government and military space. Here, we reported that Customs and Border Protection had paid Wickr $700,000. This isn't really a chat app; more an encrypted comms platform https://www.vice.com/...
Have been waiting to see what Amazon's move in messaging would be... for years. Here it is (in a cobyline with our new security writer Carly). tip @Techmeme https://twitter.com/...