Dropbox Buys Mobile Productivity Startup CloudOn, Gets Office In Israel In The Process

Dropbox is beefing up its team once again after it acquired mobile productivity startup CloudOn. The Israel-based startup confirmed the news — first reported by The Wall Street Journal — in a note on its website.

CloudOn claims to have nine million registered users of its service, which allows users to edit, create and share files from Microsoft Office and others online. CloudOn has ceased allowing new user sign-ups today, and it confirmed that its products will shut for good on March 2015 as its 30-person team transitions to working for Dropbox.

“CloudOn’s mission of making it easy to work on mobile aligns with Dropbox’s goal of giving people the freedom to work the way they want, wherever they want,” a Dropbox spokesperson said in a statement.

In addition to adding the experience and expertise of the CloudOn team, Dropbox told TechCrunch that CloudOn’s base in Herzliya will become Dropbox’s first office in Israel. The company opened its first office in Europe — located in Dublin, Ireland — two years ago, and the CloudOn deal signals its intent to grow its footprint and business in the region.

“We’re thrilled to continue building things that help people work better — and we’re proud and excited to join the Dropbox team to help people be more productive every day,” CloudOn’s executive team wrote.

No price has been disclosed for the deal, but the Journal reported that it is Dropbox’s largest acquisition in terms of staff numbers.

CloudOn has raised over $25 million in funding, with early investor The Social+Capital Partnership among its venture capitalist backers.

Dropbox said it has over 300 million users, 70 percent of whom are located outside of the U.S.. The company has taken an acquisition-led approach to growing its team and expertise. Past deals have seen it scoop up the likes of Mailbox, Audiogalaxy, PiCloud, Loom, Hackpad, and Snapjoy.