Instapaper Splits From Pinterest, Goes Solo Once More

Way back in August 2016, Pinterest acquired bookmarking service Instapaper. Over the past couple of years, we haven't heard very much from Instapaper as its developers worked on improving the app and focused on various projects for Pinterest, but today brings some big news for the much-loved service. Instapaper's days as a subsidiary are over, at least for now, as it's becoming an independent company.

The move was announced on the Instapaper blog earlier today. Pinterest has agreed to transfer ownership of Instapaper to a new company called Instant Paper Inc. The team explains that Instant Paper Inc is owned by many of the same people who have been with Instapaper since it was originally sold to betaworks in 2013, so the folks heading up this new company have certainly been working with Instapaper for quite a while.

"We want to emphasize that not much is changing for the Instapaper product outside the new ownership," the Instapaper team wrote today. "The product will continue to be built and maintained by the same people who've been working on Instapaper for the past five years. We plan to continue offering a robust service that focuses on readers and the reading experience for the foreseeable future."

So, aside from leaving Pinterest's portfolio, it sounds like things are mostly staying the same over at Instapaper. The motivation for this move wasn't revealed, nor was any cost that may be associated with this deal.

The big question now is whether or not Instapaper's new owners will focus on making the app GDPR compliant. Beginning at the end of May, Instapaper suspended service in the European Union because it had not implemented changes to bring it in line with GDPR's rules, and service remains suspended for many to this day. A quick look at the comments section on today's announcement shows that there are plenty of angry Instapaper users in the EU who are wondering when service will be restored, so hopefully GDPR compliance will be a top priority for the newly formed company.