F5 Networks announced that it will be acquiring open-source, web server company NGINX. We assess the significance of this decision for competitors as well as for current and potential customers.
On Tuesday, F5 Networks, a leader in application delivery services, announced that it will be acquiring NGINX, the high-growth, open-source web server, for $670M — the largest acquisition by F5 to date. NGINX raised $84M in funding prior to the acquisition and is backed by Goldman Sachs, New Enterprise Associates, Index Ventures, and Telstra Ventures, among others.
The acquisition has implications for all types of internet-based businesses, as NGINX is the second most widely used web server across all “active” websites globally. We take a look at the NGINX acquisition to understand:
- Why this matters
- Why now