Twitter purchase signals growing importance of data tracking

Media | 04/15/2014 7:48 pm EDT

Twitter Inc. said Tuesday it is acquiring social media analytics provider Gnip Inc., a move one analyst said could cause trouble for other companies that analyze and monetize the social network’s data. Seth Grimes, a New York-based independent analyst with expertise in online analytics, said the deal makes sense for Twitter, which picks up a key player in the industry that has sprung up to take advantage of the reams of data produced by social media sites. "[The acquisition] gives them direct control over how their data is monetized," Grimes said in a phone interview on...