What is Docstoc?
The go-to business to for business related documents and cloud file sharing, Docstoc, is closing down on December 1st, 2015. Docstoc operated with the target market of small or startup companies by offering professional legal documents. It did more than just documents as well; it offered expert videos and articles on everything that a business would need to know to run efficiently. On its website, it boasts that it has over 25 million registered users. Now why would such an established Software as a Service (SaaS) company shut down?
Docstoc’s Acquisition by Intuit
Following a string of successful years after Docstoc’s founding in 2007, it was a juicy acquisition target. In 2013, it was acquired by Intuit for a price up to $50 million. It seemed like a golden opportunity for both companies. At that point, Intuit was acquiring companies that would help provide more opportunities and channels to their target market of small companies. Docstoc would also gain the backing of the large company that had experience in their field and the financial support to spare.
Docstoc Today
Now in 2015, Docstoc is announcing the end date for their business and urging for their users to pick up their documents before they terminate all of Docstoc’s accounts on December 1st. When questioned as to why, Docstoc replied that Intuit decided to “discontinue these products”. Docstoc is not the first company that Intuit has shut down recently. It has also cut Quicken, Quickbase and DemandForce in the last month. Specifically, Quicken was shut down for the Intuit’s reasons that “it did not strengthen the small business…ecosystem”. In recent statements by Intuit, they stated that their goal has always been to build ecosystems in cloud. It could be speculated that termination of Docstoc is the most recent in Intuit’s recent cuts to pursue their vision.
We Will Miss You, Docstoc
With the lack of a solid conclusion as to why Docstoc is closing, speculation is rampant. At the same time, this is a golden opportunity for other document sharing sites to fill in the gap left by Docstoc. Dismayed users will certainly be looking for a similar SaaS and other knowledge sites may boom in the wake of Docstoc’s termination of service.