File sharing software provider BitTorrent announced Tuesday that its acquisition by the Tron Foundation is now officially complete.
BitTorrent said it will now operate from Tron’s new San Francisco offices and support the blockchain project’s global development, while continuing to serve the claimed 100 million BitTorrent users around the globe.
According to the announcement:
“We believe that joining the TRON network will further enhance BitTorrent and accelerate our mission of creating an Internet of options, not rules.”
News of the imminent purchase became public in mid-June, when BitTorrent co-founder and former president Ashwin Navin told CoinDesk that Tron was forking out $120 million for the firm.
The news provoked speculation that after the merger BitTorrent might start charging users with fees in cryptocurrency. However, as reported, the firm wrote on its website that it has “no plans to change” its business model and will not charge fees for any of its services. Further, BitTorrent indicated it has “no plans to enable mining of cryptocurrency now or in the future.”
According to a report in Variety at the time, TRON founder Justin Sun began negotiating the acquisition of BitTorrent last September under a “no shop” clause, which prevented BitTorrent from discussing possible mergers with other potential buyers. However, on May 25, BitTorrent reportedly violated that clause and Sun filed legal paperwork to sue. The fate of that lawsuit is unknown.
Tron’s TRX blockchain-based token is now the 11th largest cryptocurrency with a $2.4 billion market capitalization, according to price data provider CoinMarketCap. In May, Tron started what’s called a token swap, shifting all TRX from ethereum to its own blockchain, dubbed Odyssey 2.0.
BitTorrent image via Shutterstock