Yahoo acquires Summly and pulls it from Apple App Store

Internet giant Yahoo is to acquire news summarisation service Summly for an undisclosed amount, resulting in the company's app being immediately pulled from the Apple App Store.

The company was founded by 17-year-old British student Nick D'Aloisio in 2011, and he and the rest of the Summly team will now join Yahoo in the coming weeks.

The product's aim is to produce algorithmically generated summaries of stories from multiple sources and deliver them to mobile users in a way that makes them easier to read on their devices.

In a blog post announcing the deal, D'Aloisio confirmed the app will be withdrawn from the App Store, where it chalked up more than 500,000 downloads within weeks of its launch, and incorporated into "multiple" Yahoo products.

An Android version of the app was said to be in the works, but looks unlikely to appear now.

"Our vision is to simplify how we get information and we are thrilled to continue this mission with Yahoo's global scale and expertise," D'Aloisio wrote.

"After spending some time on campus, I discovered that Yahoo has an inspirational goal to make people's daily routines entertaining and meaningful, and mobile will be a central part of that visuion. For us, it's the perfect fit."

In a statement on the Yahoo blog, Adam Cahan, senior vice president of mobile and emergeing products at the firm, said the deal is expected to close in the second quarter.

"Mobile devices are at the centre of how we engage with the people, experiences and interests we love," he wrote.

"Across Yahoo, we're focused on creating beautiful experiences that people are excited to use every day -- products that inspire and delight. We can't wait to work with Nick and the Summly team to do just that," Cahan added.