Ethereum-based livestreaming protocol Livepeer has acquired MistServer, an open-source media streaming toolkit, in perhaps the first instances of a Web 3.0 platform gobbling up a Web 2.0 one.

The news was supposed to be released at 7am EST on Tuesday (10pm, AEST), but may have leaked earlier. Livepeer’s LPT token began surging around 8.30am AEST yesterday, in its biggest move in months. LPT was was up 42 per cent to a five-month high of $29.39 yesterday evening.

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Livepeer used the $20 million in Series B funding it received in July for the acquisition, which was for an undisclosed sum.

“The future of video is web3,” chief executive Doug Petkanics said. “This acquisition adds momentum to Livepeer’s web3 open video infrastructure, positioning Livepeer deeper in the streaming tech stack.

“By integrating the Livepeer network closely with Mist, users will be able to scale their streaming on a cost-effective infrastructure with tremendous savings over web2 alternatives.”

Livepeer envisions a future where video developers use media software for free and pay cost-effective rates to decentralised networks to scale their applications, rather than paying for software licences and cloud infrastructure.

PlayDJ.tv, Korkuma.com, and Vimm.tv all use Livepeer for their livestreaming infrastructure, according to the project.

Messari researcher Mason Nystrom tweeted yesterday that Livepeer received US$73,000 in third-quarter revenue, more than any other web3 protocol other than Filecoin and Arweave, which led with $268,000.

Brooklyn, New York-headquartered Livepeer now has 32 employees distributed worldwide. Mist’s seven-person team will remain based in Amsterdam as Livepeer expands further into Europe.

“I’m looking forward to further growing both the MistServer product and Livepeer brand in general and bringing more exciting technologies to the open video infrastructure ecosystem,” said former Mist chief technology officer Jaron Viëtor, now the VP of engineering at Livepeer.

“The resources and experience that the combined teams bring to the table open up a staggering amount of possibilities. This is a very exciting time for all of us.”