Early in November we reported Xmarks, which had been struggling trying to find a business model to keep its password and bookmark synchronization service free, found a “new owner” and that more details would be made available soon.
Today, All Things Digital is reporting that online password management company LastPass acquired Xmarks, although no financial details of the transaction have been provided.
Enter LastPass, based in Vienna, Va., whose CEO Joe Siegrist said in an interview that he wanted to help keep the service operating and provide it with an ongoing business model.
“They had a large dedicated audience, but their free offering and advertising model was not working,” he said. “We really want to figure something out that could keep it going.”
Siegrist said LastPass offered a good free service, but relied on a small group of users who pay to upgrade to a premium offering.
Xmarks also received pledges from almost 30,000 who, through an online form, confirmed they were willing to pay $10 or $20 to keep Xmarks running. It is unclear whether this acquisition will cause a rebranding of the Xmarks product or not.
