Comcast Buys Social Network Site Plaxo

U.S. cable operator Comcast has announced a deal to acquire pioneering social networking site Plaxo to drive TV and mobile social features.

Cable operator Comcast has announced it will be acquiring pioneering social networking site Plaxo as a leg up to implementing social networking features across its television and, eventually, mobile platforms. Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but industry reports and one source put the eventual payout between $140 and $180 million, contingent upon future performance.

“Joining forces with Comcast is a real win for our customers, our investors, and our employees.,” Plaxo executives wrote in the company blog. “Comcast has an exciting vision to bring the social media experience to mainstream consumers. Together, we will be able to help users connect with all the people they care about, across all of the devices they use, with all the media they love to consume, create, and share.”

Plaxo was one of the earliest social networking services, offering interactive online address books that notified users when their friends and connections made updates. Although Plaxo was one of the first out the door—and had Napster’s Sean Parker as one of its founders—the service never gained series traction, failing to capitalize on young Internet users’ desire for public profiles, and for (at least initially) overwhelming users with update messages. Comcast and Plaxo had previously partnered on forthcoming Comcast’s SmartZone communications system, and Plaxo has been hosting about 25 million address books for users of Comcast’s Web-based email.

Plaxo will remain in Silicon Valley and report to Comcast Interactive Media; one of the tasks’ on Plaxo’s plate will be to work with Comcast’s Fancast and Fandango services to integrate social networking features like photo sharing and show discovery into the service’s existing video entertainment database.

Plaxo says current members shoudlq experience no disruption in services, and Plaxo will continue to honor its privacy policies.