NewsGator snaps up FeedDemon

NewsGator Technologies has acquired Bradbury Software in a move that gives the RSS software platform firm access to the popular Windows-based FeedDemon desktop aggregator, and the TopStyle CSS/xHTML editor for Windows.

NewsGator promised that the acquisition paves the way for FeedDemon to be "integrated tightly" with its NewsGator Online synchronisation platform, and will make it available as part of its subscription service.

Nick Bradbury, the developer behind Bradbury Software who created FeedDemon and TopStyle, will be joining NewsGator's board of directors as part of the deal.

Bradbury explained that the deal with NewsGator would allow existing FeedDemon customers to synchronise their RSS subscriptions between multiple computers, something that he had been unable to do effectively without NewsGator.

"I decided I needed to join forces with someone. I read a post in NewsGator founder Greg Reinacker's blog, in which he laid out NewsGator's plans. It really opened my eyes to where they were headed. Let's just say, I was impressed," he said.

"Soon afterwards I got an email from Greg asking whether I'd consider joining forces with NewsGator. If I hadn't already read Greg's blog post and been so impressed with the direction NewsGator was headed, chances are I would've turned him down.

"But because I read that post, I flew out to meet with the folks at NewsGator. We agreed that I should come on board and bring FeedDemon and TopStyle with me."

The NewsGator Online platform offers RSS reading and viewing across multiple platforms such mobile phones, televisions, the web and email clients including Microsoft Outlook. With the acquisition of FeedDemon this coverage now extends to the Windows desktop.

"We knew we wanted to extend our platform footprint to the desktop, and FeedDemon was the clear choice for us," said Reinacker.

"Its rich feature set and intuitive user interface fit well into our product family, and we're excited to integrate our advanced synchronisation capabilities into the product.

"Nick [Bradbury] has built tremendous products in FeedDemon and TopStyle, and is a highly respected designer and developer whose skills will substantially assist NewsGator as we continue to develop our platform.

"We will continue to invest in these products, and are very happy to offer our customers FeedDemon as a new choice for reading their content."

Starting this summer, all paying NewsGator subscribers will get FeedDemon as part of their subscription packages at no additional charge.

In addition, all FeedDemon and TopStyle customers will get a free two-year NewsGator business subscription, which will include free updates of NewsGator Outlook edition and FeedDemon.

Long-time NewsGator user Robert Scoble of Microsoft said: "Two of the best-regarded news aggregators in the business are joining forces: NewsGator for its strong synchronisation and Outlook integration, and FeedDemon for its awesome organisation and search capabilities. I can't wait to see what new capabilities I'll get."