Monday, September 30, 2013

ANCESTRY ACQUIRES FIND A GRAVE




ANCESTRY.COM ACQUIRES FINDAGRAVE.COM
WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR ALL OF US WHO USE FIND A GRAVE?
So, here's the big news today from the world of genealogy.  Ancestry.com has acquired findagrave.com (FAG).  What will that mean to all of us who use the FREE site findagrave.com?
Thats the big question we are all asking and talking about today. 
The article doesn't stipulate whether FAG will remain free.  It does tell us that the current founder,  Jim Tipton, will remain the manager.  Here is the actual text of the article in case you don't want to click on the link I've provided.
So, until we know more, we'll have to wait and see.  I absolutely love the FAG site and have used it for years. 

Ancestry.com Acquires Find A Grave

Posted by Kristie Wells on September 30, 2013 in Company News
We are pleased to announce that Ancestry.com LLC has acquired Find A Grave, Inc., the leading online cemetery database.
With over 100 million memorials and 75 million photos, Find A Grave has amassed an unparalleled collection of burial information. Over the past 18 years, it has grown to become an invaluable resource for genealogists, history buffs and cemetery preservationists. Find A Grave will become a wholly owned subsidiary of Ancestry.com, and will continue to be managed by its founder, Jim Tipton.
Ancestry.com plans to bolster the resources dedicated to Find A Grave to launch a new mobile app, improve customer support, introduce an enhanced edit system for submitting updates to memorials, foreign-language support, and other site improvements.
Quotes:
  • Tim Sullivan, CEO of Ancestry.com: Find A Grave is an amazing phenomenon supported by a passionate and engaged community of volunteers around the world. We at Ancestry.com are so excited…honored really…to take on the responsibility of supporting this community. We will maintain Find A Grave as a free website, will retain its existing policies and mode of operation, and look forward to working with Jim Tipton and the entire Find A Grave team to accelerate the development of tools designed to make it even easier for the Find A Grave community to fulfill its original mission to capture every tombstone on Earth.”
  • Jim Tipton, founder of Find A Grave: Ancestry.com has been a long-time supporter of Find A Grave. They have been linking and driving traffic to the site for several years. Burial information is a wonderful source for people researching their family history and I look forward to working with Ancestry.com to help continue our growth and accelerate the pace of improvements.”
The terms of the transaction were not disclosed.



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