Comcast to buy social networking firm Plaxo

BANGALORE, INDIA: US-based cable TV company Comcast Corp will acquire social networking start-up Plaxo Inc.

Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. But sources put the value up to $175 million.

“Comcast has an exciting vision to bring the social media experience to mainstream consumers,” Plaxo has said.

Plaxo, founded in 2001, offers an online address book service that can automatically update contact information, and last August started a more traditional social networking service called Plaxo Pulse.

According to sources, Comcast proposes to use Plaxo to give its consumers social network links across all Comcast-connected devices including TVs, digital video recorders, wireless devices.

Plaxo will join its fast-growing Comcast Interactive Media unit which includes Comcast.net, video entertainment site Fancast, movie site Fandango and theplatform, an online video delivery site.

According to Plaxo, until the deal is closed, the company will remain an independent operation, keeping on all 50 of its employees and working on growing its networked address book features, and Plaxo Pulse as well.