The past ten days have been an amazing lesson in the power of community. Not in the "web 2.0 social graph" sense – I’m talking about old school community with users speaking up, speaking out and banding together. Thank you Xmarks users. You told the world it was simply unacceptable for our service to shut down and it worked. Thanks to your passion, Xmarks now has multiple offers from companies ready and willing to take over the service and keep making browser sync better and better!
This is not a signed, sealed done deal yet. But with multiple offers on the table we're pretty confident that Xmarks will continue on with no service interruption. Our style of transparent blog updates has worked so well in this process we want to continue that approach and share this news with you. Some may accuse us of masterminding this whole process; I wish we were that clever! Instead we give the credit to our user base, who spoke up in a way that caught the attention of bloggers and journalists around the world and, in turn, generated new options for the service to live on.
I can't share any more specifics yet but it shouldn't take too long - we're hustling to get a deal completed in the near future. Many of you know that we set up a pledge page where users can commit to paying $10 - $20 annually for Xmarks:
Click here to make the Xmarks Pledge
We're close to thirty thousand pledges already, and that's without promoting this to our entire user base. We made a conscious decision to stop our email campaign to users about service shutdown given our options for a new lease on life - now we're holding off on sending a massive email update until we have concrete news about a new owner of Xmarks.
Thanks to all of you who pledged so far. This has really helped show the value of Xmarks to potential buyers. We don't know for certain how "Xmarks Premium" will play out, but early indications are that some basic Xmarks features will remain free with more advanced features reserved for Premium users.
Stay tuned for more details soon.
Awesome, sounds really good! I'm glad XMarks is not shutting down, I haven't found anything similar (cross-computer cross-browser bookmark syncing) :)
ReplyDeleteLong Live Xmarks <3
ReplyDeleteFabulous news! Congratulations to you (and to the rest of us).
ReplyDeleteThis is fantastic news guys, I'll hope for the best.
ReplyDeleteGreat news! Already pledged on the first day, and I'm keeping my fingers crossed!
ReplyDeleteSo we can breathe again now? :D
ReplyDeleteSounds like great news. Good luck guys!
Yay!!! That's what we've been talking about! I made all my family (users of Xmarks) sign that pledge! Good luck with the deal!
ReplyDeleteYea! Glad to hear some corps out there see the greatness that is XMarks!
ReplyDeleteGreat news!Thanks guys!We will make it!
ReplyDeleteFantastic news, this is a service I found back when it was foxmarks. Since that day I have used it and would be lost without it.
ReplyDeleteI will happily pay for a premium service if it is as cheap as we hope it is to be, however I understand this is a large number of users and the cloud aint free to store data in.
Anyways lets all keep our fingers crossed we don't loose this fantastic service.
~djekl
Fantastic News!!! good luck for the deal-making!!!!!!
ReplyDeleteFantastic news! Can't wait to hear the outcome!
ReplyDeleteJames,
ReplyDeleteGreat news for the users and hopefully for some of the members of your team.
Good luck on finding the best deal possible and I appreciate the open approach that you've adopted.
Thanks,
Lee
That's fantastic news! I hope it gets finalized soon.
ReplyDeleteGreat news. An essential, transparent service (as it should be) and a very promising update. I am a "pledger" and hope to be able to support you soon.
ReplyDeleteGood luck!
Andrew
So happy to hear it!
ReplyDeleteWell done! This is one of my favourite productivity tools!
ReplyDeleteI missed the news on the pledge page. Pledged now. I value the service enough for the amount asked.
ReplyDeleteGreat to hear.
ReplyDeleteWhere would i be wihtout all the bm's in xmark.
ReplyDeleteAnd their passwords :-) think if all the trees saved.
We don't suspect you of masterminding this for a second -- which is why the response has been so heartfelt. Thanks for a great free (so far) product. I pledged!
ReplyDeleteAwesome. Im glad companies now see you for the value that you are worth. Xmarks you deserve it!
ReplyDeleteThis is awesome news! I am so excited for you-and all of us!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the update - it's appreciated. I've been checking for news every other day. Here's hoping it works out. I'll gladly stand by my pledge.
ReplyDeleteWish you all the best guys!
ReplyDeleteThis is great news! So glad to hear it. I pledged!
ReplyDeleteWOOT!!!!!
ReplyDeleteIndeed good news :)
ReplyDeleteI am one of those that pledged as well
Yay! I was really sad when I heard Xmarks was shutting down; now I'm glad to hear it will still be available!
ReplyDeleteI am a HUGE fan of Xmarks, and I am willing to pay for the privilege of using this amazing service! I have been so sad since news of the impending end to the service surfaced.
ReplyDeleteI am still holding up on hope that everyone out there will be able to realize what a HUGE loss this will be and support the effort to keep Xmarks alive.
I wish all of you the best and hope and pray that all the hard work you have put into this wonderful project will not just disappear and be forgotten.
You have no idea how many times I have been saved by Xmarks and the ability to access my bookmarks from anywhere regardless of browser.
Godspeed Xmarks!
MC.
I hoped(knew) this is how this would turn out. The online community is still a community when it needs to be.
ReplyDeleteEXCELLENT.
ReplyDeleteJust keep in mind that group mentality is a dumb animal. It can turn on you if you don't treat it well. So keep doing what you're doing in terms of service and all will be well.
Awesome! Makes my life easier!
ReplyDeleteCongrats -- a win for you and us!!
ReplyDeleteThe cream always floats to the top... no matter what.. may the future be rosy for you and all who have grown to depend on a wonderful, web tool that is so simple to use..
ReplyDeleteFuture congrats to all concerned.
g
I have pledged! And I don't take such things lightly.
ReplyDeleteLong live Xmarks!
I'm reactivating my account and I have pledged too.
ReplyDeleteSo glad to read this news!
ReplyDeleteWoot!! (and breathes sigh of relief)
ReplyDeleteXmarks has been a very useful tool to me for syncing bookmarks between browsers and computers. To read that Xmarks planned closure proved concerning but I see it is not over yet. I am sure many people are happy to donate time, skills, resources and money to keep Xmarks operational. Charging people to use Xmarks I do not see as a good choice, some will, but many believe in the free option. Donations it appears would fund this project on its own and so somewhat odd to sell up. I presume this successful creation is being sold for profit.
ReplyDeleteThank you! Thank you! Thank you! I've made my pledge, gladly.
ReplyDeleteI haven't been able to get Xmarks working reliably with Chrome for a while - but if you guys are able to make that work then I'd happily pay $20 a year for the service.
ReplyDeleteWhew...
ReplyDelete*sigh of relief*
Happy for you, and for me too. :)
So glad to hear this news. Xmarks' probable demise was disappointing not only because its a good service but also because good people who gave away so much for free deserve to get paid too. As an online publisher I do understand that.
ReplyDeleteThanks and good luck
Good news :-) Good luck!
ReplyDeleteWhy don't you consider to join forces with Fruux?
ReplyDeletebizdev (at) fruux (dot) com
You both rock!
Pledge schmedge. Send me to PayPal and I'll happily pay upfront for my pledge right now to keep this service up and running. Great work and happy to hear that (fingers crossed) I can stay a happy xmarks user.
ReplyDeleteBrilliant news guys! There's a lot to be said for being upfront!
ReplyDeleteHi
ReplyDeleteThis is excellent news! Roll on the blog post to say were NOT shutting down! I absoultly love this service best app I ever have used!
Id pay my $20 up front now if it were guaranteed to still be around for the future!
Amazing app!
Kev
This is certainly a great news! Honestly, I uninstalled Xmarks after learning about its "supposed to be" demise. And I can't describe how I missed it in the first place.
ReplyDeleteHope to hear better news in the future!
Good news indeed!
ReplyDeleteI'd also happily pay a $20 sub to make sure the service continues.
what goes around comes around
ReplyDeleteSince you did damn well now you deserve an excellent offer.
keep going!
I really hope this goes through for you. I am hoping I can come up with subscription money, but supporting my wife and I on just my disability is rough. I *love* X-Marks though! I would hate to be without it! Firefox Sync has nothing on your service.
ReplyDeleteXmarks - syncing Firefox, IE & Chrome on both computers - a brilliant idea and now I have it I can't imagine not being able to keep so conveniently organised... so I signed the pledge and am looking forward to hearing your success story - well done to all involved. And congrats on building an old school supportive community and keeping us in the loop. Love it!
ReplyDeleteI personally see a strong link between XMarks and LastPass as you both have identical goals one on the password sync side and you on the bookmark sync side.
ReplyDeleteThat means I can use my bookmarks on nearly any platform and on the move AND have the passwords for those sites. The perfect match?
Either way, I need my XMarks! :-)
Happy to pay a reasonable premium price to have multi-device, multi-platform access to my bookmarks.
Best wishes to see this continue.
This is great to hear. I didn't think it would take long for people to step up. Just great news!!
ReplyDeleteOh, man, am I happy to read this! I use 3 profiles to keep bookmarks and passwords synchronized on 4 computers with 2 users each in 3 locations using 2 browsers. It just wasn't getting done before Xmarks, and I was really unhappy to consider losing it!
ReplyDeleteGood news !
ReplyDeleteJames, I signed the pledge but please tell me where I have to pay and I will do ASAP.
Keep up with the good work guys !
Guys these are great news!!
ReplyDeleteI was just not being able to embody the idea of you going away...I have 5 different bookmark profiles which I sync seamlessly across Win/Mac OS/several Linux flavours on FF/Safari/Chrome, on as many locations I wish...nobody makes that possible other than you!!!
...I hope you clinch a really good deal asap...
Thanks and keep going with the good work ;-)
Wow... Now I don't need to worry about I will need to settle for less with the primitive Firefox Sync. I sure will sign for the premium service when it's available.
ReplyDeleteI never knew the importance of Xmarks was to me until I was going to lose it. Thank God for a second chance. I promise I will cherish Xmarks and feed it properly. I will never curse it, beat it , or leave it alone. I will walk it twice a day. Amen.
Well I'll be damned. Like many, I was really sad to hear of the upcoming demise of Xmarks, which beautifully keeps me synced across Linux and Windoze, Firefox and Chrome/Chromium. For a while have been thinking, "Why not make it a user contributory situation, a la the very popular Spybot, et. al?"
ReplyDeleteAs usual, I'm late to the party by the time I finally wandered out here. Great minds think alike, I guess. Community at work.
I was already evaluating alternatives, even dropping Firefox. It would have been as disruptive (in the negative way) to my internet usage as the flickr incident some three years ago. I will happily pay a decent amount to avoid this disruption. Thanks guys!
ReplyDeleteFantastic News! I have been using you guys since FoxMarks days and recently shifted from FireFox to Chrome is my primary browser. (I still use FireFox for Dev work though and I'm waiting for the new FF to hit release stage to evaluate that). Nobody else offers true cross browser bookmark sync etc. like XMarks!
ReplyDeleteDone and Done, keep up the awesomeness this IS WORTH INVESTING IN!
ReplyDeletehttp://www.pledgebank.com/XmarksPremium/
This is awesome news. I have used XMarks since it was Foxmarks and have never looked back. With the first news of the demise of Xmarks, I looked at FF Sync and it worked for me but I felt like I was cheating on a girlfriend. LOL. I have since dumped FF Sync. I also signed the pledge the other day.
ReplyDeleteThis is great news! Already pledged, and thanks for a great service! Good luck
ReplyDeleteFingers X'd for a speedy and happy conlusion... :-)
ReplyDeleteBest regards,
Colin.
I sure hope everything will work out I would hate to loose X Marks
ReplyDeleteI pledged and I will stick to my pledge just to have some peace of mind when I may have to reformat.. Thanks guys Good Luck hope it all works out for you and us the really care.
This is great news. XMarks is one of the most useful apps I've ever installed and it's well worth paying for.
ReplyDeleteI feel like I've fallen into one of those feel-good movies where you come out saying "Aw, that doesn't happen in real-life..." Wonderful.
ReplyDeleteI tried FF Sync and wound up with duplicated and triplicated bookmarks. Probably my fault - but hey, Foxmarks never let me screw up when I started with it - it just worked.
All the best, guys. Thanks for battling.
Great to know lots silent users stand out to support xmarks.
ReplyDeleteHope to see xmarks change with community support and start profits for long life.
awesome! I was putting off figuring out what to do. i have it set up so that my wife and I can share a set of bookmarks, which makes life easier... in some ways. :) Now I just have to pay attention, or sign up to some rss so i'll know what's going on...
ReplyDeleteI'm a proud supporter for xmarks. So please do keep it up! I can't live without xmarks now! ;-)
ReplyDeleteW00t! I switched to Firefox Sync when I heard the announcement, but it's just not as slick as Xmarks. Looking forward to the announcement!
ReplyDeleteDont close please, i publicize your pledge for my friends on FaceBook and similar service Memi (http://meemi.com/)
ReplyDeleteI support Xmarks 100%, but I CAN'T PAY FOR THIS SERVICE. Its not fair to those that can't pay for this service. If this goes through, where someone has better service than another. That is really sicking. This Service Should be able to receive DONATIONS only. It should be AN Open Source Project, I can contribute in other ways. If this crap about pay for another service, go through. Then expect a FORK if that is free and open source.
ReplyDeleteJesse,
ReplyDeleteYou clearly have no understanding of what it takes to run and support a business, much less an online business that requires bandwidth, servers and talented technical people to succeed. The money for running this has to come from somewhere.
Initially lots of services are free and supported by seed capital from investors, but eventually either advertising, subscriptions or hard cash have to be part of the equation to keep the lights on.
If you read any of the articles related to this, you'd know that Xmarks is considering both a free and a premium version. So stop your whining. Better yet, pay up the nominal fee and help support them so this doesn't happen again if the service is that important to you.
I'm sure you found the money to pay for your internet usage, cell phone, and whatever other addictions you can't live without. Did you call up your cell phone provider and tell them you CANT PAY FOR THIS SERVICE but you really need it? Either way, I'm sure the folks at Xmarks will be able to keep the lights on without your generous contributions.
Take my money, please. Oh, wait, was that take my wife?
ReplyDeleteGlad to hear things are looking more positive. I'd hate to have to go the route of 43marks or some other system that may or may not work for me.
I know you guys rock and roll, again, glad to hear things may be looking up. I'll keep my fingers crossed and my pledge money ready. I got a $20 dollar bill stuck to my refrigerator. Do you guys make an Xmarks magnet?
I am not sure I understand. You need $10 and at least 100,000 users? That means $1,000,000/year right?
ReplyDeleteThat is quite a lot of money.
Need 100,000 users at $10-20 pa.
ReplyDeleteHaving 30,000 pledges from people that know only from word of mouth only is amazing!
Congratulations on the interest from credible buyers and I am glad that I was among the 30K pledges that helped. And thank you for keeping us updated on the process. I was about to start uninstalling this weekend and trying out some of the other sync options, but I was not looking forward to the effort or the loss of functionality. Now I will be patient and wait to hear more.
ReplyDeletei think the future of Xmarks could, and should be resolved with the Open Source ideals, opening possibilities with Google and other OS supporters that have clearly showed success in the OS realm.
ReplyDeleteI'm am glad to see that there was a groundswell of support from the userbase. I need cross-browser sync of my bookmarks. I definitely would pay a higher premium than most to retain that ability (in the $30-$50/year range). I honestly don't know how I got by before Xmarks was released.
ReplyDeleteThat is great news! Thanks for listening and my fingers are crossed you'll be successful.
ReplyDeleteI was so sad when I heard that Xmarks would close. So I began to search a substitute but all I found was shit. I´m so happy to hear good news and now I'm part of more than 30k people willing to pay for this great service!
ReplyDeleteI haven't unistall Xmaks ;)
Great news, congratulations!
ReplyDeleteIf Xmarks now has multiple offers from companies ready and willing to take over the service, what it really means is that the service is commercially viable.
This is great news. Xmarks really changed the way I manage my browsing experience.
ReplyDeleteI am so happy to hear this!!
great news!
ReplyDeleteViva Xmarks!! Keep up the good work guys! And thank you, Xmarks, - just for your existence. You're the best.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad we were able to help bring your hard work to fruition and not let the switch to be turned off. Honestly I couldn't see a world without Xmarks and the second I heard about it I was reaching out to every company I knew who could help and anyone else who would listen (Blogs, email, forums, etc).
ReplyDeleteI'm also proud to be one of your 30,000
Please don't take my Xmarks away!
ReplyDeleteGreat news!
ReplyDeleteAdd one more person that is willing to pay for your awesome service! Best of luck to you all, and best wishes for success!
ReplyDeleteI have been with you since Foxmarks. So glad to hear things are working out.
ReplyDeleteI use Xmarks to sync bookmarks across different browsers in multiple virtual machines and desktops (linux, windows and os x). Very very handy and something I would definitely pay for.
ReplyDeleteI'm very pleased to see you have some more options on the table...
A valuable service that helps make Digital Life much easier. I'm a pledger and know, like many of you, that the service is well worth what they're asking for... easily!
ReplyDeletehooray!
ReplyDeletelong live xmarks.
this is awesome :D
Gooooooooooooo XMarks!!! And I'm looking forward to that Android version!
ReplyDeleteXmarks simply cannot be allowed to go down. That would be verging on criminal ;)
ReplyDeleteBeen your user since Foxmarks was in beta! And I am glad that it looks like the service I have so come to love will live and flourish!! Add one more to your list of pledges :D
ReplyDeleteI don't know what I would do without xmarks. I use multiple browsers on multiple machines and probably have hundreds of bookmarks. My life would be a mess without you! No other software out there compares, I know, I looked.
ReplyDeleteLong live xmarks!
I need your service so badly, I can't imagine I am the only one. I can understand that Google, Microsoft and the other browser producers are not interested in making Xmarks survive: the only true service that allows me to use different browsers when I want and withot losing my bookmarks in the switch!
ReplyDeleteGood news. Thanks!
ReplyDeletegreat news, but it should be more than 10 box.
ReplyDeleteHurray!
ReplyDeleteI signed the pledge, but with one caveat - You need to aim for the $5 to $8 mark for an annual subscription. If given no choice, I would pay $10 a year, but you need to think of the casual users who might not have ponied up if the cost is too much. If you get the price to the point of "No brainer" "App store" purchase, your sales numbers will vastly exceed what you'd do if you price too highly.
ReplyDeleteUnder $10 is an impulse, no-regret price point, and you should be aiming to hit that to maximize user conversions.
Yaaaayy!! Well done, guys! I will continue to be a loyal customer, wherever you wind up!
ReplyDeleteKeep up the good work.
I'm ROFL over 'Ryan' who posts that he signed the pledge but now feels $5-$8 would be preferable. Goodwill sure has a short shelf-life these days.
ReplyDeletePut me down for $20 - ten for the superb service you offer, and ten bucks worth of 'the finger' to weaselly cheapskates...
...I'm delighted to read that it looks like a deal will be done, and look forward to the pleasure of giving you my money.
Nice, nice, nice!!! I signed pledge and i will pay with pleasure 10-20 € for your service.
ReplyDeleteThanks soo much for this good news.
I would also be happy to pay $20 for the 1st year and $10 each additional year. I enjoy the cross-platform approach and the features and I don't want to entrust all my passwords to some new outfit. Good luck and keep us posted.
ReplyDeleteOne of those services, you never really notice working in the background (testament to how well it works) but if it were to go you realise how much you rely on it.
ReplyDeleteCross-browser is the strongest thing going for XMarks. Plus proper versioning of bookmarks (Chrome for example doesn't seem to offer this).
If it could merge with LastPass I'd be in browser bliss. Great to hear it's not over. My pledge is there.
Great news! Good to know that the market still works in the old traditional way: the need and the likes of the customers driving economy and making companies successful. Good to know it still is all about the customer.
ReplyDeleteAll too much we have experienced kind of economy, which has left these principles...
I was a fan of foxmarks, i am a fan of xmarks. using it on all my computers and my phone. around 20 people around me are using xmarks because i told them about it. i will be happy to pay an ammount for the work and serverscosts. pledge signed.
ReplyDeleteI gladly pledged my $10-20. However, the fact that I even knew about the pledge was pure curiosity - I checked back to the website on my own. No email or other contact stating that there was hope.
ReplyDeleteSo, how did others out there find out about it? If it didn't get communicated out to the masses, there could be a lot of potential pledges left out of the loop.
I found out here. I'd pay the $10/yr for this excellent service.
ReplyDeleteThanks for trying to keep Xmarks alive! This is an incredibly useful add-on!!!
ReplyDeleteThis is wonderful news. I pledged my $10-20. Your service is wonderful and I would definitely pay to keep it going. ^_^
ReplyDeleteFantastic. I signed the pledge, definitely. I love the service. Thank you. Cheers, Thea
ReplyDeletethank you for saving this admins of xmarks. (i still have not got used to xmarks, i still call it foxmarks) 10-20 a year is no problem.
ReplyDeleteMan i was getting sad looking around to see what my replacement was going to be. I just simply don't trust anyone else. Now should xmarks ever break that trust say like doing some wack deal with google and guess what, i'm out. Stay as far away from google as you can (or yahoo, Microsoft, etc) and we are all good.
I do sincerely hope that a solution will be found and X-Marks will keep the service running. It is invaluable for me and I have signed the pledge. So send me the bill as soon as the service goes premium! All the best,
ReplyDeleteArianna
If there is really that much demand to pay for the service, why sell the company at all? Just start offering a premium service yourselves.
ReplyDeleteI love xmarks so much！！！
ReplyDeleteThis is great news, its a great service. Glad to know the outlook is promising for its continuance.
ReplyDeleteI think I started to be fascinated into cloud based service in my personal use of computer life by Xmarks. It really had and still has great value to let me carry one of our most precious data assets across multiple devices/browsers. Plus, the merit of having web index page which allows to access those assets without installing anything into computer is a great advantage over what other solution could offer. I love it and I feel very justifiable to pay certain amount of money to enjoy this great service. Go great development team!
ReplyDeleteThank you! One less thing in my life to worry about. I realize it is such a "small" element, but it helps to manage my life across multiple platforms. Looking forward to the new services.
ReplyDeleteGlad to see you guys moving forward.
ReplyDeleteNow, about that android app...
http://getsatisfaction.com/foxmarks/topics/create_a_native_app_for_google_android
The pledge engine came to a halt after this good news?
ReplyDeleteIs anyone actually surprised by this? I think we all saw this coming.
ReplyDelete"Some may accuse us of masterminding this whole process; I wish we were that clever" You may not be clever, but I'm certain you aren't a bunch of idiots.
@Seandom - Whether you take it as a marketing ploy, or as a real heartfelt response to a lack of money, the question is whether you're willing to pay and support this service. So, shut up, or put up. Troll somewhere else.
ReplyDeleteWell, i just hope you don't start charging for the basic features because i would NOT like to pay for features that are supposed to be free, like bookmark syncing and online bookmark viewing. Foxmarks was born free after all.
ReplyDeleteBUT i do support the idea of having extra paid features, i've just come with some ideas:
Maybe online MANAGEMENT of the bookmarks, or having several "sets" of bookmarks (e.g. i don't want my nsfw marks to sync to my office machine). or maybe mixed accounts like "i want ALL of my home pc bookmarks to sync to the cloud, but only want some of those bookmarks to sync to my other machines.
that is, having a "master" bookmark set, which can be divided in several sub-sets which we could choose to syn to specific machines, or just keep in the cloud to get online access (ala delicious)
beyond that, I'd like to have "isolated" bookmarks on some machines (i.e. my office desktop) that i DON'T want to sync (like specific work pages that i simply DON'T need anywhere else).
well, i hope you come with nice ideas, yet keep basic functions (i.e. CURRENT functions) FREE.
Who knows how well the firefox sync will work -- the current one seems to have issues. But most folks who take the default software are still using MSIE and complaining about it.
ReplyDeleteThis works well and reliably, and I'd be happy to pay for it as is. Extras would just be a bonus.
diegold:
ReplyDelete"supposed to be free"? How's that? Foxmarks might have been born free, but Xmarks was going to die free. Nobody owes you anything.
Well Done XMARKS ! Well Done :)
ReplyDeleteThat is pretty good news. And as pledged i will hold up to that even if there is going to be another way of getting the cash to keep going.
ReplyDeleteAnd thanks to Kevin M i won't need to laugh at diegold.
I hope the pledge works for you guys - looks like it's really been petering off over the past few days... :( I've pledged and as soon as you'll be coming out with premium features I'll be signing up.
ReplyDeleteIn the meantime, is it still possible to donate? I'll be happy to do that if I can figure out where...
@Takuya Shimomura : exact same for me. Foxmarks was my introduction to cloud based services.
ReplyDeleteThe guys at Xmarks have done an amazing job of consistency in their development, never breaking functionalities through updates and porting the service to different platforms & browsers, which in itself speaks for the quality of the overall development. It's been almost 4 years now since I first installed Foxmarks, and it never broke one single time.
If you can't keep the service, perhaps you could consider selling a license for organizations and schools to install the software locally on their servers and continue running the basics on a smaller scale. Specifically, syncing of bookmarks is key.
ReplyDeleteI can nothing but wonder sometimes where the arrogance of some users is coming from, as expressed in statements like "supposed to be free". It almost sounds as if developers were "bad guys" just because they want to make some money for a living by their good work.
ReplyDeleteI'm fine with paying. I tried Firefox' own service for a week. No controls over anything, and all I could get it to do was constantly overwrite new bookmarks of other computers as it randomly forced itself on them. If that's free, I don't want any of it.
ReplyDeleteI'm surprised anyone has said Xmarks is "supposed" to be free. Free is a gift, not an obligation.
Certainly sharing the same sentiments as most everyone above... Hallejuah!
ReplyDeleteI would add, though, that I don't agree with Yeosin above... to my mind it would be ideal if a deal were worked out with one of the "biggies"... Google, Microsoft or Yahoo. (My *personal* preference would be Yahoo.) It seems to me that there are all kinds of ways this info could be leveraged. I think it would be outstanding to be able to do a search that included ONLY results from my bookmarked sites.
Anyway, just my two cents! Here's to the continued future and success of XMarks, and I remain ready to pay once that's an option.
This is excellent news! The value of Xmarks is obvious. Let's stay on this, and stay tuned.
ReplyDeleteVery cool! I just got the Firefox update and thought, "Waitaminute! They're closing the doors, why are they updating?" Then I come here and see a new iPhone app (which I'll probably pick up soon), and this great news.
ReplyDeleteHope it all works out soon, and I'm excited that xmarks may continue into the future!
Yea, I saw the FireFox update too and I was like, wth?
ReplyDeleteSo poked on over and hey, wow. Wish I saw this sooner. I'm sure a lot of heavy Xmarks users are completely oblivious to the whole thing.
$10 a year? a pittance. Minimum ought to be a dollar a month. $12.
I'd pay that in a heartbeat, even more, especially because I see constant work on the product.
Willing to pay? Of course! Xmarks is one of the few deserving services
ReplyDeleteThe original email announcing the impending shutdown ruined my day. Now this announcement just made my day. I'm on a freakin' rollercoaster for Xmarks.
ReplyDeleteYippee!
ReplyDeleteI have been checking this blog for this news everyday. I say make it a paid service, continue the good work.
ReplyDeleteYESSSSSSSSS!!!!!!!!
ReplyDeleteYESSSSSSS YESSSSSSS!!
ReplyDeleteYou guys just made my day! And it was a bad morning before! Get a great deal and keep the great work. You deserve it!
ReplyDeleteNice! The Firefox Sync Addon is no alternative! It's very nice to hear that xmarks is going on to store and sync my tons of Bookmarks for my Laptop, Netbook and Smartphone! Thanks a lot!
ReplyDeleteGood Job guys
ReplyDeleteI am very happy for you and I am proud that people stood up to help you guys out. I saw many of the blogs posting about the shutdown and am happy you got back on your feet.
Cheers and good luck!
THATS GREAT
ReplyDeleteI can't it be free? :-(
ReplyDeleteWhoot Whoot! Just tweeted this, my fav bookmark/browser addon isn't dead. The Man- TAKE THAT. Whoot!
ReplyDeleteCool! Glad to hear it. I hope that whoever takes over realizes the potential Xmarks has in the mobile realm to really differentiate itself from browser-based sync. I'd love to eventually have apps for all my smartphones that make all of my bookmarks transparent everywhere.
ReplyDeleteOutstanding!
ReplyDeleteGood for you guys!
I am piling on my comments with the rest of the Xmarks community. I have been a loyal user since the FoxMarks days when the Google add-on was so lame, didn't have the features, and just plain didn't work. I haven't used anything since.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure if I would rather put up with adverts or pay a premium. I guess it all comes down to the $$. Either way there is no way I would abandon the ship, as it were.
Thanks to you for persevering, and my thanks to the rest of the users for "speaking" up.
Wow, I'm very glad that Xmarks will keep on! I had already tested other bookmark services but to be completely honest, nothing is as complete as Xmarks. I'm donating my $20.
ReplyDeleteI've been using this since it was Foxmarks, and I love it! I love that I can sync different profiles so different bookmarks sync depending on where I am. And I love that I can always find my (thousands) of bookmarks!
ReplyDeleteI hope someone buys you so we can keep the service, even if it means a small fee. Love it! :)
Yay!
Hey XMarkers, this is fantastic news.
ReplyDeleteI really hope the service stays around. I've been a user from the day it was made available to the public and I would be totally lost without it. I currently sync between 7 devices and work would be hell without a service like this.
And yes all you had to do was ask for a small fee and I bet there are thousands of users out there like me who are happy to pay a for a brilliant service.
Making my pledge now :) Happy Days.
http://gabearnold.com/2010/10/xmarks-is-shutting-down-or-is-it-a-hoax/
ReplyDeleteI respect your marketing genius fellas. Even I pledged!
ReplyDeleteNow say it with me... Android and secure password storage.
ReplyDeleteCongratulations! I really hope things continue on this trend; the product is fantastic.
ReplyDeleteAs far as next steps / keeping XMarks palatable for paying users, I think the key is synchronizing with other services. Perhaps work to integrate with dropbox (i.e. if you have dropbox, you automatically have xmarks support) or integrating your password sync with a secure password manager like PassPack. These sorts of improvements and the inevitable (I hope) expansion of XMarks into the mobile market will do wonders for the relevance of the service.
Also, I have to agree with Bogdan to an extent -- I don't necessarily care that my data is mined with a free product, but if I'm the paying customer, I expect service delivery to be the full focus and for my dollars to mean that my data remains with me.
If you still want to explore data mining and statistics, why not do something along the lines of what OkCupid does by plotting and visualizing trends and statistics across your user base? Could be a great additional service and one that offers good insight. I think that would grab some attention, too.
I think the Freemium concept could still work. Offer basic syncing for free and add more features such as cross-browser support and profiling for a reasonable fee. Add in fees for smartphone apps and you will have a nice tidy revenue stream like Evernote's.
ReplyDeleteCongratulations! It worked! Nice to hear good news!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the information. Much appreciated!
ReplyDeleteSee how easy it is? Happy with the news, long life to the biz.
ReplyDeleteSo when do we find out if this is actually going to a paid service? While I really like the Xmarks bookmark service I would not pay to sync bookmarks and passwords.
ReplyDeleteKeep me updated.
Thanks
What would be even better is if Mozilla, Microsoft, Apple, Opera, and Google could collaboratively purchase the code for a generous price and incorporate the new "X-Marks Global" into EVERY major browser, thus creating a free, global, cross-platform synchronization, so we could all use whatever browser we wanted at any time we wanted to do so.
ReplyDeleteAnd then, I stepped through the "Looking Glass," leaving "Wonderland" forever...
Yay!! A BIG sigh of relief to not have to rely on other inferior (IMO) sync software. I agree with Erik's comment, "Android and secure password storage"! Yes, Please! Looking forward to an add-on, especially now that Firefox has now released an official beta for Android and will be fine tuning it. An add-on for Dolphin Browser HD for Android would be great too. Thanks for the great news and congrats!
ReplyDeleteXmarks is not perfect, but it is a hell of a lot better than firefox sync! When I got the announcement that xmarks was going under I switched to FF sync right away. The one feature that I almost cannot live without is access to bookmarks on public access PCs around campus. FF sync requires me to install an extension, google requires a toolbar. Neither option is viable on public PCs.
ReplyDeleteWith xmarks I can go to xmarks.com and everything I need is there. I'm switching back if you guys are going to be around for a while
This is great news! I don't want to be without my Xmarks! Is LastPass buying it? If so that would rock my socks.
ReplyDeleteYes!!!! I love XMarks so much that this actually made my day!
ReplyDeleteI am so glad I am not alone. Like you said, it is not a "done deal" but I am so glad to help out. (And I can't think of a better way to spend $10-$20, so that does not bother me one bit.)
Thanks to you guys and to the rest of the community!!
MikeY
Great news!
ReplyDeleteGreat news but I discovered this on 14/10/10 and I see that the deadline for subscriptions is 15 October 2010 .. it's been a bit short as time to talk. I almost miss while your service is a must for me.
ReplyDelete(Google translation from French ;) )
I leave you, I have a signature pose:)
Thanks a mill for continiuing this service. :)
ReplyDeleteWhew! Good news all around - and on my birthday too! Nice present.
ReplyDeleteI was worried when I heard Xmarks might stop it's service. I've hunted around forever trying to find just the right service to do the trick. I need Xmarks! I literally use from 6 - 8 different computers daily. Most are remote connections to VM's at HQ, or my laptop/desktop at home while I am at work. Because of different OS's and issues with different browsers, I end up using IE 8 or 9, Firefox, Chrome and iPhone. With no effort at all, I can see everything I use on all platforms, on all my OS's... literally a Godsend.
I will be anxious to see how my particular situation works out with a pay/per situation if that's how it goes. I love the way it works right now. I'd pay a yearly user fee, but I generally do not pay for premium features. I would however accept an advertising link now and again inserted into my saved links - I'm all for advertising to make my life free.
I.
GREAT!
ReplyDeleteHowever, $20 per year unlimited browsers is my limit.
GG
This is exactly the sort of news I have waited with my fingers crossed to hear! When a beloved product, service, or company goes under, often its loyal clientele are left scrambling at the last minute to find a pale substitute. More than once we've probably wondered why a company did not advertise problems to its users/client-base so we could step in and do something about it. Thank you for letting us know what was happening before the thirteenth hour, thank you moreover for keeping us informed.
ReplyDeleteGREAT NEWS! Made my day and week. I have been frustrated with one of the other sync's......How about a package deal with SugarSync included???????? I know I would consider it and probably get others.
ReplyDeleteThanks to all who work on, and support this effort.
I hope it is true that you will be staying around!! Even if you don't sell it outright, it would and could be a consideration to bring in adverts to keep down costs without totally letting some big corp. take over and start re-writing things and screwing it all up. It WORKS NOW. Every time some big corp. takes something over it ends up being crappie in the end. I surly hope this does not happen to X-Marks. Did I say before, It Works Now !!!
ReplyDeleteTHX; Hannibal001
Congratulations!
ReplyDeleteOne little extra (like you don't have enough on your plate to worry about!) - how about a native Xmarks app for Android phones? Thanks!
This is a great selfless post and I dare say, a rarity on the internet these days. I commend you and should pledge up too as soon as am able to.
ReplyDeleteThank you. It will be worth spending $10-$20 per for such a great service. I was really disappointed when I heard the news couple weeks ago. You made my day with this news. Thanks again.
ReplyDeleteWhat a great new!!!!! i know that this will happen because you people has designed a great great great product, Really Xmarks will be between the best app for FF, Chrome and IE, Congratulations!!!
ReplyDeleteI´m really happy whit this news
I m soooooo pissed off, i erased my account because yours were going to stop so i used another add-onn wich did not work so lost all my bookmarks. So now i've lost all(about 5 years of bookmarks) my bookmarks and don't know if i can find yours thrustworthy enough to go back to. Verry dissapointed :( . But i'm glad to hear your's aren't shutting down
ReplyDeleteI'm amazed by the response of the community (30,000 pledges is nothing to laugh at!), but it's because you've built a system that works so seamlessly across multiple platforms and browsers that we (the users) are so dedicated to your product. Thanks for doing an amazing job, I've signed the pledge and I'd love to see xmarks continue expanding.
ReplyDeleteExcellent news, best product in the field.
ReplyDeleteI note that this announcement apparently took the some of urgency out of the pledges, which plateau'd at about 35,000 - see diagram at http://www.pledgebank.com/XmarksPremium/info. Without this 7 Oct announcement taking the heat off, you may have been more likely to see the pre-announcement rate of about 3-4,000 per day continue, and so end up with about 60-70k rather than 35k. Or not. Interesting exercise in social network dynamics.
Hopefully this is all academic, the initial response rate good enough to prompt serious business model thinking and rescue for Xmarks. All the best.
Thanks.
ReplyDeleteI wait for the massive email with the best news.
Fantastic news! Considering how useful the Xmarks service is and how well it works, and what I'm willing to (and do) pay for other web services, I'd pay as high as $25/yr for this. Many wouldn't, though, so $10/yr is likely a "comfort zone" price point.
ReplyDeleteI'm hoping to hear good news and receive my invoice for the new service launch soon!
However ... in the event that the Xmarks Premium initiative fizzles, would Xmarks be willing to release enough source code (or communication protocol specifications) to allow the Xmarks user community to create an Open Source "personal Xmarks server" project? This would allow Xmarks users to download/install their own FREE server so they could continue using the browser-side software exactly as-is (would only need configuration item to allow specifying their personal Xmarks server location).
To gauge the interest level, I created www.pledgebank.com/XmarksOpen
Let's hope this alternative won't be needed, and I wish Xmarks Premium the best success!
The pledgebank idea is a good one but if you really want to gauge interest is there a plan to contact current users, registered site visitors, potential customers, past customers, etc to let them know about it?
ReplyDeleteAwesome to hear! Firefox sync and that is great, but if Xmarks goes to Android I will without a doubt be using it as my primary sync service. (I have FF sync, only as a backup) It definitely still has a market IMO especially with a cross mobile/desktop setup. Being able to keep my pwds, bookmarks, etc. for my 2 computers AND my phone would just be great.
ReplyDeleteAnd depending on the "advanced features", I wouldn't mind having the basic service. Only thing I use is syncing my pwds/bookmarks and thats it. Though if it is a reasonable fee I wouldn't mind paying it if it goes on android and other platforms.
I just found out about this pledge today (so a few hours too late). I wish an email was sent to alert me that this pledge was set up. I think a lot more people would have pledged (a lot over the 100K) desired, just that like me, they didn't know about it.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Logan, a plan to contact people must be put in place.
I would have pleadged even if the sum was bigger than 10-20 $.
Fantastic news! Let me also say, that especially if you guys get on the mobile platforms, you will have an unbeatable product. You just need to push it a little further.
ReplyDeleteWhile I was reading this post I said to my self YEAH BOY! I'm so glad that Xmarks will live on! This is really good news! Now I can uninstall FFSync ;] Premium or not, I will support Xmarks all the way, it is the 1st and will always be the best :) I hope the business talks turn up good. And again KUDOS to the XMARKS team, the internet wouldn't be the same if it wasn't for you guys.
ReplyDeleteThe smart phone app seems to be a good idea too :)
Thanks for the update! I'm glad to hear the good news and hope the business talks go well. I'm a little worried though that you'll be solely-owned by a big company like Google or Apple - meaning the premium service (and/or products) would only work for their specific services. The utilitarian view tells me that you should try working a deal with BOTH of them. There will be users who will pay for TWO premium services if it comes down to it. Or they will have to switch to only one, lol (g'luck with that).
ReplyDeleteSorry, that last sentence didn't come out well. I mean they will have to decide to use Apple's services fully or Google's. Hm. Better? It's too early in the morning to be commenting.
ReplyDeleteWhy close the pledge? Why not advertise/email the Pledge? Tell us all the service is ending, but then leave us in the dark about other possibilities is not a good business pratice. I came back to this page to see where you recomended to go to. If I had not looked closer, I would have just taken my service else where, leaving you altogether.
ReplyDeleteYou have options, just don't shut off your user base from the knowledge, or you will loose one of your options.