Second Gear Software, the maker of well-regarded iOS apps like Elements and the recently released Photos+, has acquired private social networking app Glassboard from developer NewsGator.
“As longtime Glassboard users, we’ve used the app with big groups during conferences, as a way to collect feedback on our beta software, and also to plan our nights out,” Second Gear’s Justin Williams wrote in a blog post Thursday morning. “So you can trust we’re committed to keeping Glassboard the service that we’ve all come to love, based on the same great principles, while looking for new ways to make it even better.”
Work has already begun on version 3.0 of the app, Williams wrote. In the meantime, Second Gear is cutting the price of the Glassboard Premium service—which offers up to 1GB of storage per shared “board”—by half, to $25 a year. The basic service will remain free to use.
Macworld’s Dan Moren praised the Glassboard app upon its debut in 2011. “What sets Glassboard apart from other social networks is its emphasis on privacy,” he wrote. “Posts are only visible to those who have been invited to the board, and there’s no way to find or view a board if you’re not already a member. … Board chairs can also remove people from their boards, or delete a board entirely.”
Since that time, NewsGator—which focuses on creating enterprise social networks—has added Web access and an Android app to expand Glassboard’s reach. Now, Second Gear, which is “jumping at the opportunity to bring some fresh ideas to one of our favorite app” will carry the app’s development forward.
Author: Joel Mathis
Joel Mathis is a regular contributor to Macworld and TechHive. He lives in Philadelphia with his wife and young son.