Xobni
| File:Logo blueonwhite.jpg | |
| Company type | Private (venture-backed) |
|---|---|
| Industry | Mobile and email applications |
| Founded | March 2006 |
| Defunct | July 3, 2013 |
| Fate | Acquired by Yahoo! |
| Headquarters | San Francisco, California, U.S. |
Key people | Jeff Bonforte, CEO Adam M. Smith, Co-Founder Matt Brezina, Co-Founder |
| Website | www |
Xobni (inbox spelled in reverse; pronounced ) was a software firm headquartered in San Francisco that developed applications tailored for Microsoft Outlook and mobile platforms. Established in March 2006 by founders Adam Smith and Matt Brezina during the Y Combinator summer session, the company moved to San Francisco later that year to benefit from the Silicon Valley environment. In July 2013, Yahoo! acquired Xobni for more than $60 million, with the company ceasing its operations a year afterward.
History
Xobni introduced its initial product in a private beta on September 18, 2007, at the TechCrunch 40 event. This software improved email organization by providing enhanced search capabilities and streamlined contact navigation within Microsoft Outlook archives. Originally called Xobni Insight, it was soon renamed Xobni for Outlook. Despite early challenges with performance on large inboxes, the product garnered favorable reviews from industry observers.
In February 2008, Jeff Bonforte—previously a Yahoo! vice president and founder of I-drive—was appointed CEO, marking a shift towards scaling the business strategically. That same month, Bill Gates showcased Xobni at the Office Developers' Conference, which fueled speculation about a possible Microsoft acquisition that the company ultimately declined.
The public beta version launched in May 2008, attracting coverage from prominent outlets such as the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, Businessweek, and CIO Magazine. Xobni broadened its market presence by creating mobile contact management tools compatible with BlackBerry and other devices.
On July 3, 2013, Xobni announced its acquisition by Yahoo! for an undisclosed amount exceeding $60 million. Following the acquisition, Yahoo incorporated Xobni’s technology into Yahoo Mail while CEO Jeff Bonforte joined Yahoo’s leadership team under CEO Marissa Mayer to oversee communication products. Nevertheless, Yahoo discontinued Xobni in July 2014 as part of a strategic realignment focusing on core business priorities.
Services
While still in beta, Xobni encountered inquiries regarding its monetization strategy and product focus. In July 2009, it released a premium version called Xobni Plus that included advanced search functions, support for multiple PST archives, an ad-free experience, and one year of customer support. By 2010, Xobni diversified its revenue model by offering services that allowed data synchronization across devices and gadgets that incorporated third-party data into Outlook. The firm targeted enterprise customers through direct sales efforts and reseller collaborations while providing a developer platform to build Outlook sidebar gadgets.
In 2010, Xobni localized its Outlook offerings for French and German users and launched its first BlackBerry application in March. September 2011 saw the debut of Smartr Inbox for Gmail alongside Smartr Contacts for Android—a complimentary app that prioritizes contacts by relevance and integrates social networking information. Lifehacker honored Smartr Contacts as the "Best Address Book for Android."
On January 24, 2012, Smartr Contacts became available on iPhone, delivering enriched contact profiles featuring communication histories and social media updates. This app was lauded as a "magic address book" and earned Lifehacker’s recognition as the "Best Address Book for iPhone."
Funding
In March 2007, Xobni obtained $4.26 million in capital from a group of investors that included Vinod Khosla, First Round Capital, Atomico, and angel backers like Ron Conway. By January 2009, the company completed a $7 million Series B funding round, attracting contributions from Cisco Systems and the BlackBerry Partners Fund. Subsequently, on February 27, 2012, Xobni revealed it had secured an additional $10 million in financing.
Difficulties
Initial versions of Xobni encountered criticism related to stability and performance, with complaints about excessive system resource consumption and disruption of Outlook functionalities such as calendar event handling and archive management. These problems continued into production releases, likely due to the intricate challenge of implementing intensive indexing within the proprietary Microsoft Outlook environment. Industry analysts suggested that substantial further investment would be necessary to enhance the product.
Gradually, Xobni enhanced its software's efficiency, receiving favorable evaluations from outlets like CNET, which awarded five stars, and PC Magazine, which named it an Editor’s Choice for improved dependability and minimal interference with Outlook operations. Nevertheless, with the introduction of the paid Xobni Plus version (1.8), the free edition lost support for indexing multiple Outlook PST files, leading to dissatisfaction among some users of the no-cost option.