Ancestry.com#Newspapers.com

Ancestry Publishing was founded in 1983, producing genealogical data in print form, with more than 40 family history magazine titles and genealogy reference books published.{{cite web|url=https://www.ancestry.com/corporate/about-ancestry/our-story|title=Our Story|website=ancestry.com/corporate}}{{cite web|url=https://www.technologyreview.com/s/539321/ancestry-moves-further-into-consumer-genetics/|title=Ancestry Moves Further into Consumer Genetics|website=MIT Technology Review|access-date=May 11, 2016}}

In 1990, Paul Brent Allen and Dan Taggart, two Brigham Young University graduates, founded Infobases and began offering Latter-day Saints (LDS) publications on floppy disks. In 1988, Allen had worked at Folio Corporation, founded by his brother Curt and his brother-in-law Brad Pelo.

The service was initially to help members of the church to research their ancestors.

Infobases' first products were floppy disks and compact disks sold from the back seat of the founders' car. In 1994, Infobases was named among Inc. magazine's 500 fastest-growing companies.{{cite news|url=http://www.deseretnews.com/article/765532/Backing-into-a-lucrative-business.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170227014815/http://www.deseretnews.com/article/765532/Backing-into-a-lucrative-business.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=February 27, 2017|title=Backing into a lucrative business|last=Walker|first=Joseph|date=June 11, 2000|work=Deseret News|access-date=February 26, 2017}} Their first offering on CD was the LDS Collectors Edition, released in April 1995, selling for $299.95,{{cite news|title = Let a mouse guide your scripture search|publisher = Deseret News|date = April 3, 1995}} which was offered in an online version in August 1995.{{cite news|title = LDS Materials Available Online|publisher = Deseret News|date = August 3, 1995}} Ancestry officially went online with the launch of Ancestry.com in 1996.

On January 1, 1997, Infobases' parent company, Western Standard Publishing, purchased Ancestry, Inc.,{{cite web|url=http://www.westernstandard.com/about.htm |title=About Western Standard Publishing |access-date=September 21, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080616100540/http://www.westernstandard.com/about.htm |archive-date=June 16, 2008 |url-status=dead}} publisher of Ancestry magazine and genealogy books. Western Standard Publishing's CEO was Joseph A. Cannon, one of the principal owners of Geneva Steel.{{cite news|title = Genealogy business booms as boomers seek out roots|publisher = Deseret News|date = April 5, 1997}}

In July 1997, Allen and Taggart purchased Western Standard's interest in Ancestry, Inc. At the time, Brad Pelo was president and CEO of Infobases, and president of Western Standard. Less than six months earlier, he had been president of Folio Corporation, whose digital technology Infobases was using. In March 1997, Folio was sold to Open Market for $45 million.{{cite news|title = Western Standard sells interest in business magazine to Utah County man|publisher = Deseret News|date = June 4, 1997}} The first public evidence of the change in ownership of Ancestry magazine came with the July/August 1997 issue, which showed a newly reorganized Ancestry, Inc., as its publisher. That issue's masthead also included the first use of the Ancestry.com web address.

More growth for Infobases occurred in July 1997, when Ancestry, Inc. purchased Bookcraft, Inc., a publisher of books written by leaders and officers of the LDS Church.{{cite news|title = Infobases acquires LDS publishing house|publisher = Deseret News|date = July 1, 1997}}{{cite news|title = Happily joined|publisher = Deseret News|date = April 5, 1998}} Infobases had published many of Bookcraft's books as part of its LDS Collector's Library. Pelo also announced that Ancestry's product line would be greatly expanded in both CDs and online. Alan Ashton, a longtime investor in Infobases and founder of WordPerfect, was its chairman of the board.

Allen and Taggart began running Ancestry, Inc. independently from Infobases in July 1997, and began creating one of the largest online subscription-based genealogy database services.{{cite web | url=http://www.infobaseventures.com/our_companies.html | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070528152733/http://www.infobaseventures.com/our_companies.html | title=Infobase Ventures Portfolio Companies | publisher=Infobase Ventures| archive-date=May 28, 2007 | access-date=April 21, 2008}}

In April 1999, to better focus on its Ancestry.com and MyFamily.com Internet businesses, Infobases sold the Bookcraft brand name and its catalog of print books to its major competitor in the LDS book market, Deseret Book. Included in the sale were the rights to Infobases' LDS Collectors Library on CD. A year earlier, Deseret Book had released a competing product called GospeLink, and the two products were combined as a single product by Deseret Book.{{cite news|title=Deseret Book parent announces plans to acquire Bookcraft|publisher=Deseret News|date=February 9, 1999}}{{cite news|title=Acquisition of Bookcraft finalized|publisher=Deseret News|date=April 1, 1999}}

The MyFamily.com website launched in December 1998, with additional free sites beginning in March 1999.{{cite web|url=http://trends.masie.com/archives/1999/03/110_updates_on.html |title=MyFamily.com begins offering free sites |date=March 11, 1999 |access-date=December 26, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061116165038/http://trends.masie.com/archives/1999/03/110_updates_on.html |archive-date=November 16, 2006 |url-status=dead}} The site generated one-million registered users within its first 140 days. The company raised more than US$90 million in venture capital from investors and changed its name on November 17, 1999, from Ancestry.com, Inc. to MyFamily.com, Inc. Its three Internet genealogy sites were then called Ancestry.com, FamilyHistory.com, and MyFamily.com.{{cite news|title = Ancestry.com, Inc. Changes Corporate Name to MyFamily.com, Inc.|publisher = Ancestry.com|date = November 17, 1999}} Sales were about US$62 million for 2002 and US$99 million for 2003.{{cite web|url=http://www.paulallen.net/my-companies/ |title=My Companies: A Chronological View of My Entrepreneurial Endeavors |author=Paul Allen |publisher=paulallen.net |date=May 20, 2006 |access-date=April 21, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080418104914/http://www.paulallen.net/my-companies/ |archive-date=April 18, 2008 |url-status=usurped }}

File:Ancestry dot com headquarters.jpg]]

In March 2004, the company, which had outgrown its call center in Orem, Utah, opened a new call center, which accommodated about 700 agents at a time, in Provo.{{cite news|url=http://deseretnews.com/dn/view/0,1249,595055685,00.html |title=MyFamily growing in Utah |work=Deseret News |date=April 13, 2004 |access-date=April 21, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080421101121/http://deseretnews.com/dn/view/0%2C1249%2C595055685%2C00.html |archive-date=April 21, 2008 |url-status=dead }} Heritage Makers was acquired by MyFamily.com in September 2005.{{cite news |url=http://www2.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/09-21-2005/0004112253&EDATE= |title=MyFamily.com, Inc. Acquires Heritage Makers |agency=PR Newswire |date=September 21, 2005 |access-date=April 21, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060127003630/http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=%2Fwww%2Fstory%2F09-21-2005%2F0004112253&EDATE= |archive-date=January 27, 2006 }}

On November 5, 2009, Ancestry.com became a publicly traded company on NASDAQ (symbol: ACOM), with an initial public offering of 7.4 million shares priced at $13.50 per share, underwritten by Morgan Stanley, Bank of America, Merrill Lynch, Jefferies & Company, Piper Jaffray, and BMO Capital Markets.{{cite web|url=http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2009/11/05/ancestry-com-explores-an-ipo/|website=BloggingStocks.com|title=Ancestry.com explores an IPO|access-date=February 27, 2011|archive-date=May 1, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110501082007/http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2009/11/05/ancestry-com-explores-an-ipo/|url-status=dead}}

In 2010, Ancestry sold its book publishing assets to Turner Publishing Company.Jim Milliot, [http://www.publishersweekly.com/article/454076-Turner_Publishing_Buys_Ancestry_Publishing_Assets.php "Turner Publishing Buys Ancestry Publishing Assets,"] Publishers Weekly, March 23, 2010.

In 2010, Ancestry.com expanded its domestic operations with the opening of an office in San Francisco, California, staffed with brand new engineering, product, and marketing teams geared toward developing some of Ancestry's cutting-edge technology and services. In 2011, Ancestry launched an Android and iOS app.{{cite web|url=http://www.macworld.com/article/1157578/ancestrydotcom.html|title=Ancestry.com updates app with iPad optimization|website=Macworld|access-date=May 11, 2016}}{{cite web|url=http://www.androidtapp.com/ancestry-app/|title=Ancestry app is the perfect companion for researching family tree history|date=March 5, 2012|website=AndroidTapp|access-date=May 11, 2016|archive-date=June 3, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160603193423/http://www.androidtapp.com/ancestry-app/|url-status=dead}}

In December 2011, Ancestry.com moved the Social Security Death Index search behind a paywall and stopped displaying the Social Security information of people who had died within the past 10 years, because of identity theft concerns.{{cite news

|last=Sterman

|first=Joce

|title=Website stops displaying Social Security numbers for recently dead

|publisher=ABC2

|date=December 14, 2011

|url=http://www.abc2news.com/dpp/news/local_news/investigations/website-stops-displaying-social-security-numbers-for-recently-dead

|access-date=December 21, 2011

|url-status=dead

|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120110115351/http://www.abc2news.com/dpp/news/local_news/investigations/website-stops-displaying-social-security-numbers-for-recently-dead

|archive-date=January 10, 2012

}}

In March 2012, Ancestry.com acquired the collection of DNA assets from GeneTree.[http://www.yourgeneticgenealogist.com/2012/05/ancestrycom-buys-genetree-and-launches.html Ancestry.com buys GeneTree and launches new service] Accessed January 24, 2013

In September 2012, Ancestry.com expanded its international operations with the opening of its European headquarters in Dublin, Ireland. The Dublin office includes a new call center for international customers, as well as product, marketing, and engineering teams.{{cite web|last=Kennedy|first=John Fintan|title=Ancestry.com to create 50 new jobs at international HQ in Dublin|url=http://www.siliconrepublic.com/careers/item/28235-ancestry-com-to-create-50-n|date=July 11, 2012|publisher=Silicon Republic|access-date=August 1, 2013|quote=Ancestry.com’s Dublin employees will include staff working within management and finance functions, as well as website developers and member service agents.}}{{cite news |last=Flanagan |first=Peter |title=Genealogy giant sold for €1.2bn months after Dublin move|url=http://www.independent.ie/irish-news/genealogy-giant-sold-for-12bn-months-after-dublin-move-28822300.html|access-date=August 1, 2013|newspaper=Irish Independent|date=October 23, 2012|quote=It set up in Ireland last year but in July confirmed it would open its European headquarters on Sir John Rogerson's Quay in Dublin, and started taking on around 35 staff from September.}}

In October 2012, Ancestry.com agreed to be acquired by a private equity group consisting of Permira Advisers LLP, members of Ancestry.com's management team, including CEO Tim Sullivan and CFO Howard Hochhauser, and Spectrum Equity, for $32 per share or around $1.6 billion.{{cite news|url=http://descrier.co.uk/technology/2012/10/ancestry-com-acquired-by-private-equity-group-for-1-6-billion/|title=Ancestry.com Acquired by Private Equity Group for $1.6 Billion|publisher=The Descrier|access-date=October 22, 2012}} At the same time, Ancestry.com purchased a photo digitization and sharing service called 1000Memories.{{cite news|url=https://techcrunch.com/2012/10/03/ancestry-com-acquires-photo-digitization-and-sharing-service-1000memories/|title=Ancestry.com Acquires Photo Digitization And Sharing Service 1000memories|publisher=TechCrunch|access-date=October 3, 2012}}

In 2013, Ancestry acquired Find a Grave from Jim Tipton, who had created the original site in 1995. Ancestry subsequently launched a redesigned version of Find a Grave in 2017.

On July 16, 2015, Ancestry launched AncestryHealth, and announced the appointment of Cathy A. Petti as its Chief Health Officer.{{cite web|url=http://mobihealthnews.com/45390/ancestry-com-launches-health-website-positions-itself-as-budding-23andme-competitor|title=Ancestry.com launches health website, positions itself as budding 23andMe competitor|date=July 16, 2015|website=MobiHealthNews|access-date=May 11, 2016}} That year, Ancestry partnered with the Google subsidiary, Calico, to focus on longevity research and therapeutics, in an effort to investigate human heredity of lifespan.{{Cite news|url=https://www.businessinsider.com/google-calico-partners-with-ancestrycom-on-aging-2015-7|title=Google is on a mission to figure out how and why we age |last=Ramsey |first=Lydia |date=July 22, 2015|work=Business Insider|access-date=May 31, 2018}}{{cite web|url=http://www.recode.net/2015/7/26/11615070/the-long-game-google-partners-with-ancestry-com-to-beat-the-specter|title=The Long Game: Google-Backed Calico Partners With Ancestry to Beat the Specter of Aging|last=Bergen|first=Mark|date=July 26, 2015|website=Recode|access-date=May 18, 2016}}

In April 2016, GIC Private Limited (a sovereign wealth fund owned by the Government of Singapore) and Silver Lake (a private equity fund manager) bought equity stakes in Ancestry.com.{{Cite news|url=https://www.fnlondon.com/articles/permira-triples-money-by-selling-ancestry-stake-to-silver-lake-gic-20160405|title=Permira trebles money by selling Ancestry stake to Silver Lake, GIC |last=Or |first=Amy |date=April 5, 2016|work=Financial News|access-date=May 31, 2018 }} The estimated market value of Ancestry.com in 2017 was more than $3 billion.{{Cite news|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-07-19/ancestry-com-is-said-to-be-close-to-hiring-banks-for-2017-ipo|title=Ancestry.com Is Close to Hiring Banks for 2017 IPO|last1=Porter|first1=Keil|date=July 19, 2017|publisher=Bloomberg |access-date=May 31, 2018 |last2=Sherman |first2=Alex }}

In June 2017, Ancestry.com stated that it was migrating all of its applications and data to Amazon Web Services (AWS).{{cite press release|url=https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20170608006326/en/Ancestry-Goes-All-in-on-AWS|title=Ancestry Goes All-in on AWS}}{{cite web|url=https://aws.amazon.com/fargate/customers/|title=AWS Fargate Customers}}

Through vintage photographs, a woman was able to document eight generations of her family, dating back to 1805, including an interracial couple.{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/21/us/interracial-slavery-love.html|title=Was Interracial Love Possible in the Days of Slavery? Descendants of One Couple Think So|quote=The love affair could have been lost if not for Paula Wright, a seventh-generation descendant of the couple who inherited vintage photographs that inspired her to document eight generations of her family, dating to 1805.|last=Hassan|first=Adeel|work=The New York Times|date=October 21, 2018 |access-date=July 18, 2022}} A controversial Ancestry.com advertisement had run on television stations in Utah, showing a slavery-era interracial couple. The advertisement was criticized by a news correspondent for Boston radio station WBUR-FM and MSNBC, and law professor Melissa Murray, on the grounds that it romanticized slavery in the antebellum South. In April 2019, Ancestry withdrew the advertisement with an apology.{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/19/us/ancestry-dna-slavery-commercial.html|title=Ancestry.com Apologizes for Ad Showing Slavery-Era Interracial Couple|last=Holson|first=Laura M.|work=The New York Times|date=April 19, 2019|access-date=July 8, 2022}}

In November 2018, Ancestry claimed to have over 10 billion digitized records and over three-million paying customers.{{Cite news|url=https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20181129005208/en/Ancestry-Breaks-November-Sales-Record|title=Ancestry Breaks November Sales Record|last=Spatafore|first=Gina|date=November 29, 2018|work=Business Wire|access-date=November 30, 2018 }}

In December 2018, after authorities arrested the Golden State Killer and used GEDmatch to solve the case, Ancestry.com and 23andMe announced a data policy that they would not allow their DNA profiles to be used for crime solving without a valid legal process such as a search warrant, as they believe it violates users' privacy.{{cite web|url=https://news.bloomberglaw.com/pharma-and-life-sciences/dna-testing-you-might-want-to-wait-for-more-legal-protection|title=News: DNA Testing? You Might Want to Wait for More Legal Protection|first=Dana A.|last=Elfin|website=bloomberglaw.com}}{{cite web|url=https://www.darkdaily.com/erasing-dna-footprint-from-the-internet-proves-difficult-for-consumers-who-provide-data-to-genetic-testing-companies/|title=Deleting Consumer DNA from the Internet |website=Dark Daily|date=December 24, 2018 }} In the 2021 case of the murder of George Seitz, Ancestry.com was used to help identify the remains of a crime victim.{{Cite news|last1=Watkins|first1=Ali|last2=Schweber|first2=Nate|date=November 4, 2021|title=Bones in the Backyard: How Police Cracked a Grisly Cold Case |newspaper=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/11/04/nyregion/bones-cold-case-nyc.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20211228/https://www.nytimes.com/2021/11/04/nyregion/bones-cold-case-nyc.html |archive-date=December 28, 2021 |url-access=limited|access-date=November 8, 2021|issn=0362-4331}}{{cbignore}}

In August 2020, The Blackstone Group announced plans to acquire Ancestry for $4.7 billion, and in December 2020 the acquisition occurred.

In February 2021, Ancestry announced Deb Liu, a former Facebook executive, as their CEO effective March 1.{{Cite web |last=Stych |first=Anne |date=February 3, 2021 |title=Ancestry taps Facebook exec as new CEO |url=https://www.bizjournals.com/bizwomen/news/latest-news/2021/02/ancestry-taps-facebook-exec-as-new-ceo.html?page=all |access-date=March 6, 2022 |website=Bizwomen |publisher=American City Business Journals}}

In November 2021, Ancestry announced the acquisition of French Genealogy Company Geneanet.{{cite web |url=https://www.ancestry.com/corporate/blog/leading-french-genealogy-company-geneanet-joins-ancestry |title=Leading French Genealogy Company, Geneanet, Joins Ancestry |website=Ancestry.com }}

In March 2023, Ancestry announced that it had won a contract to digitize over 3 million British Army service records, which it would release from 2024 through 2029. In February 2021 the Ministry Of Defence commenced transferring 9.7 million military records for individuals with a discharge date before 31 December 1963 to The National Archives UK, its largest record transfer in the history of the organization.{{cite web|url=https://www.whodoyouthinkyouaremagazine.com/news/second-world-war-records-ancestry |title=Ancestry wins contract to digitise Ministry of Defence records |last=Collins |first=Rosemary |date=March 13, 2023 |via=Who Do You Think You Are Magazine? |quote=The National Archives UK has announced that records held by the MOD, including Second World War service personnel records will be digitised by Ancestry}}

Ancestry’s Board of Directors selected CFO and COO Howard Hochhauser to succeed Deb Liu as the company’s President & CEO effective February 1, 2025. Hochhauser will continue to serve as a member of the Board. The company has initiated a search for a new CFO.

AncestryDNA is a subsidiary of Ancestry LLC. AncestryDNA offers a direct-to-consumer genealogical DNA test.{{cite web

|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/2015/10/21/23andme-reboots-service-anne-wojcicki/74281804/

|title=23andme relaunches its expanded DNA spit tests after FDA-mandated pause

|website=USA Today |access-date=May 11, 2016}} Consumers provide a sample of their DNA to the company for analysis. AncestryDNA then uses DNA sequences to infer family relationships with other Ancestry DNA users, and to infer "ancestral regions"{{Cite web |title=Ancestral Regions in AncestryDNA® |url=https://support.ancestry.com/s/article/AncestryDNA-Ethnicity?language=en_US |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20241002101918/https://support.ancestry.com/s/article/AncestryDNA-Ethnicity?language=en_US |archive-date=2024-10-02 |access-date=2024-10-02 |website=Ancestry.com}} (previously "ethnicity estimates").{{Cite web |title=Renaming Ancestral Regions and Journeys |url=https://support.ancestry.com/s/article/Renaming-Ancestral-Regions-and-Journeys?language=en_US |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20241002065729/https://support.ancestry.com/s/article/Renaming-Ancestral-Regions-and-Journeys?language=en_US |archive-date=2024-10-02 |access-date=2024-10-02 |website=Ancestry.com}} Previously, Ancestry.com also offered paternal Y-chromosome DNA and maternal mitochondrial DNA tests, but those were discontinued in June 2014.{{cite web

|url=http://geneabloggers.com/ancestrycom-pulls-plug-sites/

|title=Ancestry.com Pulls the Plug on Several Sites

|access-date=July 15, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140715104546/http://geneabloggers.com/ancestrycom-pulls-plug-sites/|archive-date=July 15, 2014

|url-status=dead }} The company describes the technical process of testing in a series of scientific white papers.{{Cite web |title=AncestryDNA® White Papers |url=https://support.ancestry.com/s/article/AncestryDNA-White-Papers?language=en_US |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20241002101750/https://support.ancestry.com/s/article/AncestryDNA-White-Papers?language=en_US |archive-date=2024-10-02 |access-date=2024-10-02 |website=Ancestry.com}} In July 2020, the company claimed that their database contained 18 million completed DNA kits bought by customers.{{cite web

|url=https://www.irishgenealogynews.com/2019/05/ancestrys-dna-network-reaches-15.html

|title=Ancestry's DNA network reaches 15 million test samples|last=Santry|first=Claire |date=May 22, 2019

|website=Irish Genealogy News |access-date=May 24, 2019}}{{Cite news

|url=https://www.technologyreview.com/s/610233/2017-was-the-year-consumer-dna-testing-blew-up/

|title=2017 was the year consumer DNA testing blew up |last=Regalado |first=Antonio |date=February 12, 2018

|work=MIT Technology Review |access-date=February 20, 2018 }}

Ancestry DNA is commonly used for donor conceived persons to find their biological siblings and in some cases their sperm or egg donor.{{cite news |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/sperm-donor-dna-testing-1.4500517

|title=No more Mr. Anonymous for sperm donors - CBC News

|first1=Emily |last1=Chung |first2=Melanie |last2=Glanz |first3=Vik |last3=Adhopia |date=January 25, 2018 |website=CBC}}

The testing itself is performed by Quest Diagnostics.{{cite web

|url=https://www.darkdaily.com/ancestrydna-collaborates-with-quest-diagnostics-to-provide-home-dna-testing-to-healthcare-consumers-721/

|title=AncestryDNA Uses Quest Diagnostics to Sequence DNA {{!}} Dark Daily |website=www.darkdaily.com |date=July 21, 2017 |access-date=November 14, 2018}}

AncestryDNA offers the option to participate in their Human Diversity Project, a "scientific research project aimed at helping scientists better understand population history, population movements, and human health".{{cite news |newspaper=The New York Times

|url=https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/reviews/best-dna-test |title=The Best DNA Testing Kit

|author1=Brishette Mendoza |author2=Amadou Diallo |date=December 10, 2021 |access-date=July 18, 2022}}{{cite web |title=AncestryDNA® Research Project |url=https://support.ancestry.com/s/article/AncestryDNA-Research-Project |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20241002103446/https://support.ancestry.com/s/article/AncestryDNA-Research-Project?language=en_US |archive-date=2024-10-02 |access-date=February 13, 2022 |website=Ancestry.com}}

Members can also pay an additional fee to access DNA traits, which range from predicted physical traits to limited health data.

Since 2023, Ancestry has also offered genetic testing for pets, which at the moment is limited to dogs. The test compares the DNA to over 400 breeds.

{{Main|Find a Grave}}

On September 30, 2013, Ancestry.com announced its acquisition of Find a Grave. Site editor Jim Tipton said of the purchase that Ancestry.com had "been linking and driving traffic to the site for several years. Burial information is a wonderful source for people researching their family history". Ancestry.com launched a mobile app in March 2014.{{cite web|url=http://www.ancestryinsider.org/2014/03/ancestrycom-releases-find-grave-app.html|title=The Ancestry Insider: Ancestry.com Releases Find-A-Grave App|website=www.ancestryinsider.org|access-date=May 18, 2016}}

Fold3 is a premium portal that specializes in military genealogy. Subscribers access an online database with military records, including stories, photos, and personal documents. It was rebranded as Forces War Records in the British & Commonwealth nations in April 2023.{{cite web|url=https://www.greatwarforum.org/topic/310390-ancestryfolds3findmypast-which-is-better/#comment-3299701 |title=Ancestry..Folds3....FindmyPast ...which is better? |series= Using the technology|publisher=Great War Forum |date=May 20, 2024 |access-date=October 22, 2024 |quote=When I log in to Fold 3, it says I am on the USA site and would I prefer Forces War Records for UK... Has Fold 3 UK been renamed or superseded? }}

The website also features the Guion Miller Roll, an Eastern Cherokee tribal roll.{{cite web|url=https://www.tahlequahdailypress.com/news/proving-native-ancestry-complicated-process/article_df960c26-1871-11ef-9833-5bca7e1bc975.html |title=Proving Native ancestry complicated process |date=May 23, 2024 |publisher=Tahlequah Daily Press |accessdate=2025-01-04}}

Ancestry.com acquired iArchives, Inc., and its service footnote.com, in 2010. The purchase brought in assets including processes for digitizing microfilm.{{cite web |date=October 21, 2010 |title=Ancestry.com Inc. Completes Acquisition of iArchives |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna39775422 |access-date=April 4, 2018 |work=NBC News}}{{cite web |date=September 23, 2010 |title=More on Ancestry.com's Acquisition of Footnote |url=https://www.familytreemagazine.com/articles/genealogy-websites/ancestry/more-on-ancestry-coms-acquisition-of-footnote/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180404200935/https://www.familytreemagazine.com/articles/genealogy-websites/ancestry/more-on-ancestry-coms-acquisition-of-footnote/ |archive-date=April 4, 2018 |access-date=April 4, 2018}} Footnote was rebranded Fold3 in 2011.{{cite web |author=Kate Theimer |date=August 19, 2011 |title=News: Footnote is now Fold3. Does that make sense to you? Me neither. And we're not alone |url=http://archivesnext.com/?p=2294 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110909032000/http://archivesnext.com/?p=2294 |archive-date=September 9, 2011 |access-date=April 4, 2018 |website=ArchivesNext }}

{{Main|Geneanet}}

On August 31, 2021, Ancestry.com announced its acquisition of Geneanet. Geneanet explains that the acquisition by Ancestry is the consequence of the failure of the Filae negotiations with the birth of a formidable competitor. The Geneanet.org site, which must remain autonomous, indicates that it will give access to many databases indexed by Ancestry within the framework of Premium subscriptions.{{Cite web |last=Généalogie |first=La Revue française de |title=Geneanet racheté par Ancestry leader mondial de la généalogie |url=https://www.rfgenealogie.com/infos/geneanet-rachete-par-ancestry-leader-mondial-de-la-genealogie |access-date=March 30, 2023 |website=La Revue française de Généalogie |language=fr}}

Archives.com was bought by Ancestry for $100 million in 2012.{{cite web |date=April 25, 2012 |title=Ancestry.com Acquires Archives.com For $100 Million – TechCrunch |url=https://techcrunch.com/2012/04/25/ancestry-com-acquires-archives-com-from-inflection-for-100-million/ |access-date=April 4, 2018 |publisher=Techcrunch.com}} Archives.com is a genealogy website specializing in census and vital records. As of November 29, 2023, Archives.com claimed 11.8 billion photos, newspapers, census, and vital records in its collections.{{Cite web |title=Genealogy & Family History {{!}} Search Family Trees & Vital Records |url=https://www.archives.com/ |access-date=2023-11-29 |website=www.archives.com}}

In 2012, Ancestry spun off its digitized online newspaper components into a standalone service, Newspapers.com.{{cite journal |last1=Hilburn |first1=Jessica |title=Discovering the Past Through Newspapers: Newspapers.com and NewspaperArchive.com |journal=Online Searcher |issue=March/April 2021 |url=https://www.infotoday.com/OnlineSearcher/Articles/Features/Discovering-the-Past-Through-Newspapers-Newspaperscom-and-NewspaperArchivecom-145520.shtml |access-date=31 October 2023 |publisher=Information Today}} By 2024, the site had over 25,000 newspapers able to be searched, including some from ten different countries. The website's principal competitor is NewspaperArchive, which claims it has online newspapers dating from 1607 worldwide, and its index in March 2024 included over 16,000 newspapers.{{cite web|url=https://newspaperarchive.com/ |title=NewspaperArchive | Genealogy & Family History Records |website=Newspaperarchive.com |access-date=June 30, 2018}} Both websites have similar models for increasing their databases: striking deals with libraries, publishers and historical organizations to scan the publications for free to include in their database. Some participants see the process of free scanning as an easier, cheaper and quicker way to get their publications online than working through the U.S. government-operated National Digital Newspaper Program.{{cite web |author= Jim Epstein |date= May 18, 2014 |url= http://reason.com/blog/2014/05/18/a-retiree-digitizes-27-million-old-newsp |title=A Retiree Digitizes 27 Million Old Newspaper Pages in His Living Room (and Libraries Fight to Catch Up) - Hit & Run |publisher=Reason.com |access-date=March 31, 2018}}{{cite web|url=https://reason.com/video/amateur-beats-gov-at-digitizing-newspape/ |title=Amateur Beats Gov't at Digitizing Newspapers: Tom Tryniski's Weird, Wonderful Website |last=Epstein |first=Jim |website=Reason.com |date=March 5, 2013 |access-date=February 3, 2020}}

RootsWeb, acquired by Ancestry in June 2000, is a free genealogy community that uses online forums, mailing lists, and other resources to help people research their family history. Users can upload GEDCOM files of their information for others to search at the WorldConnect portion of the site. Trees uploaded to WorldConnect are searchable at both the RootsWeb and Ancestry Web sites.

On December 20, 2017, a file containing 300,000 RootsWeb user names, passwords, and email addresses was exposed to the Internet. The 300,000 records were from RootsWeb surname list service; 55,000 of those records were also Ancestry.com login credentials.{{Cite web |url=https://www.darkreading.com/perimeter/exposed-file-from-ancestrys-rootswebcom-contains-data-on-300000-users/d/d-id/1330710|title=Exposed File From Ancestry's RootsWeb.com Contains Data on 300,000 Users |website=Dark Reading |access-date=December 28, 2017 }} By 2024, the hosted Web sites were all read-only, disabling all user logins.

We Remember is a free online memorial platform,{{cite web|url=https://www.weremember.com/ |title=Create an Online Memorial and Share Memories |publisher=WeRemember.com}} which was launched by Ancestry in November 2017.{{cite web |url=https://www.ancestry.com/corporate/blog/introducing-we-remember-free-online-memorials/ |title=Introducing We Remember - Free Online Memorials |publisher=Ancestry.com |access-date=November 15, 2017 |archive-date=October 30, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201030102950/https://www.ancestry.com/corporate/blog/introducing-we-remember-free-online-memorials/ |url-status=dead }}{{cite web|url=https://www.geneamusings.com/2017/11/creating-we-remember-memorials-on.html |title=Creating "We Remember" Memorials on Ancestry.com - FREE, Easy? |last=Seaver |first=Randy |website=Genea-Musings |date=November 15, 2017}} It allows users to create a space to preserve and share photos and videos about the deceased.{{cite web|url=https://agoodgoodbye.com/tools-of-the-trade/introducing-the-weremember-com-memorialization-service/ |title=Introducing the WeRemember.com Memorialization Service |last=Rubin |first=Gail |website= A Good Goodbye |date=December 20, 2018}}

Forces War Records was a low cost provider of transcribed genealogical data from British sources. Much of the content behind their paywall had simply been taken from public domain sources. As a consequence, there was a lack of transparency as to where they sourced their content from.{{cite web|url=https://www.greatwarforum.org/topic/229586-personnel-seaching-forces-war-records/#comment-2282450 |title=Personnel searching [via] Forces War Records |series=[Researching] Soldiers and their units |publisher=Great War Forum |date=July 9, 2015 |access-date=October 22, 2024 |quote=Just my opinion you understand, but [in 2015] I have found Forces War Records to be virtually useless: in particular, I have been charged money for information that is available for free elsewhere. In some cases the information they offer is inaccurate and downright misleading (e.g. the guesswork as to which medals a soldier should have earned). With the exception of a small number of WW2 Home Guard transcribed items (not the original documents), I did not come across anything that was not available better, and cheaper/free, elsewhere. Many of the documents I looked for, which they claim to have, (e.g. WW1 medal records), turned out to be transcriptions, not the original documents themselves (which Ancestry have). When I cancelled my subscription they continued to charge me and I ended up paying for an extra month. Again, I stress that this is just my own experience, and my personal point of view of this worthless company, which I would strongly advise everyone to give a miss to, and which the internet would be better off without. All in my own opinion of course......}}{{cite web|url=https://www.greatwarforum.org/topic/188014-forces-war-records-website-user-review-sought/page/4/#comment-2803943 |title="Forces War Records" website - user review sought |series= Using the technology |publisher=Great War Forum |date=September 20, 2019 |access-date=October 22, 2024 |quote=In short, I wouldn't bother. They sort of imply that you are going to get access to someone's complete service record if you pay. So, you pay. And you don't get those papers at all. What you get is a sort of summary sheet and links to other sites (that also want you to pay in most cases) and general links about the unit your soldier/sailor/airman served in and general medal info. Frankly, it is something of a let down!}} (See Wikipedia:Reliable sources/Noticeboard/Archive 315#RfC: forces-war-records.co.uk) They came under criticism for difficulties in canceling subscriptions, with a complaint about their misleading marketing being upheld by the Advertising Standards Authority.{{cite web |url=https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/67762837/#Comment_67762837 |title=Forces War Records.co.uk |series=Praise, vent & warnings |date=October 16, 2014 |via= MSE forum [consumer rights] |quote=I subsequently lodged a complaint with the ASA and today they have informed me my complaint was justified and this was going to lead into a full investigation. They consider my initial email invitation from FWR was possibly misleading... Update 20th Feb [2015] My complaint was upheld by the ASA and gets a mention on their web site under "Rulings" published 18th}}

Acquired by Ancestry on May 24, 2021, the press release announced that 'Forces War Records is a British military genealogy-specialist website with a unique product that helps people both discover and contextualize their family's military history.'{{cite web|url=https://www.ancestry.com/corporate/blog/forces-war-records-joins-ancestry-family|title=Forces War Records Joins the Ancestry® Family|website=ancestry.com|access-date=May 25, 2021}} Given that Fold3 had a negative perception as "US-centric",{{cite web |title=Online information service providers for researching British soldiers – which is best? |last=Baker |first=Chris |work=Researching soldiers of the British Army in the Great War of 1914-1918 |url=https://www.longlongtrail.co.uk/online-information-service-providers-which-is-best/ |via=The long, long trail |date=December 6, 2019 |quote=Ancestry offers a very wide array of family history records of which military is only one category.
Forces War Records: Owned by Clever Digit Media Ltd and bills itself as “the leading UK military genealogy specialist website”.
Fold3, which is primarily aimed at the United States market.... More sets of records are appearing in both and it is beginning to reach the point where Fold3 will overtake Ancestry in my preferences. The British records at present include...}} the same dataset offerings and web architecture were used in the UK, albeit branded as Forces War Records, from April 2023 onwards. The provision of service records for the first time ever, via this brand, as a consequence of the linkage with fold3, has reinvigorated the brand. Not only transcriptions, but also images of source documents are now available to the subscriber.{{cite web|url=https://www.whodoyouthinkyouaremagazine.com/news/ancestry-military-records-now-available-on-forces-war-records |title=Forces War Records, part of the Ancestry family, has relaunched, incorporating millions of military records from Ancestry, Fold3 and beyond |last=Collins |first=Rosemary |date=April 4, 2023 |via=Who Do You Think You Are Magazine?}} In support of the brand being relaunched as a premium portal that specializes in military genealogy, half a million records were added to the (FWR/Fold3) portal in July 2023.{{cite web|url=https://blog.fold3.com/military-records/?xid=6958 |title=New Military Records from the United Kingdom! |last=Ashcraft |first=Jenny |date=July 25, 2023 |via=blog.fold3.com}}

• Family Origins{{cite web |website=tamurajones.net |url=http://www.tamurajones.net/RootsMagicEssentials.xhtml |date=November 20, 2009 |title=RootsMagic Essentials, Modern Software Experience }}{{cite web |url=http://www.formalsoft.com/newsltr.htm |title=Family Origins Newsletter |website=FormalSoft.com |access-date=January 1, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110529044349/http://www.formalsoft.com/newsltr.htm |archive-date=May 29, 2011 |quote=This will probably be the last issue of the Family Origins newsletter (I hear a lot of you saying 'I thought you stopped writing it a long time ago.'). As many of you know, we (FormalSoft) have been working on a new genealogy program called RootsMagic which we released in February 2002. Many of you have been using Family Origins since we first licensed it to Parsons Technology over 12 years ago. You have gone through all the company changes with us (Parsons, Intuit, Broderbund, The Learning Co., Mattel, Genealogy.com)...As of January 2003, Genealogy.com has discontinued our Family Origins program... }}{{cite web |url=http://genealogy.about.com/library/bl_family_origins.htm |title=Family Origins Discontinued |last=Powell |first=Kimberly |website=About.com |access-date=January 1, 2011 |archive-date=June 15, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110615182322/http://genealogy.about.com/library/bl_family_origins.htm }}
• Family Tree Maker was purchased by Software MacKiev in 2016.{{cite web |title=New Family Tree Maker Options |url=https://blogs.ancestry.com/ancestry/2016/02/02/good-news-for-users-of-family-tree-maker/ |website=Ancestry.com Blog |access-date=3 September 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200806043739/https://blogs.ancestry.com/ancestry/2016/02/02/good-news-for-users-of-family-tree-maker/ |archive-date=6 August 2020 |date=2 February 2016 |url-status=dead}}{{cite web |title=Family Tree Maker FAQ |url=https://support.ancestry.com/s/article/Family-Tree-Maker-FAQ?language=en_US |website=Ancestry.com Support |access-date=3 September 2024 }}
• Genealogy.com, which maintains a genealogy research website, was acquired by MyFamily.com in 2003.{{cite web|url=http://genealogy.about.com/cs/ukrecords/a/monopoly.htm|title=Acquisition of Genealogy.com|date=April 18, 2003|access-date=December 26, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060414081920/http://genealogy.about.com/cs/ukrecords/a/monopoly.htm|archive-date=April 14, 2006|website=About.com}}
• Generations Family Tree (originally called "Reunion for Windows"){{cite web| title= Genealogy.com Adds Generations to its Genealogy Software Product Line |date=June 25, 2002 |website=Genealogy.com |url=http://www.genealogy.com/press-062502.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081204082508/http://www.genealogy.com/press-062502.html |archive-date=December 4, 2008 }}
• MyFamily.com allowed members to create private family, or group, websites. In May 2010, MyFamily closed its Bellevue, Washington, development office, effectively letting its entire staff go since none of the staff accepted an offer to move to Provo. Ancestry shut down MyFamily.com on September 5, 2014.{{Cite magazine|url=http://www.slate.com/articles/technology/future_tense/2015/04/myfamily_shuttered_ancestry_com_deleted_10_years_of_my_family_history.html| title=Deleting the Family Tree|last=Christian|first=Jon|date=April 23, 2015|magazine=Slate |issn=1091-2339|access-date=May 18, 2016}} At the time of the shutdown, MyFamily had not resolved discontent with the downloading process, which consisted of capturing miscellaneous uncatalogued photos, with alphanumeric names and no data attached, and various calendar documents, thus leaving behind the associated data, File Cabinet documents, family recipes, and all other information.
• ROOTS software series by CommSoft{{cite web|url=http://www.sonic.net/~commsoft/rstory.html |title=ROOTS |publisher=CommSoft |website=Sonic.net|author1=Drake, Herb |author2=Nurse, Howard }} was one of the first publishers of series of genealogy software programs, created in the 1980s, and available until 1997. Commsoft released the following: ROOTS89 for the Heath H-8 series of personal computers; ROOTS/M for the CP/M operating system; and ROOTS II for MS-DOS, followed by ROOTS III and ROOTS IV; and ROOTS V for Windows along with Visual ROOTS for Microsoft Windows.
• Ultimate Family Tree (UFT){{cite web |page=368 |title=Ultimate Family Tree (UFT) |publisher=Palladium Interactive |url=https://www.gensoftreviews.com/?p=368}}{{cite web|title=About UFT |url=http://www.uftree.com/UFT/UFTProductInfo/aboutuft.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20020620163019/http://www.uftree.com/UFT/UFTProductInfo/aboutuft.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=June 20, 2002 |access-date=June 20, 2002 |website=uftree.com }}

• 23andMe
• Genographic Project
• iArchives, Inc.
• MyHeritage
• FamilyTreeDNA

{{Reflist}}

• {{cite journal |last=de Groot |first=Jerome |title=Ancestry.com and the Evolving Nature of Historical Information Companies |journal=The Public Historian |volume=42 |issue=1 |year=2020 |pages=8–28 |doi=10.1525/tph.2020.42.1.8 |s2cid=166746075 |url=https://muse.jhu.edu/article/750992 }}

• {{Official website}}

{{Finance links historical

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• Ancestry Corporate Website | https://www.ancestry.com/corporate

{{Genealogy software}}

{{Genealogical DNA test}}

{{Authority control}}

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