24 ms·

LogMeIn Acquired by Private Equity

380 points by AznHisoka 7y ago

chrisblackwell 7y ago
LastPass... :-(
- wffurr 7y ago
  1Password is better and unlikely to be acquired. They are quite profitable on their own.
  - rietta 7y ago
    And doesn't work on Linux.
    - Arubis 7y ago
      Their browser extension is a non-shitty experience and works cross-platform.
    - Eikon 7y ago
      It does: https://support.1password.com/explore/linux/ https://support.1password.com/explore/linux/ There is even a cli: https://1password.com/downloads/command-line/ https://1password.com/downloads/command-line/ Not having a native gui is not the same as "not working".
      - rietta 7y ago
        Sweet! I used 1Password for years and then went LastPass for Linux support. At the time only the recovery mode worked to the best of my knowledge. This was in the 1Password 4 days.
    - deleted 7y ago
      [deleted]
    - dajonker 7y ago
      I'm a happy 1password X user on Linux for the past 1.5 years or so!
  - cassianoleal 7y ago
    They have recently taken quite a bit of VC money though. https://techcrunch.com/2019/11/14/fourteen-years-after-launching-1password-takes-first-funding-a-200m-series-a/ https://techcrunch.com/2019/11/14/fourteen-years-after-launc...
    - ellinokon 7y ago
      And they talked about why in more detail here: https://rework.fm/venture-capital-and-control-with-david-teare/ https://rework.fm/venture-capital-and-control-with-david-tea... Edit: Fixed typo. Would also like to add that their use of VC money appears less risky than one could assume.
      - cassianoleal 7y ago
        Thanks for the link. I'll try to find the time to listen to it. Regardless, I don't feel personally comfortable with having my passwords in custody of a VC funded enterprise. I am looking into start self-hosting something like Bitwarden in the near future.
  - atomwaffel 7y ago
    They did however take $200 million in VC funding in November: https://blog.1password.com/accel-partnership/ https://blog.1password.com/accel-partnership/
    - wongarsu 7y ago
      According to Accel that was more about the contacts offered by Accel, with a nice side effect of getting lots of news coverage for a $200 million series A.
      - munchbunny 7y ago
        I am skeptical that one takes $200 million and it's still more about the contacts. After you've gotten the contacts, there's still a $200 million elephant in the room.
  - bilekas 7y ago
    Nice option, will make the move over now I think.. Out of interest before I go and google/write it, is there any 'automatic-as-possible' transfer tools/scripts ? The 1Password cli is a nice touch I must admit.
    - AGKyle 7y ago
      Heads up, I work for 1Password We have guides here for migration from other password managers: https://support.1password.com/import/ https://support.1password.com/import/ Let me know if that helps or if you run into any trouble. Kyle 1Password Security Team
  - lotsofpulp 7y ago
    Why is 1password unlikely to be acquired? I’m sure its owners would like to be billionaires just like everyone else. They’ve already accepted VC funding, and VCs definitely want to be billionaires.
  - Fabricio20 7y ago
    (Personal Opinion): I'm gonna vouch against 1Password. Some months ago I tried migrating from LastPass to 1Password, had a lot of headaches with the >having to run an executable in the background< as well as the horrid UI on the control panel. During testing, I was also constantly being prompted to pay for the thing, (trial was just started!). At least importing worked (kinda, some non-form fills [CC, SSN] didn't import or just would get dumped on random places all over their UI). The key-management thing they have for the safe is really annoying, having to keep a big string around whenever you need to log in somewhere real quick just doesn't work. (One thing is having OTP codes on your phone, other is needing to type a big, random, safe unlock string). With that said, due to this acquisition of LogMeIn, I'll be looking into alternatives (Mainly Bitwarden as it's been in the "market" for a while already and seems to be recommended). Probably not gonna move yet but better be prepared.
    - deleted 7y ago
      [deleted]
- arsana 7y ago
  LogMeIn is remote access software. The LogMeIn refers to a local machine,not a website.
- driverdan 7y ago
  LastPass has been :-( for years. Try Bitwarden. It's open source and much like how LastPass used to be (good).
- AdmiralAsshat 7y ago
  Yep. The price has risen every year since the acquisition with no new major features to speak of. I imagine it will rise even more under new management. I'm perfectly willing to switch to Bitwarden, although I will miss the ability to securely share logins with my girlfriend's LP account.
- bogwog 7y ago
  Use Pass (https://www.passwordstore.org/ https://www.passwordstore.org/) to generate and store passwords locally, GNU Privacy Guard (https://gnupg.org/ https://gnupg.org/) to encrypt them, and then use git (https://git-scm.com/ https://git-scm.com/) to backup and sync your encrypted passwords on all your devices in a distributed way. Pass is an open source project by the guy who made WireGuard (https://www.wireguard.com/ https://www.wireguard.com/), and there are open source apps for iOS and Android too, which you can build yourself for maximum security. Setting this all up is not exactly easy, but once you get it going it's very easy to use, secure, and convenient.
  - deleted 7y ago
    [deleted]
  - cgag 7y ago
    Ensuring a gpg key isn't lost seems pretty obnoxious.
    - bogwog 7y ago
      Why would you lose it? You'll have to install it on all your devices that you want to access your passwords from. I have mine on my desktop, laptop, and phone. The chances of me losing all 3 devices at the same time is very low.
      - sokoloff 7y ago
        It seems like a fire at your home would be a reasonable scenario that might well result in that outcome.
  - iudqnolq 7y ago
    Highschool me fucked up pass and exposed a lot of data. It was entirety my own fault, but there are footguns if you don't fully understand the model. Essentially, I accidentally publicly exposed my private key. I thought I was clever for writing a Python script to dump all my passwords and then re-add them after setting up pass with a new key. A year later, when I accidentally deleted my private key (reformatted laptop, phone bricked before set laptop back up), I spent a few hours trying to figure out if I made a mistake that would let me recover my passwords. I was very motivated :) Eventually, I realized that since I'd been using git to sync pass between my phone and computer (the recommended setup) I could access versions of my encrypted data for every account more than a year old and decrypt them with the private key I leaked. I got back almost all my data. Luckily I was using a private git repository for defense in depth, but many guides recommend a public reposity because they say gpg is very strong. It all works, but only if you don't do something dumb like I did. Now I'm on 1password and happy knowing that experienced people are paid to make it and smart security researchers like Troy Hunt (of haveibeenpwned fame) have said it's the most secure password manager they've looked into.
tcd 7y ago
Keepass; open source, can store the file wherever you wish, isn't liable to be acquired by a private entity since you can just build your own copy. Use open source software wherever possible, it's just better that way.
- rietta 7y ago
  Does it work to sync between Linux dev machine and iOS phone?
  - ivolimmen 7y ago
    I share my KeePass file using a Dropbox like service. I use Keepass2Android as I run android. Works really well. I run KeepassXC on Linux and Mac.
  - mFixman 7y ago
    The (IMO fantastic) Android app can pull your password file directly from Google Drive and other cloud providers. I'd assume the iOS app does the same.
    - Semaphor 7y ago
      Keepass2Android is the name and it supports WebDav (so easy integration with for example Nextcloud)
  - Latty 7y ago
    No syncing built in, it just works on a file and you can use whatever service you want to sync that file. Most of the dropbox-style services will work (although on mobile sandboxing can sometimes be an issue). On Linux keepassxc is great, with strong browser integration and even has a good extension for integration with ssh-agent. I don't use iOS myself, but a quick search shows Strongbox as a decent client. On Android I use Keepass DX which is very good by the sync support isn't there. Keepass2Android is better on that front, but has a much worse UI and no support for the new biometric auth process, only the old fingerprint-specific one.
  - 7y ago
AznHisoka 7y ago
These guys must really be pessimistic about their future if they are accepting a deal of $86/share. Their 52 week high was $96/share, and as high as $120/share last year.
- jacquesm 7y ago
  A 4.3 billion USD valuation at exit is not all bad news I'd say. Better a deal at 4.3 billion than none at 5.5. I'd be laughing all the way to the bank with an exit like that and not worry too much about what could have been.
  - toomuchtodo 7y ago
    Wisdom. Valuations and multipliers are opinions and suggestions until the wire/fiat hits your account. Take the money and run.
    - Lavery 7y ago
      Maybe that's reasonable in private markets, but Logmein was a public company (LOGM). Valuations and multipliers for public equities are the consensus of a set of investors who buy and sell the stock all day. Anyone who wanted to take the money and run could choose to do so between the hours of 9:30 and 4 EST for the last decade.
      - deleted 7y ago
        [deleted]
        deleted 7y ago
        [deleted]
      - jacquesm 7y ago
        That depends on the size of their holdings and on how liquid the stock really was, it might take quite a while to liquidate a large holding and it would very likely depress the market, especially if all the execs decided to liquidate their complete holdings (assuming they would be even allowed to). So the consensus is what it is given normal volume, likely a relatively small chunk of shares changing hands repeatedly rather than a really large block being sold once. The latter would almost certainly depress the price.
lifty 7y ago
Bitwarden is a nice alternative. And you can self-host the server part if you want. edit: LastPass is owned by LogMeIn, that's why I mention this alternative.
- arsana 7y ago
  LogMeIn is remote access software. The LogMeIn refers to a local machine,not a website.
  - Operyl 7y ago
    LogMeIn owns LastPass.
  - Wowfunhappy 7y ago
    I believe GP is referencing the fact that LogMeIn also owns Lastpass. Edit: Looks like a million and one other people replied at the exact same time I did, sorry. :3
  - jetpks 7y ago
    LogMeIn owns LastPass
  - filmgirlcw 7y ago
    The company owns LastPass, so it’s several things, actually.
  - Kudos 7y ago
    LogMeIn owns LastPass.
  - deleted 7y ago
    [deleted]
  - lifty 7y ago
    Sorry, I should have been more clear and mention the LastPass relation.
  - urbanjunkie 7y ago
arsana 7y ago
A lot of comments mentioning alternative password managers. TFA:first line > LogMeIn, Inc. (NASDAQ: LOGM), a leading provider of cloud-based connectivity, LogMeIn is remote access tool, not password management for websites.
- deleted 7y ago
  [deleted]
- Operyl 7y ago
  LogMeIn owns LastPass.
- JumpCrisscross 7y ago
  > LogMeIn is remote access tool LogMeIn the company owns LastPass [1], a popular password manager. [1] https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/LastPass https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/LastPass
- PerfectElement 7y ago
  They acquired LastPass in 2015.
- jacquesm 7y ago
  Could you please stop shitting all over a thread with the same wrong/misinformed comment? 80% of the comments in this thread are now you + rebuttals.
  - arsana 7y ago
    shut the fuck up
deleted 7y ago
[deleted]
alex_lod 7y ago
LastPass recently started deleting a secure note of mine after I’d edit it. It’s been almost two weeks and their support team has done nothing but kick the can down the road. I wonder if the acquisition has anything to do with their very poor support quality.
mk99 7y ago
They own GotoMeeting, Rescue Assist, LastPass and of course LogMeIn to name a few. I use their GotoWebinar product. Zoom.us has been eating their lunch lately ...
- CobrastanJorji 7y ago
  Ah, shoot, I didn't connect this to LastPass. Thanks for pointing that out.
post_break 7y ago
I cancelled LogMeIn because every year they raised prices. Started at like $100 a year and over 5 years went up to over $1000 a year just to get into around 10 PCs.
chooseaname 7y ago
A lot of discussion surrounding LastPass and alternatives, but what are some actual LogMeIn alternatives that people like?
- excalibur 7y ago
  ssh, RDP
  - NotHereNotThere 7y ago
    What? How is a user supposed to show you and reproduce their problem when you're connected over SSH or RDP? Both run in a different session than the user's
    - AnIdiotOnTheNet 7y ago
      Windows has a built-in remote assistance mode that uses RDP: https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/4026516/windows-use-remote-assistance-to-let-someone-fix-your-pc https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/4026516/windows-use... It's more of a pain than TeamViewer though.
- maccard 7y ago
  I use RDP for work, and TeamViewer if I need to fix something for my parents. Chrome Remote Desktop is one other alternative I've used but not in anger.
- chelovek89 7y ago
  For just remotely logging in Splashtop is great and a lot cheaper.
- thdn 7y ago
  Teamviewer it the only reliable enterprise solution I've found so far
- lotsofpulp 7y ago
  Chrome Remote Desktop.
jmuguy 7y ago
My old company used Logmein professionally to remotely manage 100s of computers for many years before switching to ConnectWise. They had a great product for a long time but some of the worse licensing decisions I've ever seen. It went from being completely free to several thousand dollars overnight without any additional features, support, etc being offered. And meanwhile development was stagnant with only weird changes to the UI and punitive changes to free users being rolled out. We would have been more than willing to pay for licensing. Even in the end it was the one product we found that could do some really cool stuff remotely (like recover a frozen Windows system and reboot it into safe mode). But they just handled the business side of things like complete idiots.
- ceejayoz 7y ago
  Great product, hundreds of computers for professional purposes, and "several thousand dollars" is a sticking point? Why?
  - SQueeeeeL 7y ago
    Because people never like to pay more for something that was free... Also makes accounting mad
  - chime 7y ago
    I think the 'overnight' part is key here. I can easily get approval for 20k-100k in necessary software but the approval process can take 1-3 months. If a free service suddenly goes paid without notice, it is much more disruptive than waiting 2mo to start with a new paid service.
    - Zaak 7y ago
      Exactly. Big companies move slowly. A small, well-funded company may be able to approve an X-thousand-dollar payment in a matter of days, but a large company just can't react that fast. There are too many layers of process and approvals and vetting and negotiation to wade through.
  - 7y ago
x86_64Ubuntu 7y ago
Off-topic, but can anyone tell me of an instance whereby a software entity was acquired by a VC firm and things turned out great?
- skrebbel 7y ago
  I don't think VCs often buy companies but PE firms sure do. One example near me is NXP, a semicon business from Eindhoven (NL) where I live. Philips spun them out after loading them with debt,a PE firm bought them. Radical cost cutting, the usual, but they also accomplished a culture change (to some extent). As a former Philips department, the culture was very slow and bureaucratic, more akin to government than a for-profit business. The new owners made it very clear that from then on, money needed to be earned and anything that didn't contribute to that wasn't worth doing. The company became a fair bit more lean and agile as a result, pushing products and updates faster etc.
  - coredog64 7y ago
    I’ve experienced a similar result. TPG bought a large stake in OnSemi. Initially they were going to flip it, so were focused on short term results. Eventually, they realized they had an opportunity to do more and loosened up the purse strings. ONNN bought LSIs fabs in Oregon and was able to refocus as a premium supplier rather than a race-to-the-bottom commodity provider.
    - cushychicken 7y ago
      Yeah, On Semi has really turned it around in the last 5 years or so. They were on track to be a jellybean competitor.
- jacquesm 7y ago
  As Skrebbel already mentioned VC firms rarely acquire companies outright, but it is typical that in such transactions VCs are on the selling side and PE parties are on the buying side. So let's take it as read that you meant PE, in that case, it depends is the usual answer. There are quite a few examples of PE funds buying companies and letting them run as autonomous as possible with positive results and there are examples of PE funds buying a company outright or a controlling interest who then become 'backseat drivers' but without the relevant experience. In those cases - especially if the PE party consists mostly of accountants and financial people - it usually does not take long before the effects become visible. But there are a great many players and the majority of them is both well intentioned and ends up with positive results. The ones you hear and read about in the newspapers are not really representative for the PE market as a whole, that's just the news' habit of focusing on the trainwreck. PE fund returns nX to their LPs versus PE fund buys controlling stake in struggling company and runs it into the ground after loading it up with debt. Which headline do you think will attract more eyeballs?
jitendrac 7y ago
I used to play cs 1.6 using hamachi, and it was unmatched at that time. Sad to see the gradual downfall of project.
gnrlst 7y ago
Serious question: how much will this impact LastPass? I get that a buy-out creates some risk for the company's future, but is migration really required in the next 6-12 months?
- Kye 7y ago
  Private equity (PE) has a bad reputation for a good reason. I wouldn't jump to migration immediately, but you should keep an up to date export in a secure place. PE can take years to drive a company into the ground with debt.
  - ulkesh 7y ago
    I migrated to Bitwarden immediately and removed all content in LastPass and deleted my LastPass account. My experience seeing companies sell out to private equity firms leads me to believe I haven't made that rash of a decision. For me, trust is usually immediately lost once a company changes hands. And when it comes to password management like this, trust is everything. Honestly, I would have supported Bitwarden before had I known about it prior to this HN post. I appreciate the content you and everyone else has provided in this thread.
  - batmenace 7y ago
    Why are you automatically assuming their goal is to load the company with bad debt? That’s only the outcome if the acquisition and plan are unsuccessful...
greggman2 7y ago
I don't understand how HN can complain about Google sucking up data and rarely if ever mention LassPass's terms of service which basically flat out state they share your info to marketers. Effectively they appear to be making money by looking at all the sites you log into via LassPass. If you're using their browser plugin I can only guess, given their Terms of Service, that they're spying on all pages, not just pages you're getting a password via their service for. Though even selling the info of which services you're using is bad enough. Sure, they have a free plan and so you are not the customer. Why do they get a pass? Note: I have no proof they are spying. I only have the fact that their TOS points to their privacy policy and their privacy policy says they can collect pretty much anything you'd expect software to be able to collect and that they can share that info with whoever they decide to partner with. Contrast to some other password managers that stay flat out, they don't collect your data and don't want to know it. From their Privacy Policy > 1. Information We Collect and Receive > Service Data (including Session and Usage data): > When you use our Services, we receive information generated through the use of the Service, either entered by you or others who use the Services with you (for example, schedules, attendee info, etc.), or from the Service infrastructure itself, (for example, duration of session, use of webcams, connection information, etc.) We may also collect usage and log data about how the services are accessed and used, including information about the device you are using the Services on, IP addresses, location information, language settings, what operating system you are using, unique device identifiers and other diagnostic data ... > Third Party Data: We may receive information about you from other sources, including publicly available databases or third parties from whom we have purchased data, and combine this data with information we already have about you. We may also receive information from other affiliated companies that are a part of our corporate group. This helps us to update, expand and analyze our records, identify new prospects for marketing, and provide products and services that may be of interest to you. > Location Information: We collect your location-based information for the purpose of providing and supporting the service and for fraud prevention and security monitoring. If you wish to opt-out of the collection and use of your collection information, you may do so by turning it off on your device settings. > Device Information: When you use our Services, we automatically collect information on the type of device you use, operating system version, and the device identifier (or "UDID"). That's pretty much everything given they put an extension in your browser and can collect all of that info for every page you visit > 4. Information Sharing > ... We may share your personal information with (a) third party service providers; (b) business partners; (c) affiliated companies within our corporate structure Why would anyone want a password manager with this privacy policy?
thrillgore 7y ago
Aw shit, I use LastPass.
_bxg1 7y ago
LogMeIn Hamachi was a pretty great way of setting up a LAN over the internet for gaming. We used to play Minecraft on it all the time in college.
- degenerate 7y ago
  Hamachi was created by Alex Pankratov. Once LogMeIn purchased Hamachi, they ruined it with the following update (either purposefully or accidentally) by making it no longer work with a large handful of older games. That sanfu in combination with a more bloated UI, forced LogMeIn account, and a splattering of useless features made it obsolete within a few months. It was the fastest rise and fall of a piece of software I have ever personally witnessed. You can read about the original Hamachi on the author's website here: https://swapped.cc/#!/hamachi https://swapped.cc/#!/hamachi
  - _bxg1 7y ago
    FWIW I didn't use it until 2011, which sounds like it was years after the acquisition. It's always sad to see a beloved product go downhill over time, but at that point it was still pretty great.
  - apankrat 7y ago
    Your recollection is off. LMI bought Hamachi in 2006 and I was involved in the development until 2009. Through that time there were no known issues with older games. Nothing was broken. What was tunneled before was still tunneled the exact same way, including IPX, IP4 broadcasts and multicasts. We did rewrite the client, cleaning up all the cruft, separating the engine from the UI, adding compression support and what not. It still wasn't fully integrated with the LMI core and no LMI account was required. The UI was redesigned in-house, without my participation, and while I didn't like the result, the original look wasn't a pinnacle of design either :) What happened after 2009 I have no idea. The devs I worked with were really good, so if things broke, most likely it wasn't accidental.
    - degenerate 7y ago
      I remember the UI change being around the time most things broke for me, and there were other users in the product forum with their various games also having issues. Maybe those type of posts were always numerous, and I never visited the forums before. For me the games that broke were Starcraft, Red Alert, and a handful of non-internet games. Perhaps the forum/customer-support tickets didn't make it down to you, but something had definitely broke around the time the UI changed. It's likely the issues were quickly fixed and I am remembering the gradual post-2009 decline more vividly and blaming it on the time when the UI changed, which was emotionally upsetting ;) But thanks for posting your remembrance of the events, and creating Hamachi in the first place!
stevespang 7y ago
This sort of deal is becoming the rule, rather than the exception. "Special interests", i.e. Hedge Funds and other Private Equity are increasingly grabbing up deals that the general public via the stock market should be entitled to first. This is really more and more about the rich and powerful cutting out the general population, and I think it deserves legislation to correct it.
iamaelephant 7y ago
LastPass has taken a huge dip in quality since the Logmein acquisition and I expect this will only make it worse.
tomaszs 7y ago
The pricing for LogMeIn and Hamechi and TeamViewer is ridicolous. Paying tens of dollars for a TightVNC with a middle server is more luxurious than having WinRar licence
- morpheuskafka 7y ago
  I don't know why anyone would pay for Hamachi when you could self-host ZeroTier for free or pay $30/mo for unlimited user of their hosted service.
  - tomaszs 7y ago
    Oh man 30 dollars... So the problem with SaaS is that if you dont earn money directly from using SaaS most of the time you are outside of the scope of the business. Because SaaS needs to remove the lowest pricing so that the direct earning users choose the higher one. I can not pay 10 dollars for occasional service because its bad for the SaaS business aimed to more heavy users. I dont like it in SaaS model and i cant see any solution for this. Its like pizzahut stopped selling margherita and capricosa. SaaS dont sell margherita and capricosa!
    - gyrgtyn 7y ago
      It's free up to 30 devices, or free forever if you host your own.
throwawaylmi 7y ago
Software Engineer here working on GotoMeeting (throwaway account). Not having gone through a private equity buyout in my career before, any ideas of what to expect/any recommendations of what to do now?
- deleted 7y ago
  [deleted]
- criddell 7y ago
  Has any private equity buyout ever helped anybody other than the PE stakeholders?
  - ronnybrendel2 7y ago
    Dell was saved that way. But this here is different of course.
- et-al 7y ago
  They'll give you a shpiel how this is for the best and that brighter days are to come with new management. Maybe they'll entice folks with an incentive program that says "if profits are x much, you'll get a bonus in 2 years." Then within 18 months, they'll reduce benefits (e.g. worse insurance plan, change the vacation policy), or maybe actually lay off people and shut down entire departments to boost numbers. tl;dr - update your a resume and start interviewing to have a backup. If upper management thinks you're a top performer, you have a bit more leeway.
- thr483900 7y ago
  Bye bye Jive.... Great day for competitors in the VOIP space.
- anonuser123456 7y ago
  PE cares about value. If you bring a lot of value (e.g. work on revenue generating projects), you stand to do well. Speculative R&D work is not highly valued, that's what VC does. SG&A tends to get hit the hardest (HR/Finance/Legal etc.). Non core business functions get outsourced. Look at the existing portfolio and see where you for in.
sbr464 7y ago
Yep, we also used to have thousands of machines under management (across different clients), I always loved logmein, but moved to teamviewer for pricing reasons. For example, in $: 0 > 1,500 > 3,000 > 5,000 > 8,000 > 12,000 > ... (For the same service, over the years) We left around 6-8k. The issue was always around a lack of transparency and arbitrary price increases, never about the actual price.
bitxbit 7y ago
Makes sense that LastPass was “slow” to adding new features (such as u2f) lately.
annoyingnoob 7y ago
In my experience, a private equity take over is the kiss of death.
- dmix 7y ago
  It's easily the bottom of the barrel type recovery. Although historically private equity has been a net gain for struggling businesses that would otherwise go out of business. There was tons of anti PE stuff after the financial crisis and they received some of the earlier and harshest attacks from congress and other groups, but the data didn't support the idea they were some corporate raiding vultures and far more often turned around ventures in precarious positions. But ultimately its not something you go to when they are going well. Unless there is some obvious value add consolidation scheme.
  - annoyingnoob 7y ago
    >Unless there is some obvious value add consolidation scheme. The kiss of death works in mysterious ways, the synergy is palpable.
    - dmix 7y ago
      I would read this book
- batmenace 7y ago
  They could just as well be buying it as a platform for their portfolio, and look to buy more similar companies to consolidate. PE is more than just buying struggling companies, it’s often buying fairly valued companies in a fast growing sector, and then expanding them, or finding ways to cut costs.
ProAm 7y ago
Didn't Citrix own LogMeIn?
- linuxdude314 7y ago
  Citrix owned Citrix Systems Online (owned GoTo* IP)which was rebranded to GetGo which was then spun out using a reverse-Morris trust to LogMeIn after receiving threats of a hostile takeover from Elliot Management.
- huhtenberg 7y ago
  From what I remember they had a joint venture, which was mostly under LogMeIn's control.
dang 7y ago
We changed the URL from https://investor.logmeininc.com/about-us/investors/news/press-release-details/2019/LogMeIn-Enters-into-Definitive-Agreement-to-be-Acquired-by-Affiliates-of-Francisco-Partners-and-Evergreen-Coast-Capital-for-8605-per-Share-in-Cash/default.aspx https://investor.logmeininc.com/about-us/investors/news/pres... to a third-party article with a bit more background.
DyslexicAtheist 7y ago
I used LastPass then 1Password before. today, I've finally switched to KeepassXC today and am wondering why I haven't done this any sooner. Really happy especially with the cli. If you don't trust your AES stack (shitty implementations on certain SSD's) you have options such as chacha20. The whole project seems well maintained too. there was a rework-podcast today with DHH and Dave Tear discussing venture capital and what this funding means for 1Password. https://rework.fm/venture-capital-and-control-with-david-teare/ https://rework.fm/venture-capital-and-control-with-david-tea...
mataug 7y ago
This thread seems to be dominated by bitwarden recommendations, So I thought I would list some of the other reliable options that I'm considering. - Keepass https://www.keepassx.org/ https://www.keepassx.org/ | https://keepassxc.org/ https://keepassxc.org/ - Pass https://www.passwordstore.org/ https://www.passwordstore.org/ - Dashlane https://www.dashlane.com/ https://www.dashlane.com/ - 1Password https://1password.com/ https://1password.com/ - Bitwardnen https://bitwarden.com/ https://bitwarden.com/ - Lockwise https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/lockwise/ https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/lockwise/ If you think there are other legit options out there please reply with links to the project / product.
- clickme_zsh 7y ago
  Lesspass https://lesspass.com/#/ https://lesspass.com/#/
dillonmckay 7y ago
So, any recommendations for alternatives to LogMeIn Rescue for remote support, that supports mobile remote support (SDK, not another mobile app)?

380 points by AznHisoka 7y ago

chrisblackwell 7y ago

LastPass... :-(

wffurr 7y ago
1Password is better and unlikely to be acquired. They are quite profitable on their own.
- rietta 7y ago
  And doesn't work on Linux.
  - Arubis 7y ago
    Their browser extension is a non-shitty experience and works cross-platform.
  - Eikon 7y ago
    It does: https://support.1password.com/explore/linux/ https://support.1password.com/explore/linux/ There is even a cli: https://1password.com/downloads/command-line/ https://1password.com/downloads/command-line/ Not having a native gui is not the same as "not working".
    - rietta 7y ago
      Sweet! I used 1Password for years and then went LastPass for Linux support. At the time only the recovery mode worked to the best of my knowledge. This was in the 1Password 4 days.
  - deleted 7y ago
    [deleted]
  - dajonker 7y ago
    I'm a happy 1password X user on Linux for the past 1.5 years or so!
- cassianoleal 7y ago
  They have recently taken quite a bit of VC money though. https://techcrunch.com/2019/11/14/fourteen-years-after-launching-1password-takes-first-funding-a-200m-series-a/ https://techcrunch.com/2019/11/14/fourteen-years-after-launc...
  - ellinokon 7y ago
    And they talked about why in more detail here: https://rework.fm/venture-capital-and-control-with-david-teare/ https://rework.fm/venture-capital-and-control-with-david-tea... Edit: Fixed typo. Would also like to add that their use of VC money appears less risky than one could assume.
    - cassianoleal 7y ago
      Thanks for the link. I'll try to find the time to listen to it. Regardless, I don't feel personally comfortable with having my passwords in custody of a VC funded enterprise. I am looking into start self-hosting something like Bitwarden in the near future.
- atomwaffel 7y ago
  They did however take $200 million in VC funding in November: https://blog.1password.com/accel-partnership/ https://blog.1password.com/accel-partnership/
  - wongarsu 7y ago
    According to Accel that was more about the contacts offered by Accel, with a nice side effect of getting lots of news coverage for a $200 million series A.
    - munchbunny 7y ago
      I am skeptical that one takes $200 million and it's still more about the contacts. After you've gotten the contacts, there's still a $200 million elephant in the room.
- bilekas 7y ago
  Nice option, will make the move over now I think.. Out of interest before I go and google/write it, is there any 'automatic-as-possible' transfer tools/scripts ? The 1Password cli is a nice touch I must admit.
  - AGKyle 7y ago
    Heads up, I work for 1Password We have guides here for migration from other password managers: https://support.1password.com/import/ https://support.1password.com/import/ Let me know if that helps or if you run into any trouble. Kyle 1Password Security Team
- lotsofpulp 7y ago
  Why is 1password unlikely to be acquired? I’m sure its owners would like to be billionaires just like everyone else. They’ve already accepted VC funding, and VCs definitely want to be billionaires.
- Fabricio20 7y ago
  (Personal Opinion): I'm gonna vouch against 1Password. Some months ago I tried migrating from LastPass to 1Password, had a lot of headaches with the >having to run an executable in the background< as well as the horrid UI on the control panel. During testing, I was also constantly being prompted to pay for the thing, (trial was just started!). At least importing worked (kinda, some non-form fills [CC, SSN] didn't import or just would get dumped on random places all over their UI). The key-management thing they have for the safe is really annoying, having to keep a big string around whenever you need to log in somewhere real quick just doesn't work. (One thing is having OTP codes on your phone, other is needing to type a big, random, safe unlock string). With that said, due to this acquisition of LogMeIn, I'll be looking into alternatives (Mainly Bitwarden as it's been in the "market" for a while already and seems to be recommended). Probably not gonna move yet but better be prepared.
  - deleted 7y ago
    [deleted]
arsana 7y ago
LogMeIn is remote access software. The LogMeIn refers to a local machine,not a website.
driverdan 7y ago
LastPass has been :-( for years. Try Bitwarden. It's open source and much like how LastPass used to be (good).
AdmiralAsshat 7y ago
Yep. The price has risen every year since the acquisition with no new major features to speak of. I imagine it will rise even more under new management. I'm perfectly willing to switch to Bitwarden, although I will miss the ability to securely share logins with my girlfriend's LP account.
bogwog 7y ago
Use Pass (https://www.passwordstore.org/ https://www.passwordstore.org/) to generate and store passwords locally, GNU Privacy Guard (https://gnupg.org/ https://gnupg.org/) to encrypt them, and then use git (https://git-scm.com/ https://git-scm.com/) to backup and sync your encrypted passwords on all your devices in a distributed way. Pass is an open source project by the guy who made WireGuard (https://www.wireguard.com/ https://www.wireguard.com/), and there are open source apps for iOS and Android too, which you can build yourself for maximum security. Setting this all up is not exactly easy, but once you get it going it's very easy to use, secure, and convenient.
- deleted 7y ago
  [deleted]
- cgag 7y ago
  Ensuring a gpg key isn't lost seems pretty obnoxious.
  - bogwog 7y ago
    Why would you lose it? You'll have to install it on all your devices that you want to access your passwords from. I have mine on my desktop, laptop, and phone. The chances of me losing all 3 devices at the same time is very low.
    - sokoloff 7y ago
      It seems like a fire at your home would be a reasonable scenario that might well result in that outcome.
- iudqnolq 7y ago
  Highschool me fucked up pass and exposed a lot of data. It was entirety my own fault, but there are footguns if you don't fully understand the model. Essentially, I accidentally publicly exposed my private key. I thought I was clever for writing a Python script to dump all my passwords and then re-add them after setting up pass with a new key. A year later, when I accidentally deleted my private key (reformatted laptop, phone bricked before set laptop back up), I spent a few hours trying to figure out if I made a mistake that would let me recover my passwords. I was very motivated :) Eventually, I realized that since I'd been using git to sync pass between my phone and computer (the recommended setup) I could access versions of my encrypted data for every account more than a year old and decrypt them with the private key I leaked. I got back almost all my data. Luckily I was using a private git repository for defense in depth, but many guides recommend a public reposity because they say gpg is very strong. It all works, but only if you don't do something dumb like I did. Now I'm on 1password and happy knowing that experienced people are paid to make it and smart security researchers like Troy Hunt (of haveibeenpwned fame) have said it's the most secure password manager they've looked into.

tcd 7y ago

Keepass; open source, can store the file wherever you wish, isn't liable to be acquired by a private entity since you can just build your own copy. Use open source software wherever possible, it's just better that way.

rietta 7y ago
Does it work to sync between Linux dev machine and iOS phone?
- ivolimmen 7y ago
  I share my KeePass file using a Dropbox like service. I use Keepass2Android as I run android. Works really well. I run KeepassXC on Linux and Mac.
- mFixman 7y ago
  The (IMO fantastic) Android app can pull your password file directly from Google Drive and other cloud providers. I'd assume the iOS app does the same.
  - Semaphor 7y ago
    Keepass2Android is the name and it supports WebDav (so easy integration with for example Nextcloud)
- Latty 7y ago
  No syncing built in, it just works on a file and you can use whatever service you want to sync that file. Most of the dropbox-style services will work (although on mobile sandboxing can sometimes be an issue). On Linux keepassxc is great, with strong browser integration and even has a good extension for integration with ssh-agent. I don't use iOS myself, but a quick search shows Strongbox as a decent client. On Android I use Keepass DX which is very good by the sync support isn't there. Keepass2Android is better on that front, but has a much worse UI and no support for the new biometric auth process, only the old fingerprint-specific one.
- 7y ago

AznHisoka 7y ago

These guys must really be pessimistic about their future if they are accepting a deal of $86/share. Their 52 week high was $96/share, and as high as $120/share last year.

jacquesm 7y ago
A 4.3 billion USD valuation at exit is not all bad news I'd say. Better a deal at 4.3 billion than none at 5.5. I'd be laughing all the way to the bank with an exit like that and not worry too much about what could have been.
- toomuchtodo 7y ago
  Wisdom. Valuations and multipliers are opinions and suggestions until the wire/fiat hits your account. Take the money and run.
  - Lavery 7y ago
    Maybe that's reasonable in private markets, but Logmein was a public company (LOGM). Valuations and multipliers for public equities are the consensus of a set of investors who buy and sell the stock all day. Anyone who wanted to take the money and run could choose to do so between the hours of 9:30 and 4 EST for the last decade.
    - deleted 7y ago
      [deleted]
      - deleted 7y ago
        [deleted]
    - jacquesm 7y ago
      That depends on the size of their holdings and on how liquid the stock really was, it might take quite a while to liquidate a large holding and it would very likely depress the market, especially if all the execs decided to liquidate their complete holdings (assuming they would be even allowed to). So the consensus is what it is given normal volume, likely a relatively small chunk of shares changing hands repeatedly rather than a really large block being sold once. The latter would almost certainly depress the price.

lifty 7y ago

Bitwarden is a nice alternative. And you can self-host the server part if you want. edit: LastPass is owned by LogMeIn, that's why I mention this alternative.

arsana 7y ago
LogMeIn is remote access software. The LogMeIn refers to a local machine,not a website.
- Operyl 7y ago
  LogMeIn owns LastPass.
- Wowfunhappy 7y ago
  I believe GP is referencing the fact that LogMeIn also owns Lastpass. Edit: Looks like a million and one other people replied at the exact same time I did, sorry. :3
- jetpks 7y ago
  LogMeIn owns LastPass
- filmgirlcw 7y ago
  The company owns LastPass, so it’s several things, actually.
- Kudos 7y ago
  LogMeIn owns LastPass.
- deleted 7y ago
  [deleted]
- lifty 7y ago
  Sorry, I should have been more clear and mention the LastPass relation.
- urbanjunkie 7y ago

arsana 7y ago

A lot of comments mentioning alternative password managers. TFA:first line > LogMeIn, Inc. (NASDAQ: LOGM), a leading provider of cloud-based connectivity, LogMeIn is remote access tool, not password management for websites.

deleted 7y ago
[deleted]
Operyl 7y ago
LogMeIn owns LastPass.
JumpCrisscross 7y ago
> LogMeIn is remote access tool LogMeIn the company owns LastPass [1], a popular password manager. [1] https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/LastPass https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/LastPass
PerfectElement 7y ago
They acquired LastPass in 2015.
jacquesm 7y ago
Could you please stop shitting all over a thread with the same wrong/misinformed comment? 80% of the comments in this thread are now you + rebuttals.
- arsana 7y ago
  shut the fuck up

deleted 7y ago

[deleted]

alex_lod 7y ago

LastPass recently started deleting a secure note of mine after I’d edit it. It’s been almost two weeks and their support team has done nothing but kick the can down the road. I wonder if the acquisition has anything to do with their very poor support quality.

mk99 7y ago

They own GotoMeeting, Rescue Assist, LastPass and of course LogMeIn to name a few. I use their GotoWebinar product. Zoom.us has been eating their lunch lately ...

CobrastanJorji 7y ago
Ah, shoot, I didn't connect this to LastPass. Thanks for pointing that out.

post_break 7y ago

I cancelled LogMeIn because every year they raised prices. Started at like $100 a year and over 5 years went up to over $1000 a year just to get into around 10 PCs.

chooseaname 7y ago

A lot of discussion surrounding LastPass and alternatives, but what are some actual LogMeIn alternatives that people like?

excalibur 7y ago
ssh, RDP
- NotHereNotThere 7y ago
  What? How is a user supposed to show you and reproduce their problem when you're connected over SSH or RDP? Both run in a different session than the user's
  - AnIdiotOnTheNet 7y ago
    Windows has a built-in remote assistance mode that uses RDP: https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/4026516/windows-use-remote-assistance-to-let-someone-fix-your-pc https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/4026516/windows-use... It's more of a pain than TeamViewer though.
maccard 7y ago
I use RDP for work, and TeamViewer if I need to fix something for my parents. Chrome Remote Desktop is one other alternative I've used but not in anger.
chelovek89 7y ago
For just remotely logging in Splashtop is great and a lot cheaper.
thdn 7y ago
Teamviewer it the only reliable enterprise solution I've found so far
lotsofpulp 7y ago
Chrome Remote Desktop.

jmuguy 7y ago

My old company used Logmein professionally to remotely manage 100s of computers for many years before switching to ConnectWise. They had a great product for a long time but some of the worse licensing decisions I've ever seen. It went from being completely free to several thousand dollars overnight without any additional features, support, etc being offered. And meanwhile development was stagnant with only weird changes to the UI and punitive changes to free users being rolled out. We would have been more than willing to pay for licensing. Even in the end it was the one product we found that could do some really cool stuff remotely (like recover a frozen Windows system and reboot it into safe mode). But they just handled the business side of things like complete idiots.

ceejayoz 7y ago
Great product, hundreds of computers for professional purposes, and "several thousand dollars" is a sticking point? Why?
- SQueeeeeL 7y ago
  Because people never like to pay more for something that was free... Also makes accounting mad
- chime 7y ago
  I think the 'overnight' part is key here. I can easily get approval for 20k-100k in necessary software but the approval process can take 1-3 months. If a free service suddenly goes paid without notice, it is much more disruptive than waiting 2mo to start with a new paid service.
  - Zaak 7y ago
    Exactly. Big companies move slowly. A small, well-funded company may be able to approve an X-thousand-dollar payment in a matter of days, but a large company just can't react that fast. There are too many layers of process and approvals and vetting and negotiation to wade through.
- 7y ago

x86_64Ubuntu 7y ago

Off-topic, but can anyone tell me of an instance whereby a software entity was acquired by a VC firm and things turned out great?

skrebbel 7y ago
I don't think VCs often buy companies but PE firms sure do. One example near me is NXP, a semicon business from Eindhoven (NL) where I live. Philips spun them out after loading them with debt,a PE firm bought them. Radical cost cutting, the usual, but they also accomplished a culture change (to some extent). As a former Philips department, the culture was very slow and bureaucratic, more akin to government than a for-profit business. The new owners made it very clear that from then on, money needed to be earned and anything that didn't contribute to that wasn't worth doing. The company became a fair bit more lean and agile as a result, pushing products and updates faster etc.
- coredog64 7y ago
  I’ve experienced a similar result. TPG bought a large stake in OnSemi. Initially they were going to flip it, so were focused on short term results. Eventually, they realized they had an opportunity to do more and loosened up the purse strings. ONNN bought LSIs fabs in Oregon and was able to refocus as a premium supplier rather than a race-to-the-bottom commodity provider.
  - cushychicken 7y ago
    Yeah, On Semi has really turned it around in the last 5 years or so. They were on track to be a jellybean competitor.
jacquesm 7y ago
As Skrebbel already mentioned VC firms rarely acquire companies outright, but it is typical that in such transactions VCs are on the selling side and PE parties are on the buying side. So let's take it as read that you meant PE, in that case, it depends is the usual answer. There are quite a few examples of PE funds buying companies and letting them run as autonomous as possible with positive results and there are examples of PE funds buying a company outright or a controlling interest who then become 'backseat drivers' but without the relevant experience. In those cases - especially if the PE party consists mostly of accountants and financial people - it usually does not take long before the effects become visible. But there are a great many players and the majority of them is both well intentioned and ends up with positive results. The ones you hear and read about in the newspapers are not really representative for the PE market as a whole, that's just the news' habit of focusing on the trainwreck. PE fund returns nX to their LPs versus PE fund buys controlling stake in struggling company and runs it into the ground after loading it up with debt. Which headline do you think will attract more eyeballs?

jitendrac 7y ago

I used to play cs 1.6 using hamachi, and it was unmatched at that time. Sad to see the gradual downfall of project.

gnrlst 7y ago

Serious question: how much will this impact LastPass? I get that a buy-out creates some risk for the company's future, but is migration really required in the next 6-12 months?

Kye 7y ago
Private equity (PE) has a bad reputation for a good reason. I wouldn't jump to migration immediately, but you should keep an up to date export in a secure place. PE can take years to drive a company into the ground with debt.
- ulkesh 7y ago
  I migrated to Bitwarden immediately and removed all content in LastPass and deleted my LastPass account. My experience seeing companies sell out to private equity firms leads me to believe I haven't made that rash of a decision. For me, trust is usually immediately lost once a company changes hands. And when it comes to password management like this, trust is everything. Honestly, I would have supported Bitwarden before had I known about it prior to this HN post. I appreciate the content you and everyone else has provided in this thread.
- batmenace 7y ago
  Why are you automatically assuming their goal is to load the company with bad debt? That’s only the outcome if the acquisition and plan are unsuccessful...

greggman2 7y ago

I don't understand how HN can complain about Google sucking up data and rarely if ever mention LassPass's terms of service which basically flat out state they share your info to marketers. Effectively they appear to be making money by looking at all the sites you log into via LassPass. If you're using their browser plugin I can only guess, given their Terms of Service, that they're spying on all pages, not just pages you're getting a password via their service for. Though even selling the info of which services you're using is bad enough. Sure, they have a free plan and so you are not the customer. Why do they get a pass? Note: I have no proof they are spying. I only have the fact that their TOS points to their privacy policy and their privacy policy says they can collect pretty much anything you'd expect software to be able to collect and that they can share that info with whoever they decide to partner with. Contrast to some other password managers that stay flat out, they don't collect your data and don't want to know it. From their Privacy Policy > 1. Information We Collect and Receive > Service Data (including Session and Usage data): > When you use our Services, we receive information generated through the use of the Service, either entered by you or others who use the Services with you (for example, schedules, attendee info, etc.), or from the Service infrastructure itself, (for example, duration of session, use of webcams, connection information, etc.) We may also collect usage and log data about how the services are accessed and used, including information about the device you are using the Services on, IP addresses, location information, language settings, what operating system you are using, unique device identifiers and other diagnostic data ... > Third Party Data: We may receive information about you from other sources, including publicly available databases or third parties from whom we have purchased data, and combine this data with information we already have about you. We may also receive information from other affiliated companies that are a part of our corporate group. This helps us to update, expand and analyze our records, identify new prospects for marketing, and provide products and services that may be of interest to you. > Location Information: We collect your location-based information for the purpose of providing and supporting the service and for fraud prevention and security monitoring. If you wish to opt-out of the collection and use of your collection information, you may do so by turning it off on your device settings. > Device Information: When you use our Services, we automatically collect information on the type of device you use, operating system version, and the device identifier (or "UDID"). That's pretty much everything given they put an extension in your browser and can collect all of that info for every page you visit > 4. Information Sharing > ... We may share your personal information with (a) third party service providers; (b) business partners; (c) affiliated companies within our corporate structure Why would anyone want a password manager with this privacy policy?

thrillgore 7y ago

Aw shit, I use LastPass.

_bxg1 7y ago

LogMeIn Hamachi was a pretty great way of setting up a LAN over the internet for gaming. We used to play Minecraft on it all the time in college.

degenerate 7y ago
Hamachi was created by Alex Pankratov. Once LogMeIn purchased Hamachi, they ruined it with the following update (either purposefully or accidentally) by making it no longer work with a large handful of older games. That sanfu in combination with a more bloated UI, forced LogMeIn account, and a splattering of useless features made it obsolete within a few months. It was the fastest rise and fall of a piece of software I have ever personally witnessed. You can read about the original Hamachi on the author's website here: https://swapped.cc/#!/hamachi https://swapped.cc/#!/hamachi
- _bxg1 7y ago
  FWIW I didn't use it until 2011, which sounds like it was years after the acquisition. It's always sad to see a beloved product go downhill over time, but at that point it was still pretty great.
- apankrat 7y ago
  Your recollection is off. LMI bought Hamachi in 2006 and I was involved in the development until 2009. Through that time there were no known issues with older games. Nothing was broken. What was tunneled before was still tunneled the exact same way, including IPX, IP4 broadcasts and multicasts. We did rewrite the client, cleaning up all the cruft, separating the engine from the UI, adding compression support and what not. It still wasn't fully integrated with the LMI core and no LMI account was required. The UI was redesigned in-house, without my participation, and while I didn't like the result, the original look wasn't a pinnacle of design either :) What happened after 2009 I have no idea. The devs I worked with were really good, so if things broke, most likely it wasn't accidental.
  - degenerate 7y ago
    I remember the UI change being around the time most things broke for me, and there were other users in the product forum with their various games also having issues. Maybe those type of posts were always numerous, and I never visited the forums before. For me the games that broke were Starcraft, Red Alert, and a handful of non-internet games. Perhaps the forum/customer-support tickets didn't make it down to you, but something had definitely broke around the time the UI changed. It's likely the issues were quickly fixed and I am remembering the gradual post-2009 decline more vividly and blaming it on the time when the UI changed, which was emotionally upsetting ;) But thanks for posting your remembrance of the events, and creating Hamachi in the first place!

stevespang 7y ago

This sort of deal is becoming the rule, rather than the exception. "Special interests", i.e. Hedge Funds and other Private Equity are increasingly grabbing up deals that the general public via the stock market should be entitled to first. This is really more and more about the rich and powerful cutting out the general population, and I think it deserves legislation to correct it.

iamaelephant 7y ago

LastPass has taken a huge dip in quality since the Logmein acquisition and I expect this will only make it worse.

tomaszs 7y ago

The pricing for LogMeIn and Hamechi and TeamViewer is ridicolous. Paying tens of dollars for a TightVNC with a middle server is more luxurious than having WinRar licence

morpheuskafka 7y ago
I don't know why anyone would pay for Hamachi when you could self-host ZeroTier for free or pay $30/mo for unlimited user of their hosted service.
- tomaszs 7y ago
  Oh man 30 dollars... So the problem with SaaS is that if you dont earn money directly from using SaaS most of the time you are outside of the scope of the business. Because SaaS needs to remove the lowest pricing so that the direct earning users choose the higher one. I can not pay 10 dollars for occasional service because its bad for the SaaS business aimed to more heavy users. I dont like it in SaaS model and i cant see any solution for this. Its like pizzahut stopped selling margherita and capricosa. SaaS dont sell margherita and capricosa!
  - gyrgtyn 7y ago
    It's free up to 30 devices, or free forever if you host your own.

throwawaylmi 7y ago

Software Engineer here working on GotoMeeting (throwaway account). Not having gone through a private equity buyout in my career before, any ideas of what to expect/any recommendations of what to do now?

deleted 7y ago
[deleted]
criddell 7y ago
Has any private equity buyout ever helped anybody other than the PE stakeholders?
- ronnybrendel2 7y ago
  Dell was saved that way. But this here is different of course.
et-al 7y ago
They'll give you a shpiel how this is for the best and that brighter days are to come with new management. Maybe they'll entice folks with an incentive program that says "if profits are x much, you'll get a bonus in 2 years." Then within 18 months, they'll reduce benefits (e.g. worse insurance plan, change the vacation policy), or maybe actually lay off people and shut down entire departments to boost numbers. tl;dr - update your a resume and start interviewing to have a backup. If upper management thinks you're a top performer, you have a bit more leeway.
thr483900 7y ago
Bye bye Jive.... Great day for competitors in the VOIP space.
anonuser123456 7y ago
PE cares about value. If you bring a lot of value (e.g. work on revenue generating projects), you stand to do well. Speculative R&D work is not highly valued, that's what VC does. SG&A tends to get hit the hardest (HR/Finance/Legal etc.). Non core business functions get outsourced. Look at the existing portfolio and see where you for in.

sbr464 7y ago

Yep, we also used to have thousands of machines under management (across different clients), I always loved logmein, but moved to teamviewer for pricing reasons. For example, in $: 0 > 1,500 > 3,000 > 5,000 > 8,000 > 12,000 > ... (For the same service, over the years) We left around 6-8k. The issue was always around a lack of transparency and arbitrary price increases, never about the actual price.

bitxbit 7y ago

Makes sense that LastPass was “slow” to adding new features (such as u2f) lately.

annoyingnoob 7y ago

In my experience, a private equity take over is the kiss of death.

dmix 7y ago
It's easily the bottom of the barrel type recovery. Although historically private equity has been a net gain for struggling businesses that would otherwise go out of business. There was tons of anti PE stuff after the financial crisis and they received some of the earlier and harshest attacks from congress and other groups, but the data didn't support the idea they were some corporate raiding vultures and far more often turned around ventures in precarious positions. But ultimately its not something you go to when they are going well. Unless there is some obvious value add consolidation scheme.
- annoyingnoob 7y ago
  >Unless there is some obvious value add consolidation scheme. The kiss of death works in mysterious ways, the synergy is palpable.
  - dmix 7y ago
    I would read this book
batmenace 7y ago
They could just as well be buying it as a platform for their portfolio, and look to buy more similar companies to consolidate. PE is more than just buying struggling companies, it’s often buying fairly valued companies in a fast growing sector, and then expanding them, or finding ways to cut costs.

ProAm 7y ago

Didn't Citrix own LogMeIn?

linuxdude314 7y ago
Citrix owned Citrix Systems Online (owned GoTo* IP)which was rebranded to GetGo which was then spun out using a reverse-Morris trust to LogMeIn after receiving threats of a hostile takeover from Elliot Management.
huhtenberg 7y ago
From what I remember they had a joint venture, which was mostly under LogMeIn's control.

dang 7y ago

We changed the URL from https://investor.logmeininc.com/about-us/investors/news/press-release-details/2019/LogMeIn-Enters-into-Definitive-Agreement-to-be-Acquired-by-Affiliates-of-Francisco-Partners-and-Evergreen-Coast-Capital-for-8605-per-Share-in-Cash/default.aspx https://investor.logmeininc.com/about-us/investors/news/pres... to a third-party article with a bit more background.

DyslexicAtheist 7y ago

I used LastPass then 1Password before. today, I've finally switched to KeepassXC today and am wondering why I haven't done this any sooner. Really happy especially with the cli. If you don't trust your AES stack (shitty implementations on certain SSD's) you have options such as chacha20. The whole project seems well maintained too. there was a rework-podcast today with DHH and Dave Tear discussing venture capital and what this funding means for 1Password. https://rework.fm/venture-capital-and-control-with-david-teare/ https://rework.fm/venture-capital-and-control-with-david-tea...

mataug 7y ago

This thread seems to be dominated by bitwarden recommendations, So I thought I would list some of the other reliable options that I'm considering. - Keepass https://www.keepassx.org/ https://www.keepassx.org/ | https://keepassxc.org/ https://keepassxc.org/ - Pass https://www.passwordstore.org/ https://www.passwordstore.org/ - Dashlane https://www.dashlane.com/ https://www.dashlane.com/ - 1Password https://1password.com/ https://1password.com/ - Bitwardnen https://bitwarden.com/ https://bitwarden.com/ - Lockwise https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/lockwise/ https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/lockwise/ If you think there are other legit options out there please reply with links to the project / product.

clickme_zsh 7y ago
Lesspass https://lesspass.com/#/ https://lesspass.com/#/

dillonmckay 7y ago

So, any recommendations for alternatives to LogMeIn Rescue for remote support, that supports mobile remote support (SDK, not another mobile app)?