Joost Acquired By Online Ad Firm Adconion

After three years of trying — and failing — to make a business out of running an online video portal, Joost has been acquired by advertising and branded entertainment firm Adconion Media Group.

Terms of the deal weren’t disclosed, but the acquisition will come as little surprise  to anyone that’s followed the company’s downward trajectory after launching in 2007 with more than $45 million in funding from heavy hitters such as Sequoia Capital, Index Ventures, Viacom, CBS and Chinese tycoon Li Ka-shing.

The company was rumored to be up for sale back in the spring, with Time Warner Cable topping the list of potential acquirers. From an operational standpoint, Joost has been badly hobbled since June, when it announced that it had laid off most of its staff and was trying to reshape itself as a white-label video management platform.

In its press release, Adconion said that it intends to continue pursuing the video management business, and that the addition of the Joost assets will further “solidify its position in the online video and content syndication market.” Adconion’s business is all about mass distribution of ads and branded entertainment, so having a video management platform like Joost makes sense. The company also said it would continue to operate Joost.com, both as a place to serve its own ads, and as a showcase for branded entertainment content that it produces.