Fresh off its AOL divorce, Time Inc. has acquired StyleFeeder, one of a growing number of sites that may be the future for glossy magazines, although they look nothing like one. Terms of the deal were not disclosed, although an article in the WSJ estimated it was “well into eight figures.”

StyleFeeder is a bookmarking and product search site that recommends new items to shoppers based on what other users with similar tastes have liked. Amazon and Last.fm use similar technology, which is called collaborative filtering.

StyleFeeder is one of a growing number of fashion-oriented new-media sites where users create the content around brands. Others include fashion collage site Polyvore, fashion search engine ShopStyle and bookmarking sites such as Kaboodle.

The site, which was previously working with Hachette, is profitable with fewer than ten full-time employees. It has more than 1 million members and 600,000 unique visitors monthly. It displays more than 14 million products around the Web, and takes a cut of sales whenever a user clicks and buys. It has received more than $3 million in venture backing from firms such as Highland Capital Partners of Boston.

Source: WWDMedia by Cate T. Corcoran

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