NewsGator used to have an online RSS reader service, but their market share started slipping away from competitors such as Netvibes, PageFlakes, and Google Reader.  Personally I never really used NewsGator, but I noticed Pulse2.com get a good amount of hits from their RSS reader about one or two years ago.  The company has decided to focus more on desktop applications and enterprise social tools.

On the NewsGator blog, they wrote that users are recommended to migrate to Google Reader by August 31, 2009.  Google employee Brian Shih wrote a welcoming blog post to users migrating from NewsGator to Google Reader yesterday.

As another alternative NewsGator’s desktop applications is one of the most used on the market.  Their RSS reader for the Windows operating system is called FeedDemon. And NewsGator’s desktop RSS reader for the Mac is called NetNewsWire.

Thus far NewsGator raised about $39 million in funding from Mobius Venture Capital and Masthead Venture Partners.

NewsGator is a social computing, enterprise RSS and social widgets company.  NewsGator had the strongest quarter in its history.  NewsGator’s list of customers has grown substantially too.  Given this growth, investors were confident enough to provide them with $10 million in their sixth round of funding.  The investors involved include Masthead Venture Partners, Mobius Venture Capital and Vista Ventures.

Some of NewsGator’s clients include 2 out of 3 of the top world banks, the world’s largest private public relations firm, the second largest U.S. advertising agency, the second largest law firm, four out of the top pharmaceutical companies, the fourth largest U.S. electrical company, and one of the top five investment banking companies in Canada.

“We’re very proud to continue to extend and expand our Global 2000 customer relationships,” stated NewsGator CEO and President JB Holston. “Demand is accelerating for our on-premise and SaaS-based social computing offerings as top quality companies turn to immediate, high-ROI solutions for content and collaboration.”

NewsGator is also well known for NetNewsWire, an RSS reader.  NetNewsWire was named one of the Top 10 iPhone Apps for 2008 in TIME magazine.

“The social computing models that have rocked the consumer world have equally important roles to play in the enterprise – and now more than ever in the current business environment,” stated NewsGator Director and Managing Director of Mobius Venture Capital and Foundry Group Brad Feld. “It’s inspiring to see NewsGator tapping this rich vein of need and achieving remarkable results to document the value of its approach.”