• by Erik Sass , Staff Writer @eriksass1, January 3, 2012

One of the first professional social networks ever founded, Toolbox.com, which serves IT professionals, has been acquired from the Corporate Executive Board by tech publisher Ziff Davis, Inc., the companies announced Tuesday.

Founded in 1998, Toolbox.com blazed a trail for professional social networks (and social networks in general) by connecting IT professionals to enable them to consult with peers and experts, evaluate vendors, and plan and manage projects; like other professional networks, it is also handy for finding jobs and poaching, er, recruiting new talent. The network currently boasts 2.3 million registered members.

Toolbox.com will become a unit of Ziff Davis B2B Focus, formed in 2011 following Ziff Davis’ acquisition of Focus Research, which provides online research to enterprise buyers and helps IT vendors find leads, as well as handling syndication and producing webinars. The division’s areas of responsibility include ITManagement.com, ITSecurity.com, VOIPNews.com and InsideCRM.com, drawing on its database of IT resources and library of white papers and buying guides for IT.

Ziff Davis Vivek Shah stated: “We’ve added a critical piece to our puzzle with the acquisition of Toolbox.com. The IT community relies on itself to make decisions and be informed. Owning the leading professional networking site is a significant strategic advantage for Ziff Davis.”

The acquisition marks a further development in Ziff Davis’ reinvention as an online information clearinghouse serving the tech industry. Over the last half-decade Ziff Davis has sold or closed a number of print titles, including its Enterprise Group, sold in 2007, 1UP, sold in 2009, and PC Magazine and Electronic Gaming Monthly, shuttered in 2009 (PCMag.com is still operating). After emerging from bankruptcy in June 2008, the company was acquired by Great Hill Partners in 2010, then embarked on a series of strategic acquisitions to drive its transition from print to multiplatform publishing.