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The Internet service provider and portal company has acquired online storage and backup company Xdrive.

AOL has added a compelling piece to its portal strategy, purchasing Santa Monica-based Xdrive for an undisclosed sum. Xdrive will stay in California but report to AOL Digital Services senior vp of New Business Ventures, Gio Hunt.

According to a press release, Xdrive's current and future members will have access to the company's storage and backup services. Xdrive offers its users a central online storage facility, with security features and automatic backups of data.

"The digitization of consumer home media is skyrocketing, with consumers and AOL members increasingly looking for easier ways to protect and manage a wide variety of important data files and digital media assets," Mr. Hunt said in the statement. "Xdrive will further enhance AOL's consumer storage offerings to deliver a more safe and secure digital lifestyle for our members."

That sounds like a hint to AOL's ongoing portal strategy. AOL has made significant inroads into providing digital entertainment. Its coverage of the Live 8 concerts was widely lauded by critics and fans, and the company is continually adding and updating broadband content.

Xdrive could figure in as a way for AOL users to add value to that content, by providing a method where users could "keep" that performance in storage for future viewing. Xdrive has been a for-pay service, and that could now be an add-on revenue source beyond the portal model of online advertising.

AOL has not yet disclosed how it will offer Xdrive, or any charges for the service. With its name recognition, AOL can definitely market Xdrive more widely than it has been to date. Depending on how AOL integrates Xdrive, they could make some gains on Yahoo, MSN, and perhaps Google to an extent.

David Utter is a staff writer for WebProNews covering technology and business. Email him here.