We previously reported that Toronto based BubbleShare was in acquisition discussion with News Corp., through their Fox Interactive subsidiary. The initial rumors came out of two Toronto-area blogs (here and here), strongly suggesting that a direct or indirect leak occured directly from the company.

One thing we know for certain at this point – the deal with News Corp., rumored to be in the $5 million range, is now dead. A source with knowledge of the deal says the reason is the leak, which angered News Corp. Internal strife among BubbleShare equity holders may have also played a part.

Albert Lai, BubbleShare’s CEO, isn’t saying much on the record. His message comes down to “We’re not commenting on whether or not there was a deal, but if there was one, and it died, it had nothing to do with a leak, which never occured” (this is not a direct quote). Fox declined to comment.

Despite the turmoil, BubbleShare is a service that we continue to applauded for its ease of use and intuitive interface.