D&B (NYSE: DNB) business information firm Hoover’s has acquired professional social net Visible Path for an unspecified amount. The acquisition of the company, which was already a Hoover’s strategic partner, coincides with the official launch of Hoover’s Connect, a business social network that has been in beta. Unlike LinkedIn, which is based around individual individual profiles, Visible Path is organized around companies, and it attempts to integrate itself into established work tools, hence the fit with Hoover’s. Rumors of a Visible Path sale have been floating since December, when CNET reported that sale was close at hand. The Foster City, CA-based company has announced $22.4 million in VC investments over two rounds since 2004. Release.

Update: Hoover’s president David Mather was a panelist at the SIIA Information Industry Summit today, talkiing a bit about the year-long process to start the launch the social net. He said Hoover’s Connect will participate in Google’s (NSDQ: GOOG) OpenSocial:  “Having some standards for this kind of interaction is helpful. Standards can help us around privacy and provide greater insight. You can find some things about me from LinkedIn, but you can find other things about me from Hoover’s Connect. It adds another layer of information, which users always want.”

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