Why all the talk about Ancestry.com, MyHeritage.com and findmypast.com?

I am reasonably sure that the vast majority of the members of the Church are totally unaware of the changes that are coming to the online genealogy world. Here is the latest word from a blog post dated 28 March 2014 by Lynne C. VanWagenen entitled "Update: LDS Member Access to Partner Family History Websites."

This February at RootsTech, FamilySearch announced that Church members would receive free access to Ancestry.com, findmypast.com, and MyHeritage.com. Currently, we are testing this process internally so that we can ensure a smooth and simple experience for you in creating these free accounts. 

In the next few months, we will begin a limited rollout. Once this limited rollout begins, selected patrons will receive an individual email invitation that lets them create accounts with each partner. Family history consultants and family history center directors and staff will be among the first to receive these invitations. 

If the limited rollout goes well, we anticipate that all members of the Church will receive this free access in late summer or early fall. 

Family history centers will continue to provide free access to commercial family history websites to the general public. Currently, Ancestry.com and findmypast offer free access to all patrons of these centers. MyHeritage will also offer free access to their site sometime in late 2014. We recommend that all users of these websites, both members and general public, visit their local family center to learn more about the unique benefits of each partners’ offerings. 

Partnerships between FamilySearch and Ancestry.com, findmypast and MyHeritage, and other companies in the future, will provide new opportunities for people to discover their ancestors and preserve and share those memories for generations to come. By working collaboratively with these companies, FamilySearch enables individuals around the globe to have access to billions of more records and make more conclusions to their family trees than they would otherwise have been able to do.

Here are two more links to recent statements explaining more about this situation.

• https://familysearch.org/blog/en/family-history-centers-familysearch-partner-access-members/
• https://familysearch.org/blog/en/questions-answers-familysearch-partners/

I am assuming that there will be an overwhelming need for support in getting members onto the programs and teaching them how to use them. I am certainly willing to help as much as I can. I am still looking for a collaborator in the Utah Valley area who would like to make genealogy videos. Any takers?