OnLive, the popular if a bit-before-its-time cloud gaming service was acquired on Friday, after restructuring under what is called an "Assignment for the Benefit of Creditors." This is a legal maneuver that allows companies in financial trouble to sell their assets to pay creditors.

Unfortunately neither OnLive, Inc. shares nor OnLive staff could transfer under this type of transaction, but almost half of OnLive’s staff were given employment offers by the new company at their current salaries immediately upon the transfer, and the non-hired staff will be given offers to do consulting in return for options in the new company. Upon closing additional funding, the company plans to hire more staff, both former OnLive employees as well as new employees.

Should You Still Buy OnLive Games?

We're not sure who the new partner is

After restructuring, all of OnLive's assets - patents, technology, trademarks, the lot of it - were sold. In a follow-up email sent over the weekend, we learned a bit more. The heart of the email is as follows:If you're a big fan of OnLive, it would appear that OnLive's asset sale and restructuring will have little effect on your gaming experience. OnLive's official line reaffirms gamers that their purchases will remain intact, and that their service will be up 24/7.Of course, gamers have a right to be wary. Cloud gaming has always been tricky in this regard - if the cloud company fails, your games will fail. The fact that OnLive is having major problems, and that less than half of OnLive's staff has been rehired could be a bad sign, or indicate a direction change for OnLive, and certainly should give gamers pause.Then again, OnLive has stated that they intend to rehire more of OnLive's ex-staff and add fresh faces to the mix. A shake-up like the one offered by a new partner could ultimately benefit OnLive., The new partner appears to be Lauder Partners LLC. We're still unsure how they plan to use OnLive's patents, technology, and trademarks down the road, but they have a long list of technology-related investments, and for gamers it's safe to say that right now, little is changing for the end-user.We can't read the future, but our recommendation would be to be careful with your money, until you know what OnLive's next move will be.IGN will continue to provide up-to-date information on OnLive and cloud gaming as details surface.

Nic is the Editor of IGN Tech. He loves technology almost as much as Brand New, Boyz II Men, and Harvest Moon 64. You can follow him on Twitter and IGN