The Archives

• 01.02.08
  Who’s Going to Buy Twitter?
  Social Media

    So maybe Twitter doesn’t need a business model because the model is to 1) get scale and 2) sell. The question then is, who would buy Twitter? We know it won’t be Google. That leaves only a few players... I don’t see Yahoo picking up Twitter. However, it would be cool to see a real 'omnipresence network' develop where a profile travels from Twitter to MyBlogLog to Flickr to another potential buy –me.dium. However, my guess for best integration is with AOL. Using a link between Tweets and AIM could be really fascinating along the lines of status ...
  
  
• 12.08.07
  eBay to Buy Ning?
  Social Networking

  Nope, but it should. Here is why. eBay is really the master of niche social networks. Using the power of the long tail there are communities that spring up around all kinds of crazy niche goods. For example, one of my good friends is related to the Brandreth family who long ago sold pills that were thought to be a cure for all sorts of diseases. These pills were featured in Moby Dick (see here) and now, vintage pills boxes appear on eBay auctions. Shockingly the bidding can at times be fierce as family members, museums and collectors battle to ...
  
  
• 10.12.07
  The Google Effect: Suppliers Beware
  Tech'nomics

  An interesting trend is taking shape within the world of venture capital and web 2.0 startups. During the last bubble, the liquidity event everyone hoped for was the IPO. Now it seems to be an acquisition by Google (though ipo’s may be on the horizon) and who else besides Google is really in acquisition mode? With only one primary buyer in the market, the issue becomes similar to that of Walmart, in that Google now has the power to command favorable pricing from suppliers. The latest example is Jaiku. I have heard a lot of folks question why Google didn't buy ...
  
  
• 07.02.07
  LinkedIn Should Acquire Twitter Now!!
  Social Networking, Venture Capital

  I see nothing but potential between these two companies. If LinkedIn is in fact moving toward an IPO, they could also stand some buzz helping to drive up that long-term potential/valuation. Twitter is in a good acquisition stage from the standpoint of an acquirer because with the looming launch of Pownce (the Kevin Rose brainchild) Twitter’s market share has been threatened. Pownce’s impact is likely to shake-up Twitter’s current dominant market positioning. In other words, Twitter needs to make some moves. Why Twitter? Well the idea behind LinkedIn Answers is cool, but not functional enough. What would REALLY be sharp ...
  
  
• 05.14.07
  WallStrip Joins CBS
  Social Media, Venture Capital

  Apparently CBS has purchased WallStrip. The announcement broke on Jossip and the deal is said to be valued at $5M. WallStrip is not thought to currently generate any revenue. According to Michael Arrington the deal is said to be focused on signing Lindsay Campbell: ’CBS was keen to have Campbell on board and a cast iron contract meant that acquiring WallStrip was the only way they could get to her. Campbell has talent but if this was the driving reason behind the buy, they’d better hope she can tap dance as well.’ Even if the deal is primarily to sign Lindsay, I think ...
  
  
• 05.05.07
  Simply Hired: A Business Model that is too Simple?
  Social Media, Venture Capital

  According to Techcrunch, Google is now in talks to acquire SimplyHired.com, a job listing website that works by searching across many websites such as Craigslist and Wetfeet.com and aggregating all the results. Venturebeat also has a first-hand account of the breaking news. According to these articles, SimplyHired recently raised $13.5M for a $40M post investment valuation from NewsCorp. I find this amazing because it seems the barriers to entry for an aggregating website are so low’ the business model to me seems too simple. What if in a year a new security device comes out capable of blocking these aggregating/scraping sites ...
  
  
• 01.09.07
  MyBlogLog Acquired!!
  Social Media, Social Networking

  Yahoo! has started 2007 off with a bang by acquiring MyBlogLog (rumored acquisition price between $10 and $12 million). As I stated in a recent post, I think this is a brilliant move (at least if Yahoo! can think big picture and work on convergence and integration with its other media). If you have not read the follow-up comments, please do. Scott from MyBlogLog was kind of enough to throw in his opinion.
  
  

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