Founder of Bebo, sold it to AOL for $850m in 2008, recently bought it back for $1m

[medicalhumor]

Facebook has integrated inself so well into society that it will be difficult for a competing company to take their place. You pass by every store, and all you see is like this, like that. Hell, even BMW has a special app dedicated just for Facebook.

Similarly, I also believe that Google will not be replaced. At this point, it will be grandfathered into the interwebs.

10-15 years ago, all you saw everywhere was AOL's KEYWORD
Every company had KEYWORD - XXXXX on their commercials and print. AOL was a giant at the time, integrated extremely well into society, and now look at them.

Same with MicroSoft - they dominated their platform, but today they are struggling to keep up.

People will tire of Facebook eventually, when the next best thing makes them look old and tired and they aren't able to stay current.

 

[kumansk]

10-15 years ago, all you saw everywhere was AOL's KEYWORD
Every company had KEYWORD - XXXXX on their commercials and print. AOL was a giant at the time, integrated extremely well into society, and now look at them.

Same with MicroSoft - they dominated their platform, but today they are struggling to keep up.

People will tire of Facebook eventually, when the next best thing makes them look old and tired and they aren't able to stay current.

You're not taking one thing in account and that's internet usage. When AOL was on top, there weren't nearly as many people on the internet.

Lately when most people say they want to get on the internet, what they really mean is facebook. I know regular ass people living in remote mountain villages in bosnia that are on facebook. Could you seriously compare that to the popularity of AOL?

 

[RAZE1]

Sells at the perfect time. Buys back for cheap. Launch with a viral video that tens of millions are likely to see.

Profit?

 

[emp]

Him and his wife made 600 mil on the sale.

He is also listed on wikipedia as "serial entrepreneur"

::emp::

 

[productionhead]

Facebook is unstoppable [for social] in the same way Google is for search. You can't cite the Myspace example because Myspace was not listed publicly for $100 billion plus. Facebook can acquire any competitor.



Ya best believe.

 

[TeeBird]

As long as he did not lose too much after the sale, this guy can make a serious investment in marketing and design, and have the technical infrastructure in place. He will be able to re-energize the brand and if he targets a good niche, make some money.

I love the play.

 

[Instrumentalist]

As long as he did not lose too much after the sale, this guy can make a serious investment in marketing and design, and have the technical infrastructure in place. He will be able to re-energize the brand and if he targets a good niche, make some money.

I love the play.

From what I understand the team they have working on the new Bebo is small as shit. I'm talking two programmers and one designer. When AOL acquired it, they were in direct competition with Facebook. That combined with the likely shitty AOL corporate management of the project, Bebo dropped hard and fast. They say the new incarnation is not supposed to be a direct competition with Facebook, but rather they will be trying to appeal to a different audience. Who knows what it will be, but I'm certainly curious.

 

[miketpowell]

I don't think he's trying to compete with Facebook.

Think Pinterest, reddit, 9gag ect. - any one of those is valued at well over what he just paid.

Maybe he figures he can throw in less than $10 million on the entire thing and get another 9 figure exit and have some fun along the way.

 

[kumansk]

I don't think he's trying to compete with Facebook.

Think Pinterest, reddit, 9gag ect. - any one of those is valued at well over what he just paid.

Maybe he figures he can throw in less than $10 million on the entire thing and get another 9 figure exit and have some fun along the way.

Tumblr and instagram were getting pretty large until acquired by yahoo and facebook respectively. Most likely one of the reasons facebook got so big in the first place is because of zuckerberg's virtue to not respond to money like everyone else. Remember when yahoo offered to buy them out for a billion. He said no without second guessing and now facebook is 100x bigger because he stuck to his vision all the way. I'm surprised AOL is still present tbh

 

[cassius]

You're not taking one thing in account and that's internet usage. When AOL was on top, there weren't nearly as many people on the internet.

Lately when most people say they want to get on the internet, what they really mean is facebook. I know regular ass people living in remote mountain villages in bosnia that are on facebook. Could you seriously compare that to the popularity of AOL?

Preferences can always change and it doesn't take more than one less than stellar decision to change the direction of an industry leader. Nokia was once, by far, the largest cell phone manufacturer on the planet. In 2000 Nokia had a market cap of about $245 billion and had an absolute stranglehold on the mobile phone industry. In 2005 they sold their billionth device. In 2007 Nokia was the fifth most valued brand in the world. Now, just over a month ago Microsoft bought Nokia's handset division for $7.2 billion, a little over half of the value of yoga-pants giant Lululemon Athletica. Facebook could fall apart just like any other. It just takes someone with a better idea and/or one big mistake by Facebook.

 

[juntao65]

Most you guys saying FB/goog will get toppled soon are forgetting one thing: unlike their predecessors they're actually innovating/changing shit. Instagram had some potential to throw off facebook... what did zucks do? Bought that shit even if it was seemingly overvalued t the time. Now kids who don't want to use facebook cause of parents use instagram.... which is owned by facebook.

 

[fuzzface]

What goes up must come down, eventually

 

[IsaacADB]

My rough math suggests $799 million reasons to keep the hair. How many do you have to suggest otherwise?

ROFL. Bald guy thinks hair is worth $799 million. QLC

 

[cassius]

Most you guys saying FB/goog will get toppled soon are forgetting one thing: unlike their predecessors they're actually innovating/changing shit. Instagram had some potential to throw off facebook... what did zucks do? Bought that shit even if it was seemingly overvalued t the time. Now kids who don't want to use facebook cause of parents use instagram.... which is owned by facebook.

Who said it was going to happen soon? Innovation doesn't guarantee growth. In fact, innovation always carries risk. If Facebook's momentum falters it will open the door for a competitor to gain ground very quickly. It just takes one big misstep or shift in consumer preference. Competitors won't always be open to acquisition. Too big to fail is too big.

 

[secretagentdad]

I wanna know what the heck made it worth 800 million in the first place.

 

[contract]

$849 mill...

That guy can buy a brand new lambo every day, crash it.

And do it for a full year straight, and still be richer than 99% of the world.

...

AOL overpayed beyond a reasonable amount.

 

[cassius]

I wanna know what the heck made it worth 800 million in the first place.

Want a real stumper?

How did Mark Cuban sell broadcast.com to Yahoo! for $5.9 Billion in stock?

The .com bubble overvalued some web companies by hilarious amounts.

 

[Johnathan]

Want a real stumper?

How did Mark Cuban sell broadcast.com to Yahoo! for $5.9 Billion in stock?

The .com bubble overvalued some web companies by hilarious amounts.

The "bubble" was an event. We are talking about people. AOL and the morons that run it overpaid for a social network because they wanted to be cool. They failed.

People and speculation control value.

Bebo will eventually make another comeback, and I hope to hell it does. I can always use another traffic source.

 

[papajohn56]

ROFL. Bald guy thinks hair is worth $799 million. QLC

Only mine is.

 

[cassius]

The "bubble" was an event. We are talking about people. AOL and the morons that run it overpaid for a social network because they wanted to be cool. They failed.

People and speculation control value.

Bebo will eventually make another comeback, and I hope to hell it does. I can always use another traffic source.

Bubble describes a set of market conditions. The term, ".com bubble" refers to the widespread overestimation of the intrinsic value of internet-based businesses in the late-1990s. The bubble environment encompasses the speculative actions of businesses and investors. Pricing is determined by the market.