The Fall from Grace of Social Networking Pioneer Friendster

[mandy]

JONATHAN ABRAMS was in a spot. He could take the safe bet and accept the $30 million that  Google was offering him for Friendster, the social networking Web start-up he began only a year earlier, in 2002. Saying yes to Google would provide a quick and stunning payout for relatively little work and instantly place the Friendster Web site in front of hundreds of millions of users across the globe.

But at the same time, some of the biggest names in Silicon Valley were lobbying Mr. Abrams, a computer programmer, to reject Google’s offer. America Online had offered the two founders of Yahoo a few million dollars each in the mid-90’s for their Web site — and both became billionaires because they said no. Sell us a stake in your company for $13 million, the advisers told Mr. Abrams, and we will help build Friendster into an online powerhouse worth hundreds of millions — if not billions — of dollars...

Mr. Abrams spurned Google’s advances and charted his own course. In retrospect, he should have taken the $30 million. If Google had paid him in stock, Mr. Abrams would easily be worth $1 billion today...

full article: http://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/15/busine....html?_r=1&oref=slogin

[thentavius]

Crapola, I would have taken the $30 million. These guys hold out for more and more because they're greedy. I'd be astonished if someone wanted something I made for $30 mil.  :o

[stardust]

I'd've been real tickled with 10% of that.