Is Aol. Really Buying Mashable? Maybe.
January 6, 2010
Filed Under: in Analysis, Developing Stories, Featured Articles, New Media vs. Old Media, News, Social Media
Author: Art Lindsey III
Welcome back.
We now interrupt your CES coverage to bring you breaking news from the world of the internet:
The rumor mill is on overdrive as it has been speculated that the blog that only people who are obsessed with Facebook, Friendfeed and Twitter care about, (Mashable) is about to be bought up by the Internet company absolutely no one cares about. (AOL sorry, “Aol.”)
When approached for comment, Mashable founder Pete Cashmore said, “"We don't comment on speculation, but we do hold our writers in high regard and pay a competitive salary for their tireless efforts."
Right. Aside from the fact that I have been told by an unnamed source that the “competitive salary” claim holds about as much water as a slotted spoon, anybody who responds to anything with a “No comment” is hiding something.
So, seeing as there was no denial, let’s assume for the sake of argument this is true. If it is, this could be the ticket to easy street that “the Brad Pitt of blogging” is looking for. He could cash out, find his own “Angelina”, (Julia Allison’s probably not too busy at the moment) and go adopt all the third world kids he wants. That or live on a houseboat in Miami with an alligator named “Elvis”.
It’s obvious that Mashable has no problem making money (and is thus under no pressure to sell), and based on what I’ve been able to acquire from sources, Mashable’s internal valuation is somewhere in the neighborhood of 15 to 25 million dollars, and the company’s contract with Federated Media is set to expire in March (almost exactly 60 days out from today, typical notice required by a contract like that), so why not get out now? When you bundle all of this with the fact that Mashable’s only other shareholder is Pete’s father Colin Cashmore, (of the Clan Cashmore) we’re talking about a nice take here. I mean, how many times can you let this “50 Greatest Tweets” gamble ride before somebody catches on?
Through the grapevine I hear that Mike Arrington is really pissed off about this, but then again, today is a day that ends in “y”, so that’s no shocker, either.
So is it really an acquisition deal? ‘Aol.’ owns one of the biggest web ad networks on the planet (the network formerly known as Platform-A), and the timing is right for this to be an ad network switch. Our sources say that while Mashable had a sweetheart deal with Federated Media (as compared to other members of the network), their COO Adam Hirsch is a shrewd negotiator, and anything that gives them better than a 50% split with the network would be grounds for them to say “adios” to Battelle’s network.
There’s also the new Aol. initiative, Seed, which might make a good new home for the social network blog – both function on similar HuffPo-esque editorial models, with a few paid folks at the top and an army of unpaid PR and consulting folks who submit posts for next to (or completely) nil pay.
Still, we’re having a hard time pinning this one down, with no one really sure what’s going on or who talked. If, in fact, it is a sale, very few of the original staff is likely to stay. Aol already has a well staffed ad sales department, so there’d be little need for COO Adam Hirsch. The Seed initiative will provide them with all the unpaid industry opinion they can handle, and the pundits from other Weblogs, Inc properties could be moved over to Mashable. If there’s any reduction in pay (and believe you me, if it’s an Aol affair, there will be pay cuts), no one else will want to stick around.
Pete, though? He’ll make out like a bandit.
Run Pete, run like the wind. Oh, how I will miss making fun of you. Viva capitalism!
[...] more here: SiliconANGLE — Blog — Is Aol. Really Buying Mashable? Maybe. Tags: AOL, biggest, known-as-platform, mashable, network, owns-one, planet, sources-say, [...]
[...] you heard: AOL is rumored to be purchasing Mashable. It’s circulating amongst serveral sources. Whether or not it’s credible isn’t the point – it’s [...]
SA> Is Aol. Really Buying Mashable? Maybe. http://goo.gl/fb/EhkQ
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John Furrier: SA> Is Aol. Really Buying Mashable? Maybe. http://goo.gl/fb/EhkQ: http://bit.ly/6Optlg
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RT @siliconangle SiliconANGLE — Blog — Is Aol. Really Buying Mashable? Maybe. http://tinyurl.com/ycervhk
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SA> Is Aol. Really Buying Mashable? Maybe. http://goo.gl/fb/86L8
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Reading Is Aol. Really Buying Mashable? Maybe. http://siliconangle.com/blog/2010/01/06/is-aol-really-buying-mashable-maybe/ [Great Post]
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Fun written blog. Missed it! RT @StevenHodson Is Aol. Really Buying Mashable? Maybe. http://bit.ly/8tIFQQ [Great Post]
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RT @RuudHein: Fun written blog. Missed it! RT @StevenHodson Is Aol. Really Buying Mashable? Maybe. http://bit.ly/8tIFQQ [Great Post]
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RT @StevenHodson Is Aol. Really Buying Mashable? Maybe. http://bit.ly/8tIFQQ [Great Post] via @RuudHein
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Hilarious write up on the Aol./Mashable thingy http://siliconangle.com/blog/2010/01/06/is-aol-really-buying-mashable-maybe/ ht @RuudHein
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RT @slominski RT @StevenHodson Is Aol. Really Buying Mashable? Maybe. http://bit.ly/8tIFQQ [Great Post] via @RuudHein
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RT @kristy: Hilarious write up on the Aol./Mashable thingy http://siliconangle.com/blog/2010/01/06/is-aol-really-buying-mashable-maybe/ …
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SiliconANGLE — Blog — Is Aol. Really Buying Mashable? Maybe. http://bit.ly/6Dcd5U
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Hahahahaha. That guest posting on Mashable bit nailed the me of a year ago…hard.
Good salient points Adam. I’ll still go back to them though because I like the reporting/analysis that Adam, Ben and Tamar do. (Also incredibly useful to forward to executives for easily digestible information.)
This comment was originally posted on The Future Buzz
To me, Mashable is known for breaking web-related news the average person cares about, providing resources, and more recently, breaking entertaining news that relates to social media. TC and RWW are more detailed and techie, while Mashable is succinct and IMO open to a wider audience. Mashable makes it easier to comment because they use Disqus—it kills me that TC, RWW, and my favorite, Wired, don’t use Disqus). TC may do better with RSS because their audience is more techie-dense and your average person still doesn’t know what RSS is.
This comment was originally posted on The Future Buzz
Very nice Adam. To be honest, at first I didn’t think you would have much ‘dirt’ but I have noticed myself the sheer mass of content they are posting, often with little relevance.
The whole site has turned into a twitter-pleaser but if it’s going to net them $15m, I’m not sure I blame them.
Very thought-provoking and that’s why you’re one of my fav bloggers
Cheers,
Glen
This comment was originally posted on The Future Buzz
I enjoy following Mashable, TechCrunch and the like but you’re right you’ve got to weed through a lot to get to the good stuff. More often than not I end up having to hit “mark all as read” in Google Reader just to keep it from being overwhelming.
That said, good for them for kicking butt and building a successful site.
This comment was originally posted on The Future Buzz
“The whole site has turned into a twitter-pleaser but if it’s going to net them $15m, I’m not sure I blame them.”
Why not blame them? If you had the chance to develop a site full of meaningless content for the average Joe and get paid $15 million for it, would you?
Or would you want do actually make a difference and do something worthwhile?
This comment was originally posted on The Future Buzz
Good points about, but I have to say that Mashable does a great job getting the news out about the latest developments in social media, technology, mobile, etc., whether relevant or not. When you post a high volume of posts, some of them are bound to be irrelevant. Overall, I think that Mashable offers quality posts that provide me with the information I need to keep me abreast of the latest news.
This comment was originally posted on The Future Buzz
Hey Adam,
I love this kind of post cos it helps us figure out what we can do better. Obviously I’m not in full agreement with your points, but I’d love to get your take (and the commenters’, if they can spare a moment) on what we could do to improve in your eyes. Some questions for you:
–What’s the one thing Mashable could change to make the biggest improvement, do you think?
–With regard to brand identity: what do you see as the opportunity here? What type of content would improve this perception?
–Do you have suggestions for the types of guest posters you’d like to see? Who would add the most value here, do you think? Specific names would be super helpful, but even a broader set of suggestions would give me some action items to work with.
–Do you have further suggestions for improvement not mentioned above?
Thanks in advance Adam!
–Pete
This comment was originally posted on The Future Buzz
Thanks for the comment Pete – those are great questions and I appreciate that you’re interested in hearing responses. I’ll create a new post tomorrow answering them so it isn’t lost in the comments. It’s only fair I do that since you came here and asked.
Cheers,
Adam
This comment was originally posted on The Future Buzz
“–What’s the one thing Mashable could change to make the biggest improvement, do you think?”
Concentrate more on quality and your niche, rather than quantity and reaching everybody everywhere.
“–With regard to brand identity: what do you see as the opportunity here? What type of content would improve this perception?”
You call yourselves the “Social Media Guide” and you’re known as that through social media circles. Stay focused on that content and let TMZ handle Tiger Woods, CNN handle terrorism, etc.
“–Do you have suggestions for the types of guest posters you’d like to see? Who would add the most value here, do you think? Specific names would be super helpful, but even a broader set of suggestions would give me some action items to work with.”
I personally don’t really see a big difference between your guest post content and regular writer content, so I think Adam has more here.
“–Do you have further suggestions for improvement not mentioned above?”
My biggest suggestion is to simply focus. Be the best social media news site in the world and appeal to the folks who want that. When you start mixing in TMZ content, CNN content, TechCrunch content, your value becomes diluted in the eyes of the reader.
Just my two cents
I must say, Pete, this is not the first time I’ve seen you respond to criticism so eloquently and professionally, and frankly, I’m always impressed. You obviously care about your community and about trying new things, so kudos to that.
This comment was originally posted on The Future Buzz
Agreed Tim – I really like that Pete came here to respond – as a communications pro he earned huge points with me there. Now tomorrow he’ll earn a constructive post for the brand. Either way they win, as more posts/buzz about Mashable is a good thing for them.
This comment was originally posted on The Future Buzz
The only reason they are getting so much traffic is because people want to read what they write. If they’re producing what people want, I think they deserve it.
- Glen
This comment was originally posted on The Future Buzz
I hear you but that’s a weak argument in my eyes. If the CEOs of the car companies want more money and want to lay more people off (and that’s what them and their friends want), do they deserve it?
This comment was originally posted on The Future Buzz
If you ask me something relevant then I’ll happily answer it for you
This comment was originally posted on The Future Buzz
My point is that doing something of low quality for the sake of making lots of money is stupid.
Clearly you don’t agree.
This comment was originally posted on The Future Buzz
Enjoyed the give and take of this conversation, especially reading Pete’s “elegant” request for valuable suggestions.
I have some Guest Poster suggestions, which I’ll include in a comment on Adam’s post tomorrow. But, for a first one, I’d love to offer up something of mine.
Shari Weiss
PS Adam, you remain my Fav Blogger — and my first recommendation to my marketing students at San Francisco State.
This comment was originally posted on The Future Buzz
Wow. All I can say is I’m astonished by the mutual respect. Impressive.
This comment was originally posted on The Future Buzz
This is a really neat post dude. You have some of the most interesting posts on your blog, keep up the awesome work!
This comment was originally posted on The Future Buzz
Thanks for that Adam. You have given me permission to delete the feed. I’m just a part timer at this stage and can’t spend my whole life following what others say. I’m following a few posts and particularly enjoy yours and noted in one of your latest that you average 2.something posts a week. Whatever it is, it’s a nice quantity. Given that you also feed me to others I can spend half an hour or so a post just looking through what you (and your links) have to say.
But with Mashable I have been overwhelmed and couldn’t see why everybody rated it.
This comment was originally posted on The Future Buzz
Agreed, Mashable went Twitter specific. If they are the “Social Media Go To” site why are they not writing about all the social media sites? Some nice tutorials for newbies would be good. Personally I am a fan of TechCrunch, ProBlogger and popurls. The other thing that turned me away from even going to the Mashable site is the fact that they went ad happy, have you noticed how slow it is to load a page from their site?
This comment was originally posted on The Future Buzz
At a time when harsh sarcasm and rude behaviour is becoming more common online, this has been a refreshing change, and reminder that intelligent dialogue and dissent can occur in social media (in the same conversation). I like the changes I’ve seen on Mashable’s website and how they’re trying to cover the ever changing social media /technology space but do recognize that this is an evolutionary process. For a while there, one new to Mashable would guess that it was an extension of Twitter, and we all know that there is a lot more occuring withith social media. Most important to me here is that Pete Cashmore is an active participant who seems to take a great interest in what his audience has to say about the Mashable brand, the services, and experience and like most successful brands they grow, change, err and listen. I won’t always be interested in what they cover, but I greatly admire the growth and improvement of the message and what they’re trying to accomplish in the community they serve.
This comment was originally posted on The Future Buzz
I have been reading Mashable since 2006. In the beginning I really thought they were different from TechCrunch in many ways. The blog felt more personal. Now, Mashable is all hype. I did a story on my blog about Mashable’s re-tweet and shares disconnect pointing out that their enormous Twitter followers are mostly bots or people who have created numerous accounts on Twitter to feed their stream with Mashable’s RSS. On the other hand, their Facebook shares numbers are fairly low because 99% of the shares are done by real humans who read the post.
Mashable has some quality authors who I am sure will one day move on and do their own thing. Even Pete Cashmore is now writing for CNN and is moving on so what’s to stop all the others.
Once AOL buys Mashable, that will be the end of it as we know it because no one wants to read a media corporation’s blog which will most likely be biased.
Thanks you for your in-depth analysis.
This comment was originally posted on The Future Buzz