Would Jason Calacanis sell Mahalo for a Price or would he stick with it for a lifetime?
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M$2 Answers
From what I've read about Jason Calacanis, he is an Internet entrepreneur. What this means is that he comes up with innovative ideas of web-based (or web-related) businesses, builds them up, and when he feels they are mature, and can stand on their own (or on the flip side, when he feels they are not likely to be able to stand on their own in any reasonable time frame) he moves on.
The first instance was Rising Tide Studios and its flagship publication,the Silicon Alley Reporter - a newsletter turned magazine that Jason started up in 1996, which turned into Venture Reporter in 2001, sold to Wicks Business Information, and ended up in the hands of Dow Jones and Company.
Following the sale of Rising Tide Studios and Silicon Alley Reporter, Jason started up Weblogs, Inc., a blogging platform, with Brian Alvey, and Engadget, a webzine with Peter Rojas. AdSense revenue from Weblogs at one point exceeded $1 million/year. In 2005, Weblogs Inc. (with Engadget as part of the deal) was purchased by AOL for a rumored $25 million.
After several positions e.g. at AOL and Sequoia Capital, Jason launched Mahalo.com. If we extrapolate Jason's history, he seems to be best at coming up with innovative ideas, getting them funded, launching them, building them up, and then selling them to a large(r) company before moving on to the next challenge. It is a widely known fact that the skill set and attitudes needed to be a successful entrepreneur are different (some would say incompatible) with those needed to run and navigate an established business entity. It seems Jason has a very well-developed and strong entrepreneurial skill set and attitude, but is either not able to, or more likely not interested in, continuing to run the same entities for the long haul.
Thus, my conclusion is that if Jason can get a sufficiently lucrative offer for Mahalo, especially once it turns profitable and seems to be on a good trajectory, he is likely to sell the site, possibly staying on for a time to provide for a smooth transition.
http://www.businessinsider.com/2008/3/silicon-alley-reporter-redux-nice-kno...
http://www.clickz.com/899091
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jason_Calacanis
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rising_Tide_Studios
http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G1-97728989.html
http://www.atmasphere.net/archives/2003/01/27/rising-tide-studios-for-sale
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weblogs,_Inc.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Engadget
http://www.weblogsinc.com/
https://www.google.com/adsense/static/en_US/Weblogs.html
http://corporate.weblogsinc.com/
http://www.engadget.com/
You can leave an optional "tip" with Mahalo's virtual currency, Mahalo Dollars. If you are asking a difficult question that might require some research, or if you'd like a wide variety of feedback, a higher tip often leads to more answers to your question.
M$
You can leave an optional "tip" with Mahalo's virtual currency, Mahalo Dollars. If you are asking a difficult question that might require some research, or if you'd like a wide variety of feedback, a higher tip often leads to more answers to your question.
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While I understand your answer, squarix, I also understand @philipy 's comment.
I disagree with your premise, though. Entrepeneurs can care passionately about their project(s). However, sometimes selling it is the best thing an entrepeneur can do for it. While we often refer to new companies as the founder's "baby", it is farrrrrr different than an actual baby. (If Jason and his wife sold their infant daughter, the discussion would be much different!)
This answer is attempting to be helpful, so I hesitate to vote it down, but I don't think it adequate to be a Best Answer, esp with M$2 worth of tips on it.
Sorry @squarix.... you are new and haven't learned our ways yet. I'm sure you'll be a good answerer in future.
Anyway...
This answer talks about what Jason should do, not what he is likely to do which was really the thrust of the question.
It also neglects the fact that he already has sold one company he founded, Weblogs Inc.
Nice answer. I didn't know all of Jason's history, and I glad to read this summary of it.
A couple of the other points worth bearing in mind... there are other investors in Mahalo. I would imagine most or all of the others would certainly be looking for an exit through an IPO or private sale at some point, certainly if the price was right.
On the other hand, Mahalo clearly means a lot to Jason, maybe much more so than his previous projects.
Still you can easily imagine that if something like his other angel and media activities really take off, he could choose to concentrate on them and reduce his role in Mahalo someday.
I agree with all your points @philipy.
However, first, if the investors want to cash out, Jason has other options than selling - he could issue stock via an IPO, he could find other investors, or he could buy out the investors with his own money if he believes there is still more profit to be wrung out by holding off on selling.
Second, Jason can back off from Mahalo day-to-day management without selling, by making sure there is a good control structure in place, and having a strong CEO to run the business. Again, this does not require selling to accommodate the potential desire to reduce personal day-to-day involvement.
Third, I agree that Jason seems very involved, which may cause him to break his previous pattern. Having said all that, I still believe there is a high probability (from historic patterns) that Jason will sell Mahalo if and when he has something more interesting and challenging to do, and he is offered what he feels is a fair (or more than fair) offer.
To clarify, I don't think there would be anything wrong with Jason retaining complete ownership of Mahalo, selling part ownership, or selling the entire business, as he feels best suits his wants and needs.