Then again, if this is the way the young startup wants to cash-out, aren’t they thinking like a stodgy, old incumbent?
Every time a young, promising start-up is bought out by a stodgy, old incumbent, the world is flush with congratulations. Congratulations to the team, island mojitos now await them. Congratulations to the venture capitalist, their past nine flops can fade in the background for a week. Congratulations to the acquisition team, who can celebrate the win on their lawyer’s expense account.
But all the hoopla and excitement quickly dies down and the fresh-for-a-moment old incumbent goes back to doing what old incumbents do best: thwart new ideas.
The acquisition graveyard is full of tombstones for the wasted efforts of bright minds. Minds that could have gone into building lasting companies with a shot at significance.
Next time a vanity purchase is announced, maybe we shouldn’t be so quick with the champagne.