Acquired - Ben Gilbert and David Rosenthal

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**Acquired – Ben Gilbert and David Rosenthal**

Every company has a story.

Learn the playbooks that built the world’s greatest companies — and how you can apply them.

Latest Episodes:

Waze Aug 03, 2016

Show notes

Topics covered include:

Community Showcase: the Nexcast podcasting platform from listener Brian Sanders, along with their podcast chronicling the team’s journey building the company
Waze’s origin in cofounder & CTO Ehud Shabtai’s desire to hack his portable GPS navigation unit
Waze CEO Noam Bardin’s retrospective blog post on the Waze journey
Waze’s Palo Alto office and the bizarre Silicon Valley phenomenon of tech companies being located in retail storefronts
Apple’s ill-fated launch of Apple Maps as part of iOS 6 at WWDC 2012, Apple’s subsequent apology letter, and Scott Forstall’s ultimate ouster from the company
The climax of the mobile platform wars… which it turns out Apple and Google both won
Apple, Facebook, and Google all vying to acquire Waze throughout 2013
Google’s renewed design ethos under Larry Page
Ben and David spontaneously agree (surprise) to create on a new category of acquisition for the show
The increasing strategic value of data and data assets as technology enters the age of machine learning
The coming mega trend of autonomous vehicles, and the role Israeli startups are playing in it (including the globalization of startups & innovation)
The disruptive power of network and data-based business models
Emergence of native as *the* definitive advertising medium on mobile, including ability to close the advertising loop via location-based products and services

Sponsors:

Vanta: https://bit.ly/acquiredvanta
ServiceNow: https://bit.ly/acquiredservicenow26
Legora: https://bit.ly/acquiredlegora
Statsig: https://bit.ly/acquiredstatsig26

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The Carve Out:

Followups:

None this week… coverage of Instagram Stories to come next time!

Midroll + Stitcher (acquired by Scripps) Jul 12, 2016

Show notes

The meta show: Ben and David turn their gaze inward and examine the podcasting industry through E. W. Scripps’ recent acquisitions of the Midroll podcast advertising network and Stitcher podcast client. Featuring discussion of our own product process and metrics at Acquired.

Sponsors:

Vanta: https://bit.ly/acquiredvanta
ServiceNow: https://bit.ly/acquiredservicenow26
Legora: https://bit.ly/acquiredlegora
Statsig: https://bit.ly/acquiredstatsig26

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Announcements:

We’re pivoting! (not really) Our new show description: A Podcast About Technology Acquisitions That Actually Went Well
But we are launching a new feature! Since so many of you, our listeners, are also tech and startup folks and/or other builders, we wanted to create a space to feature cool products, companies and side projects you’re working on. Thus we’re adding a "Community Showcase” section to the show. If you’d like to be included just send us a Slack message or email, and we’ll choose one submission to feature on each show. This episode we’re highlighting BESTR, from community member David Resnick (aka @the_rezonator in Slack), which is an online platform to share lists of great things. Check it out and let David know what you think.

Topics covered include:

Top Google search results for “acquired podcast"
Midroll’s origins in the comedy podcast Comedy Bang Bang (now an tv show on IFC) and exit last year to Scripps
The structural challenges inherent to podcasting as a medium and the gap between audience size/engagement and industry revenues
Opportunities for independent podcasters and our own audience and business metrics at Acquired
Stitcher’s long corporate history as a venture backed company, first acquisition by French music company Deezer, and now second acquisition from Deezer by Scripps
Problems with Stitcher as a product and industry reaction to the acquisition including John Gruber's response, Ben Thompson’s article on Stratechery, and Ben & James Allworth's discussion on their excellent podcast Exponent
Handicapping Stitcher+Midroll’s chances for success within Scripps, and opportunities for new startups & innovation in the podcasting space
Pioneer Square Labs’ own past efforts in the podcasting space and their process for evaluating potential new company ideas
Shoutout to Pocket Casts and our listeners down under

Followups:

Twitch: bringing tipping onto the platform with the launch of Cheering + Bits (H/t Slack community member jamesk)
Facebook Instant Articles: pour one out for Facebook Paper (developed by the Push Pop Press team)
LinkedIn: the hotly anticipated SEC filing detailing all the negotiation drama is now live (scroll down to "Background of the Merger” on p.31)

The Carve Out:

Ben: Mark Titus, AKA @ClubTrillion is joining the Ringer
David: OKR’s and regular goal setting, including great “how to" from GV partner Rick Klau

ExactTarget (acquired by Salesforce) with Scott Dorsey Jul 05, 2016

Show notes

Ben and David return to make their first foray into enterprise software, covering Salesforce’s $2.5B acquisition of ExactTarget in 2013 with the help of special guest and ExactTarget cofounder & CEO, Scott Dorsey. Technical note: due to an issue we didn’t catch during recording, audio quality is significantly lower than usual for this episode (especially David’s voice). We apologize but hope you’ll give it a chance anyway— Scott offers great wisdom & insights, and the ExactTarget success story is a inspiring one underdog entrepreneurs, especially (but not limited to!) anyone located in the Midwest or elsewhere outside of traditional "Silicon Valley-style” tech hubs.

Sponsors:

Vanta: https://bit.ly/acquiredvanta
ServiceNow: https://bit.ly/acquiredservicenow26
Legora: https://bit.ly/acquiredlegora
Statsig: https://bit.ly/acquiredstatsig26

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Topics covered include:

The decision to start ExactTarget post-internet bubble and in Indianapolis, with zero software experience between Scott and cofounders Chris Baggott & Peter McCormick
Raising initial money from friends & family, followed by early investment and mentoring from Indianapolis venture pioneer Bob Compton
Building and scaling a great sales organization within a technology company
The importance of focusing early on a clearly defined target market (SMBs in the case of ExactTarget), and then “stair-stepping” up as the product and business scale grow over time
ExactTarget’s unsuccessful first IPO filing during the financial crisis
Building a "capital-efficient” early stage company, and the value of raising growth capital at the right time to step on the accelerator
The value of “secondary” investments allowing founders, employees & early investors to “stay hungry” by achieving some liquidity along the way
When and how to expand internationally and the importance of strategic resellers
ExactTarget’s second successful IPO filing and life as a public company with quarterly financial reporting to Wall Street
How the acquisition process played out with Salesforce and other bidders (including reference to ExactTarget’s incredible SEC filing detailing the entire negotiation—scroll down to "Background and Reasons for the ExactTarget Board’s Recommendation”, starting at the bottom of page 13)
Approaching the difficult task of integrating a major acquisition involving thousands of people
The fun story of ExactTarget’s winning Microsoft as a large customer—including actual sledgehammers
Scott’s new Indianapolis-based venture studio, High Alpha
Plus as always the "hard hitting" analysis across acquisition category, what would have happened otherwise, tech themes—and final grading

The Carve Out

Ben: The Talk Show live at WWDC 2016 with Phil Schiller & Craig Federighi
David: The Score Takes Care of Itself by legendary 49ers coach Bill Walsh, originally recommended by Jack Dorsey [no relation to Scott :) ] at YC Startup School '13
Scott: 2016 Scipps National Spelling Bee, including one of the finalists’ favorite words: indefatigable

Followups:

Instagram’s incredible user numbers announcement: 500M monthly active users / 300M daily active users

LinkedIn Jun 16, 2016

Show notes

Ben and David cover the 3-day-old acquisition of LinkedIn by Microsoft for $26.2 billion. They cover LinkedIn’s founding story by Reid Hoffman, break down their core businesses, analyze recent stock behavior, and speculate on the future of the company inside Microsoft. The big question - were they worth the price tag?

Sponsors:

Vanta: https://bit.ly/acquiredvanta
ServiceNow: https://bit.ly/acquiredservicenow26
Legora: https://bit.ly/acquiredlegora
Statsig: https://bit.ly/acquiredstatsig26

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Items Mentioned On The Show:

The Carve Out:

Push Pop Press (Facebook Instant Articles) with Todd Bishop Jun 05, 2016

Show notes

Ben and David are joined by Todd Bishop, technology reporter and co-founder of GeekWire, to discuss Facebook's 2011 acquisition of Push Pop Press.

Sponsors:

Vanta: https://bit.ly/acquiredvanta
ServiceNow: https://bit.ly/acquiredservicenow26
Legora: https://bit.ly/acquiredlegora
Statsig: https://bit.ly/acquiredstatsig26

More Acquired!

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Highlights Include:

The founding story of Push Pop Press by Kimon Tsinteris and Mike Matas.
The evolution of Facebook Creative Labs, Facebook Paper, and eventually, Facebook Instant Articles.
Facebook's role in the changing media landscape today.
GeekWire's experiments with Facebook Instant Articles, Google Accelerated Mobile Pages, and live video.

The Carve Out:

Snapchat May 22, 2016

Show notes

Ben and David tackle their first failed acquisition: Facebook's 2013 offer to buy Snapchat. They cover the fascinating story of Snapchat's creation and growth, their blossoming business model, how it would be different inside of Facebook, and what the future holds.

Sponsors:

Vanta: https://bit.ly/acquiredvanta
ServiceNow: https://bit.ly/acquiredservicenow26
Legora: https://bit.ly/acquiredlegora
Statsig: https://bit.ly/acquiredstatsig26

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Items mentioned in the show:

PayPal May 08, 2016

Show notes

Ben and David return to technology acquisitions by examining a classic: eBay's 2002 purchase of PayPal.

Sponsors:

Vanta: https://bit.ly/acquiredvanta
ServiceNow: https://bit.ly/acquiredservicenow26
Legora: https://bit.ly/acquiredlegora
Statsig: https://bit.ly/acquiredstatsig26

More Acquired!

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Items mentioned in the show:

"The Carve Out":

Virgin America Apr 26, 2016

Show notes

Ben and David deviate entirely from the stated purpose of the show, tackling this non-technology acquisition that is so recent, we have no idea if it went well yet. But, the April 2016 acquisition of Virgin America by Alaska Airlines was so fascinating, we had to do it!

Sponsors:

Vanta: https://bit.ly/acquiredvanta
ServiceNow: https://bit.ly/acquiredservicenow26
Legora: https://bit.ly/acquiredlegora
Statsig: https://bit.ly/acquiredstatsig26

More Acquired!

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Items mentioned in the show:

Carve Out:

Michael Mauboussin: "The Success Equation:Untangling Skill and Luck" | Talks at Google

Writely (Google Docs) Mar 29, 2016

Show notes

Ben and David continue the cloud productivity saga with Google Docs. They examine the suite of acquisitions made by Google with a focus on Writely in 2006. They tackle:

The nuts and bolts of the Upstartle (company behind Writely) acquisition, founded by Sam Schillace, Steve Newman and Claudia Carpenter.
SaaS offerings in cloud productivity today.
Was this a good idea for Google?
Google's future bets.
A new section: The Carve Out!

Sponsors:

Vanta: https://bit.ly/acquiredvanta
ServiceNow: https://bit.ly/acquiredservicenow26
Legora: https://bit.ly/acquiredlegora
Statsig: https://bit.ly/acquiredstatsig26

More Acquired!

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Acompli, Sunrise, and Wunderlist (with Kurt DelBene) Feb 29, 2016

Show notes

Ben and David have special guest Kurt DelBene on to discuss Microsoft's acquisition of Acompli, Sunrise, and Wunderlist. Kurt is the EVP of Corporate Strategy and Planning at Microsoft, and joins to discuss Microsoft’s cloud-first, mobile-first strategy, and the importance of being cross-platform in the modern era. They cover:

How the app of Outlook Mobile on iPhone and Android came to be.
How to decide whether to build vs. buy, and how it plays into the strategy for Office.
How to preserve a culture and a team, and how Javier Soltero came to run all of Outlook at Microsoft.
The origin of Outlook on the PC, originally led by Brian MacDonald as “Ren”.
How to balance a business with competing priorities, and a decision-making framework for acquisitions in a large company.
How to measure the success of an acquisition, and how sometimes, it’s not by measuring revenue at all.

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