NEWS ABOUT: Mark Zuckerberg
Mark Zuckerberg stories: 37 news briefs
Reuters May 19, 09 8:06 PM CDT
(Newser Summary) -
Mark Zuckerberg tells Reuters he does indeed intend to take Facebook public—just don't hold your breath waiting for it. The company is still "a few years out from that," said the 25-year-old co-founder. He said Facebook has plenty of capital, though he didn't deny that company execs have been talking with various investors about funding.
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Zuckerberg calls reaching 200M 'a really good start'
San Jose Mercury News Apr 9, 09 6:27 AM CDT
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Facebook has welcomed its 200 millionth user, reports the San Jose Mercury News . In a blog post, CEO Mark Zuckerberg called the milestone—which Facebook says would make it the fifth biggest country in the world, um, if it was a country—"a good start." The Facebook founder announced a partnership with 16 charities and the launch of a "Facebook for Good" page to mark the occasion.
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GLOSSIES
New York Apr 6, 09 4:40 PM CDT
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The recent scrap over Facebook’s privacy policy seems to be at odds with the site’s friendly, familial face, Vanessa Grigoriadis writes in New York . But the company’s aborted move to claim ownership of user content in perpetuity reveals a vague something about its ambitions. “Facebook’s entire business plan, insofar as it is understood by anyone,” Grigoriadis writes, “rests upon this continued practice of friends sharing with friends.”
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OPINION
Gawker Apr 2, 09 1:50 PM CDT
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Mark Zuckerberg has made mistakes in the past 6 weeks “that would have led to any normal CEO's firing,” Owen Thomas writes for Gawker, and the Facebook CEO's case should be no different. His three strikes: a privacy-shredding “terms of service disaster,” an “awful redesign,” and the “disgraceful, petty ouster” of a veteran manager. If the board is smart—and resourceful—it will dump the site’s founder.
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Wall Street Journal Mar 31, 09 7:30 PM CDT
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Facebook today announced another big departure from its executive ranks, fueling speculation that a move to go public is gaining traction, the Wall Street Journal reports. The company's chief financial officer, Gideon Yu, is leaving, and Facebook is searching for a replacement who has experience at a public company, the Journal notes.
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Exec looks to Twitter as model for facebook changes
VentureBeat Mar 8, 09 7:48 AM CDT
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Facebook founder and tech wiz Mark Zuckerberg has been secretly keeping an account on rival Twitter, VentureBeat reports. Zuckerberg has had a private site on Twitter at @zuck since last May, but recently opened a Twitter account at finkd that allows users to follow him publicly. Maybe Zuckerberg has taken to heart an observation by Twitter's CEO that "living a bit more publicly can have powerful positive effects."
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Privacy protests result in a swift U-turn on terms of service
CNET Feb 18, 09 6:04 AM CST
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Facebook has done an about-face and withdrawn its new terms of service following a public outcry, CNET reports. The fine-print update appeared to give the site perpetual rights to users' content, prompting threats of a federal complaint from a major privacy watchdog and mass desertion from tens of thousands of users.
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Clause giving site permanent license to content slammed
New York Times Feb 17, 09 4:46 AM CST
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An outcry over a terms of service change has forced Facebook's founder to reassure users that they still own and control their own information, the New York Times reports. The update—which remains unchanged—removed a provision that said users could delete their content at any time, and added a clause saying users’ content would be retained even after accounts are terminated.
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Growth outside US could put networking site at 200M by spring
CNET Jan 7, 09 1:43 PM CST
(Newser Summary) -
John McCain and the iPhone may be so 2008, but Facebook is going strong. The networking site now claims 150 million users, just four months after surpassing 100 million. At this rate, CEO Mark Zuckerberg will have a delightful 25th-birthday gift this spring: 200 million users. Most new members live outside the US, and popularity hasn’t translated into big revenue yet, CNET reports.
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analysis
Site would profit from News Feed spam, but members hate it
Valleywag Dec 1, 08 9:11 PM CST
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Facebook is in a bind, Owen Thomas writes on Valleywag. The social network has boosted its membership to 120 million, partly by keeping spam to a minimum. But to make money, Facebook needs advertising—which means allowing app developers to bug users with spam on Facebook's News Feed. Yet when the site allowed it, users got upset and dropped off.
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Twitter questions value of $500M stock offer
from Facebook
All Things Digital Nov 25, 08 2:18 AM CST
(Newser Summary) -
Merger talks between Facebook and popular newcomer Twitter have ended without a deal, reports All Things Digital. Twitter wasn't satisfied with Facebook's offer of $500 million in stock, apparently concerned that the stock's valuation was too high, say insiders. Twitter also had concerns about how the two would integrate, and wanted to try building its revenue—currently zero—before pursuing a merger.
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PC Aug 28, 08 6:35 PM CDT
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Facebook is going Hollywood, PC World reports. West Wing writer Aaron Sorkin has signed on with Sony to pen a movie about the social networking site’s founding. The movie will probably focus on Mark Zuckerberg’s initial work while at Harvard. But Sorkin may have some research to do first: “My grandmother has more Internet savvy than I do,” the screenwriter quips, “and she's been dead for 33 years.”
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ANALYSIS
Service starts playing tough, removing posts
CNET Aug 25, 08 8:07 PM CDT
(Newser Summary) -
“Wall spam” has gone from minor annoyance to publicity problem for Facebook, and it seems the social-networking giant is getting more aggressive in its attempts to combat it, reports Caroline McCarthy in CNET. Within 2 hours of receiving a spam post yesterday, McCarthy found it had been deleted by Facebook. Until recently, the site has merely been disabling links in suspected messages.
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Even CEO Zuckerberg reportedly selling still-private options at bargain prices
BusinessWeek Aug 6, 08 1:22 PM CDT
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Though the stake bought by Microsoft last fall pegged Facebook’s value at $15 billion, a rush of stock sales by insiders at the still-private company shows they think it’s worth much less, BusinessWeek reports. Even Mark Zuckerberg, founder and CEO of the social-networking giant, reportedly has sold some shares, and trouble could be looming in Silicon Valley.
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Site wants to offer easier access to other applications
Forbes May 29, 08 2:44 PM CDT
(Newser Summary) -
Social-networking stalwart Facebook is redesigning its site to allow users easier access to an array of applications that might include search options, Forbes reports, and give advertisers more ways to reach the Facebook community. CEO Mark Zuckerberg, speaking at the All Things Digital conference, said the company hoped to work more with search giant Google.
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But Zuckerberg stays put, gets veteran help after hitting potholes
CNNMoney May 13, 08 4:13 PM CDT
(Newser Summary) -
Facebook is seeing a lot of challenges lately, with ads selling at rock-bottom prices, revenue not nearly rivaling MySpace, and third-party developers defecting to OpenSocial networks (MySpace, again). But unlike other companies’ young founders, Mark Zuckerberg isn’t about to step aside. And thanks to his tight control of Facebook's board, he’s not about to be pushed out, either, Fortune reports.
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Expanding site borrowing $100M for more servers
CNET May 12, 08 6:46 AM CDT
(Newser Summary) -
In a surprise move, Facebook’s Chief Technology Officer is leaving the company, CNET reports. Adam D’Angelo, 23, felt the job no longer suited his skills and interests, sources told BoomTown. But there were also rumors of increasing tension between D’Angelo and Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, who have been friends since high school. Meanwhile, the company has borrowed $100 million to expand its server base.
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Site moves to fix mistakes by raiding Silicon Valley powers
Forbes Apr 28, 08 7:47 PM CDT
(Newser Summary) -
After some high-profile blunders, Facebook is looking for older and more seasoned executives to round out its team. Former Google veep Sheryl Sandberg has already joined up, and the social-networking site is looking for a new general counsel and a vice president of communications and public policy, Forbes reports.
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ConnectU had accused Zuckerberg of filching social network ideas
New York Times Apr 7, 08 2:01 PM CDT
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Pending lawsuits between Facebook and rival social networking site ConnectU will be settled, a source tells the New York Times . The founders of ConnectU accused Mark Zuckerberg of stealing their ideas back when both sites were in their infancy, and the Facebook CEO filed a countersuit against his former Harvard classmates. Terms of the settlement haven't been disclosed.
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Reporter draws heckles, as CEO talks about changing world
CNET Mar 10, 08 1:47 PM CDT
(Newser Summary) -
Facebook is changing the world. At least, that was a dominant theme during Mark Zuckerberg’s Sunday keynote at the South by Southwest Interactive Festival, during which interviewer Sarah Lacy of BusinessWeek drew heckles from an increasingly impatient audience. Zuckerberg talked about Colombian activists and Lebanese youth using Facebook to organize and broaden their minds.
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