Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg is an even richer rich man today after selling a sliver of his company to Microsoft for $240 million – valuing the closely held social-networking startup at a whopping $15 billion.
Not too bad for a company that has $150 million in revenue. Now, the 23-year-old Harvard dropout has to earn it – and it won’t be easy.
The lofty valuation – more than CBS and Viacom combined – puts pressure on Zuckerberg & Co. to deliver astronomical growth not to mention an advertising strategy that is nothing short of revolutionary.
“In terms of growing into the $15 billion valuation, there’s still a lot of work to be done,” said Rich LeFurgy, chairman and CEO of online marketing firm [x+1].
Advertisers love the idea of social networks: delivering specific ads to people based on personal information posted on the site or passed along to friends. Zuckerberg’s ability to monetize Facebook’s 30 million users will face its first test on Nov. 6, when the company is set to make some sort of online advertising announcement.
“All these guys are going to do something to make their inventory more valuable,” said Michael Cassidy, president of Undertone Networks, an online advertising network.