• On GameSpot: So-called 'Halo killer' gets 23 to life

Outside the Lines

Read all 'Silicon Alley Insider' posts in Outside the Lines
April 28, 2008 9:56 PM PDT

Silicon Alley Insider creates start-up valuation index

by Dan Farber
  • 2 comments

How much is Facebook, Wikipedia, or Twitter worth? Silicon Alley Insider is attempting to crack the mysterious code on the valuations of the major Web start-ups with its SAI 25 Live! It tracks the valuation of the private companies and shows changes in those valuations in real-time (updated every 20 minutes on the site).

(Credit: Silicon Alley Insider)

Given that the companies in the SAI 25 (or 47 in this case) don't share their numbers like a public company, the index is based on educated guesswork, looking at a combination of VC financing, financial performance, growth rate and market share and size.

Interestingly, Facebook, which was valued at $15 billion upon the $240 million investment by Microsoft, is valued at only $9 billion. That's still a lot of money for a company that did about $150 million in revenue last year. SAI includes dossier pages for each company in it index. It attributes the lower valuation of Facebook to the failure of the Beacon social advertising service to gain acceptance.

Even if the SAI index isn't accurate, it provides a framework for evaluating the mostly opaque startups and some fun for those who love tech company sports.

  • prev
  • 1
  • next
advertisement

With eye to the future, try raw photos today

Raw photos are a hassle compared to JPEG. But if you like photography, the list of their image quality advantages is long and getting longer.

Inside the Apple, er, Microsoft Store

Although Redmond's foray into retail bears a big resemblance to Apple's approach, Microsoft has added some distinctive features to draw casual PC buyers and techies alike.

About Outside the Lines

Dan Farber is the editor in chief of CNET News. He has covered technology for more than two decades, and he previously served as editor in chief of ZDNet, PC Week and MacWeek. Outside the Lines explores the intersection of business and technology.

Add this feed to your online news reader

Outside the Lines topics

Subscribe to the EIC² podcast

Editors Dan Farber of News.com and Larry Dignan of ZDNet, square off in EIC² in this weekly podcast. The two editor in chiefs talk about the big tech stories of the day and provide insight and analysis.

Subscribe to this podcast using an RSS reader other than iTunes

Subscribe to this podcast using iTunes

Most Discussed



advertisement

Inside CNET News

Scroll Left Scroll Right