instagram

Why Instagram just made the lives of Facebook's IPO bankers a lot easier

Besides the 13 lucky engineers working at Instagram, another group lucked out when Mark Zuckerberg decided it would be a good idea to plunk down $1 billion to buy the company: the bankers charged with drumming up interest in Facebook's (presumably monster) IPO.

While the SEC has yet to bless Facebook's S-1, its lead bankers at Morgan Stanley are apparently already out there selling the story to big institutional investors to fill out what's known as the "order book" -- a commitment by mutual funds and other biggies to buy a certain number of shares. … Read more

Five things you need to know about Facebook-Instagram

It's been more than a week since Facebook's blockbuster acquisition of Instagram, and many people are still confused about the deal. It's understandable -- the $1 billion acquisition happened in the span of 48 hours between two CEOs rather than over the course of weeks between two armies of lawyers.

Facebook and Instagram consistently defy convention though, and that's one of many things you need to understand about both companies -- they are anomalies rather than the norm, even in the fast-paced world of tech startups.

I've seen countless reporters and bloggers question the valuation (… Read more

How much is Facebook worth? Instagram deal offers new clue

Plenty of speculation is going on in Silicon Valley about just how much Facebook's purchase of Instagram will end up being worth.

When Facebook made the purchase last week, it said it was paying $1 billion in cash and stock. What it didn't say was how much was cash and how much is stock.

The New York Times, citing people briefed on the terms, is reporting that the deal is is roughly 30 percent cash and 70 percent stock, which would value Facebook at more than $75 billion.

But that's just a starting point, according to the … Read more

Zuckerberg did $1 billion Instagram deal on his own

Facebook shocked the tech community with its $1 billion acquisition of Instagram, but perhaps more shocking is the price the photo-sharing app's CEO originally wanted for his company: $2 billion.

During three days of quiet negotiations, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg halved Kevin Systrom's asking price -- all without involving bankers or his own board of directors, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal (subscription required). In fact, Zuckerberg, who controls roughly 57 percent of the company's voting rights, had pretty much closed the deal with Instagram CEO Kevin Systrom before even informing the board of … Read more

Five essential Instagram tips

With Facebook's Instagram acquisition grabbing headlines and the photo-editing app finally being available for Android, millions of people have started using Instagram in just the past few weeks.

It doesn't take much to get started, and the interface is pretty straightforward, but without a proper guide, you might have missed some of the essential tools that make an Instagram experience that much better. Check them out:

1. Double-tap to like. As you scroll through the Instagram feed, you can quickly "like" a photo by double-tapping it. A white heart will pop up to let you know … Read more

Twitter CEO: We won't buy an Instagram look-alike

After Facebook spent $1 billion on Instagram, one would think Twitter would try to buy a competitor of its own to keep pace. But that doesn't appear likely.

Twitter CEO Dick Costolo told reporters in Japan yesterday that Twitter has no plans to buy an Instagram competitor to keep up with Facebook. Quite the contrary, Costolo said that he plans to improve his company's application programming interface (API) to help third parties improve integration on the social network.

"I think that sometimes there is a tendency for companies to react to events in the marketplace that are … Read more

A beginner's guide to Instagram

Maybe you heard the news last week (as if you could escape it): Facebook bought Instagram.

Insta-what? Although this app/service launched back in October 2010, and has snowballed in popularity ever since, not everybody knows an Instagram from a telegram. (Wait, what the heck is a telegram? Yeah, obviously I'm skewing toward an older audience here.)

If you've been sitting on the Instagram sidelines, here's your chance to find out what all the fuss is about and get started using Facebook's new baby.… Read more

Path, Instagram, and the Greater Fool Theory

Now we know why Facebook didn't build a good mobile app. It didn't have to. It could afford to pay $1 billion for a 14-person company, Instagram, that managed to figure out the secret sauce for winning over smartphone picture-takers. So, clearly, Path is next, right?

Not exactly. Path has a lot going for it, but it's lacking some key elements. It's a valuable company, but arguably over-valued given its recent funding news: A $40 million funding round from Redpoint Ventures (source: AllThingsD). Update 5:24 p.m.: Path said it has raised $30 million in … Read more

Report: Path nets $40 million in funding, $250 million valuation

Path, the popular photo-sharing social network, is about to announce it has closed a $40 million round of funding that values the San Francisco startup at $250 million, according to sources who spoke to All Things D. Update 5:24 p.m.: Path said it has raised $30 million in a funding round.

The report, which came out late last night, said that the new round was led by Redpoint Ventures and could be announced as early as today.

The company, which was founded by Dave Morin, who co-created the Facebook Platform, and Shawn Fanning, the co-founder of Napster, has … Read more