Facebook bought WhatsApp for $19 billion ($4 billion cash, $12 billion stock, $3 billion in restricted stock grants that vest over 4 years. Whatsapp has 55 employees.
The average NBA franchise is worth (equity plus debt) $634 million, up 25% over last year. Collectively the 30 teams are worth $19 billion versus $400 million in 1984 when there were 23 teams.
WhatsApp has grown massively since its inception – in the calendar year 2013 its users sent 18 billion messages and received 36 billion in return – a massive number that is fully three times the previous year’s metrics. But massive growth and a defensible position are two different things – WhatsApp had rivals, from Apple AAPL -1.21%, Facebook and, to a lesser extent, Twitter
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Brian Wang is a Futurist Thought Leader and a popular Science blogger with 1 million readers per month. His blog Nextbigfuture.com is ranked #1 Science News Blog. It covers many disruptive technology and trends including Space, Robotics, Artificial Intelligence, Medicine, Anti-aging Biotechnology, and Nanotechnology.
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