Entries tagged "Napster"
Microsoft's latest layoffs cut Don Dodge. A veteran of five startups himself, Dodge was the software giant's liaison to startups. In January, the company said it would eliminate 5,000 jobs this year and next.
Remember Napster? The file-sharing software developed in a Northeastern University dorm room by Shawn Fanning that once upon a time struck fear in the hearts and minds (and wallets) of record label executives everywhere -- back when record labels actually had money. Although the labels attempted to kill it through litigation -- rather than partnering with it -- like a cat with nine lives, Napster is still in business -- albeit in a very different business model. The company has undergone many transformations since then, eventually going public in January 2005. Now it is looking for a "strategic alternative"...
Last month, Napster's market cap fell below its cash on hand. That prompted speculation that an eager hedge fund might want to seize the company just to dismantle it, or that it's ripe for a takeover.
