Federated Media Publishing is looking for a new leader. In a blog post today, founder John Battelle says after four years he is conducting an executive search to find somebody to “take it to the next level.” The blog advertising network is trying to branch out into something called “conversational marketing,” which it is also trying at the same time to invent. After shopping the company around last year and not finding a buyer willing to pay his price, Battelle decided to raise $50 million instead.
With those investors comes pressures for growth and profits. Battelle claims once wrote that he finds the prospect of making ” lots and lots of money . . . uninteresting,” and quotes himself saying so in today’s post. Now, as he notes in the comments, he says that “there is almost nothing I find uninteresting about running FM”. But he realizes it is time to step down, though he writes that he will still be deeply involved with his baby in other ways such as bringing in advertising clients. He also offers these tidbits about FM’s business. It made nearly $40 million in revenues in its third year, 2007 2008. Update: Battelle was referring to 2008 when he mentioned the company’s third year, though this was ambiguous in the post.
Last year, FM distributed $25 million in revenues to its network of blogs. Assuming a 50/50 split that would have generated $25 million in revenues for FM, but it also has other sources of revenues from its newer conversational marketing campaigns, events, and other businesses.
also hearing digg is losing joe stump
What relation does this article have with Twitter?
Nice a fake me account!
Hi. I’m MS Giegler.
Hey Erick -
Actually I am not leaving, and it’s not time for me to step down. And the quote you referenced is from four years ago, when I launched the company via a blog post. What I said in my announcement today is this: “In the four plus years since I wrote those words, FM took off – and we indeed did grow to the size where major investors understood the opportunity in front of us. But one thing has changed, in a very significant way. There is almost nothing I find uninteresting about running FM. In fact, I find it so fascinating, I plan to intensify my focus on this company in the coming years”
Thanks for covering this!
Ouch. TC got owned…
John, you can spin it any way you want, but you decided to quote yourself from 4 years ago in today’s post, so I’m assuming you still feel that way. At least that is how it reads.
Also, you state that “we need an additional leader on board. So today, I’m announcing that I’m officially launching a search for that position. . . . This new leader – the title will depend on the person – will be responsible for running the business – taking all reports and managing to our plan – but he or she will be working very closely with me.”
Again, you can spin it any way you want, but that sounds to me like you are stepping down from running the business on a day-to-day basis.
Erick,
You can spin it any way you want, but it sounds to me like John is stepping AWAY, not down.
There’s operations and execution, and then there’s growth and change management. It’s pretty clear from John’s post that he’s moving away from the former to the latter.
Perhaps you should try getting some real-world startup experience before making rude, presumptuous statements.
When you are at the peak of an organization, you can’t step away without stepping down. Or do I need to draw you a diagram? /\
Erick,
We might be getting lost over semantics here.
I do know where you’re coming from, so I’m not trying to be argumentative- sometimes you DO need to step DOWN in order to step away..eg. Bill Gates at Microsoft.
However, you’re being rigid in your assessment of corporate governance.
In this case, john has clearly conveyed that he’s looking an “additional leader”, to handle the day to day operations of the business..while he moves on to crafting a new strategy/direction for FM.
And that, to me, sounds like a beautiful case study in next generation change management. By “spinning” it your way, you’re portraying this in a negative light, when, in fact, it could be an extremely positive thing.
My apologies to you for my tone earlier- I was guilty of being rude and presumptuous as well. Often, we forget to look at the mirror before pointing fingers.
Erick was not only presumptuous but very contentious. No need to appologize to him, his actions are very unprofessional, and he is exposing himself as the hack fraud which he truely is. TC is taking a hit on their credibility and integrity every time he publishes a post.
IMHO if you take on investors of that magnitude you should be excited to make ” lots and lots of money …”.
Or maybe I’ve got the whole venture thing wrong.
This is spin, plain and simple. No one leaves the CEO role only to “intensify my focus on the company”. This simply doesn’t happen in the real world.
Also, we didn’t just hear of a defense of their 2008 numbers so my bet is that they have cratered.
Erick — Thanks for the coverage, but your guess that we’re hiding 2008 revenue was wrong. When John said “our third year” he meant 2008, our third full calendar year. The first year of meaningful revenue was 2006, and it has risen sharply every year since, to nearly $40 million in 2008. We’re always happy to talk if you’d like to check or clear up any details.
Not clear at all from the post.
“Back in late 2004, before announcing the company, I wrote the first business plan for FM. It projected $20 million of revenue in year three. The company beat that number handily – by nearly double.”
FM launched in March, 2005: http://blog.fed...start-of-so.php
But if you are saying that was the year you were pregnant, okay, I’ve updated the post.
Interesting that they are trying to “invent” conversational marketing. it has been around for quite a while. There is a book called “Cluetrain Manifesto” you might want to read.
They are trying to invent their own version of it.
John leaving is one of many high profile people leaving FM this month.
I wonder if the $40M in revenues is net or gross of rev share payments to bloggers?
my guess is that it is gross. his investors must be frightened.
John, I volunteer for the job…
Oops I forgot to post my name…
my guess is this thread will fill up with envious site owners who make ten bucks a month on adsense + the usual TC vs. FM argy-bargy.
John, if you’re looking for a replacement, just look for a monster ASSHOLE hypocrite. You’re replacement will never be the ASS you were, but with coaching they could be.
People that run companies that are doing well do not step down. People that are running companies that are not doing well do step down.
Does anyone want to guess what is happening at FM? Does anyone want to guess what the investors think about this? Does anyone think John was pushed to resign?
My guess is that the numbers that were given to the investors have been missed badly. Some of the blame should rest on the shoulders of an awful economy while some has to rest on the shoulders of the CEO for not protecting the business from a severe downturn.
What about placing the blame on the investors themselves. “Hmmm…no one wanted to buy this company, so let’s…give it 50 million! That way it’s valuation will now be so high that it will never be sold! Good idea, Bob!”
Dumbasses. In my silicon valley day, when investors gave me money, I gave them a return so high it made them jump to moon. I’m Read Head Fred, don’t you know my name?
I wonder if people know that when you use Facebook Connect others can link and see who the “Facebook User” actually is…
Facebook User might be great at “taking money form the strongest of men” (from his linkedin http://www.link...m/pub/0/435/20a) but he fails at talking shit anonymously online.
Sorry, Erick, but this article seems like snarkiness for snarkiness’ sake. Fine for Valleywag, perhaps, but on TC it looks like an excuse for ad bait.
So long John!
What a stupid company. I bet it will be hard for them to find a replacement.
Battelle once wrote that he finds the prospect of making ” lots and lots of money . . . uninteresting,”
Yea right…how much did he take off the table and into his own pocket during their last round of financing. anyone with even the slightest bit of knowledge of that round can tell you he pocketed many millions.
The details of this story are a bit unclear and it’s not the first time this happens on TC.
While on one side is disappinting that TC and some of the other blogs cannot get their stories properly verified and correct, it is also true that perhaps this is not their role and this is why they are and can be free for users.
If you want rigorously checked and reported facts you better read the FT, NYT and other major newspapers and magazines.
This is not criticism to blogs but in my view this demonstrates the importnance of proper newspapers and that there is space for all. So let’s hope the papers find a viable business model and survive this phase.
And let’s use blogs to read news and rumours first without getting to hung up on some not completely accurate details.
“If you want rigorously checked and reported facts you better read the FT, NYT and other major newspapers and magazines.”
That’s true. No one rigorously checked the facts of a story like Jason Blair. Let’s trust the mainstream print media to its last breath, which is hopefully coming very soon.
3/4 of CEOs of venture-backed companies are replaced. Raise $50M and voila, your company is no longer yours.
heard Kent Lindstrom of Ooga Labs is in the running as Lindstrom is a proven exec and early investor in Kidlandia which is a new company Batelle likes
Kent is a top guy! Focused and down to earth…the anti-Battelle even.