Facebook

Mikolaj Jan Piskorski; Thomas R. Eisenmann; Aaron   Smith; David  Chen; Brian  Feinstein

Case | HBS Case Collection | March 2008 (Revised March 2014)

Facebook

by Mikolaj Jan Piskorski, Thomas R. Eisenmann, Aaron Smith, David Chen and Brian Feinstein

Abstract

As Facebook topped one billion monthly users in October 2012, the online social network continued to face questions about how best to monetize its surging traffic. The company could invest further in new advertising products, which represented the majority of the revenue thus far, or concentrate on the Facebook Platform and help third-party developers create and distribute their own applications. After a highly anticipated yet largely disappointing initial public offering (IPO), Facebook's stock price steadily declined. It became critical for the Facebook team to identify sustainable growth opportunities, particularly as more of its user base accessed the site via mobile devices.

Keywords: Entrepreneurship; Profit; Open Source Distribution; Social and Collaborative Networks; Competition; Competitive Strategy; Online Technology; Technology Platform; Information Technology Industry;

Language: English

Format: Print

41 pages

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Citation:

Piskorski, Mikolaj Jan, Thomas R. Eisenmann, Aaron Smith, David Chen, and Brian Feinstein. "Facebook." Harvard Business School Case 808-128, March 2008. (Revised March 2014.) (More Info.)

Related Work

Teaching Note | HBS Case Collection | October 2011 (Revised March 2013)

Facebook (TN)

Mikolaj Jan Piskorski

Keywords: Strategy;

Citation:
Piskorski, Mikolaj Jan. "Facebook (TN)." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 712-439, October 2011. (Revised March 2013.) View Details

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Case | HBS Case Collection | March 2008 (Revised March 2014)

Facebook

Mikolaj Jan Piskorski, Thomas R. Eisenmann, Aaron Smith, David Chen, Brian Feinstein, Mikolaj Jan Piskorski, Thomas R. Eisenmann, Aaron Smith, David Chen and Brian Feinstein

As Facebook topped one billion monthly users in October 2012, the online social network continued to face questions about how best to monetize its surging traffic. The company could invest further in new advertising products, which represented the majority of the revenue thus far, or concentrate on the Facebook Platform and help third-party developers create and distribute their own applications. After a highly anticipated yet largely disappointing initial public offering (IPO), Facebook's stock price steadily declined. It became critical for the Facebook team to identify sustainable growth opportunities, particularly as more of its user base accessed the site via mobile devices.

Keywords: Entrepreneurship; Profit; Open Source Distribution; Social and Collaborative Networks; Competition; Competitive Strategy; Online Technology; Technology Platform; Information Technology Industry;

Citation:
Piskorski, Mikolaj Jan, Thomas R. Eisenmann, Aaron Smith, David Chen, and Brian Feinstein. "Facebook." Harvard Business School Case 808-128, March 2008. (Revised March 2014.) (More Info.) View Details

Cite View Details Educators Purchase Related
Case | HBS Case Collection | March 2008 (Revised March 2014)

Facebook

Mikolaj Jan Piskorski, Thomas R. Eisenmann, Aaron Smith, David Chen, Brian Feinstein, Mikolaj Jan Piskorski, Thomas R. Eisenmann, Aaron Smith, David Chen and Brian Feinstein

As Facebook topped one billion monthly users in October 2012, the online social network continued to face questions about how best to monetize its surging traffic. The company could invest further in new advertising products, which represented the majority of the revenue thus far, or concentrate on the Facebook Platform and help third-party developers create and distribute their own applications. After a highly anticipated yet largely disappointing initial public offering (IPO), Facebook's stock price steadily declined. It became critical for the Facebook team to identify sustainable growth opportunities, particularly as more of its user base accessed the site via mobile devices.

Keywords: Entrepreneurship; Profit; Open Source Distribution; Social and Collaborative Networks; Competition; Competitive Strategy; Online Technology; Technology Platform; Information Technology Industry;

Citation:
Piskorski, Mikolaj Jan, Thomas R. Eisenmann, Aaron Smith, David Chen, and Brian Feinstein. "Facebook." Harvard Business School Case 808-128, March 2008. (Revised March 2014.) (More Info.) View Details

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Case | HBS Case Collection | October 2015

Facebook: The First Ten Years

Shane Greenstein, Marco Iansiti and Christine Snively

Facebook celebrated its ten year anniversary in February 2014. Over the past decade it has grown into the largest social network in the world with one billion users. After filing an IPO in 2012 at a $104 billion valuation (the third largest IPO in U.S. history), the stock price steadily declined, but recovered after the company implemented an effective advertising strategy. Facebook worked to maintain its "hacker ethos" and remain nimble as it matured. The company was worth close to $200 billion. Could this kind of value sustain itself for years to come?

Keywords: social networks; technology; Facebook; Entrepreneurship; Profit; Open Source Distribution; Social and Collaborative Networks; Competition; Competitive Strategy; Online Technology; Technology Platform; Information Technology Industry;

Citation:
Greenstein, Shane, Marco Iansiti, and Christine Snively. "Facebook: The First Ten Years." Harvard Business School Case 616-012, October 2015. (More Info.) View Details

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Teaching Note for HBS No. 817-056. IguanaFix, based in Argentina, is a platform business that connects consumers with home improvement contractors. The founders are evaluating growth options and an investment offer. The case focuses on scaling issues for a venture engaged in both B2C and B2B initiatives in a business model where there are important links, but also trade-offs and choices, between these approaches. The teaching note discusses some core marketing tools primarily relevant to a B2C versus a B2B approach in a venture; the complementarities and resource-allocation implications of the choices facing the founders; and scaling options and requirements ranging from new products and new markets to new channel partners and acquisition. The case is suitable for use in MBA and executive courses on Entrepreneurial Management, Business Marketing, Consumer Marketing, Sales, Making Markets, and Launching Technology Ventures.

Late in 2017, CEO Ryan Williams and his team debated whether Cadre should become not only a technology-enabled investment manager, but also an online trading exchange providing high levels of liquidity for investors in commercial real estate (CRE) equity. Cadre was a pioneering New York City–based startup, offering investors equity in individual CRE properties that its investment team had sourced and vetted. Traditional private equity (PE) funds required investors in CRE equity to accept an entire portfolio of properties, while imposing high fees and holding periods of up to 10 years. Cadre allowed investors both deal-by-deal selectivity and managed accounts of Cadre properties, at fee levels substantially lower than those charged by PE funds.

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