Betaworks Plans to Turn Digg Back Into a Startup

Posted on July 18, 2012

Digg, once considered a top social media site, was sold last week to Betaworks for $500,000. $500,000 is a fraction of what Digg was thought to be worth in its heyday. Digg raised $29 million on a $164 million valuation in late 2008.

The rise of Facebook and Twitter probably hurt Digg. There is also the argument that Reddit killed Digg. Another argument is that Digg killed itself.

The big question is if Digg's demise means anything for current highly valued social media sites today. Facebook has already seen its U.S. growth rate turn negative. Facebook has a far larger user base than Digg ever did, but an exodus of users can spark a turning point. Current social medial leaders, like Facebook and Twitter, will also want to keep a close eye on spam and powerful users. Digg was often locked in a battle with its top users for control of the its own homepage.

Meanwhile, Betaworks, which owns News.me and Bitly, says it plans to turn Digg back into a startup. They plan to "take Digg back to its essence: the best place to find, read and share the stories the internet is talking about."


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