Geni.com
| File:GeniBeta.jpg | |
| Company type | Private start-up |
|---|---|
| Industry | Genealogy, Social networking services |
| Founded | June 2006 |
| Headquarters | Los Angeles, California , USA |
Key people | David O. Sacks, founder and CEO Alan Braverman, founder and CTO |
| Revenue | none |
| Website | www.geni.com |
Geni.com is a genealogy-related social networking website[1] launched in beta mode on January 16 2007 by Web 2.0 company Geni, Inc.[2] Over ten million profiles were created on Geni as of November 12, 2007.[3]
Investors
The Founders Fund, a private venture capital firm, invested "more than $1 million”.[4]
Charles River Ventures, a private venture capital firm, invested US$10 million dollars.[5]
Website features
At the website users enter names and email addresses of their parents, siblings, and other relatives, as well as a user profile with various biographical information. From there users may graphically manipulate sections of their connections network to create a complete personal family tree.[4]
The service uses the contact information to invite additional members to join, and builds a comprehensive social network database from the information collectively entered by members. For now users may only see information belonging to themselves and to people in their immediate network who have given them permission.[6]
Revenue model
Geni is not presently earning revenue. The company plans to make money by targeting advertising to users based on the demographic information they provide. It is considering charging for a premium subscription service.[4]
Similar companies
There's a class of Family2.0 social networking sites that include genealogy capabilities. These sites include Famiva, Amiglia and MyHeritage.[7]
Computer software company The Generations Network, maker of popular software title Family Tree Maker, has operated a paid genealogy subscription site and web portal since 1998 under brands MyFamily.com, Ancestry.com, Rootsweb.com and FamilyHistory.com. Geni.com, MyFamily2.0, Famiva and WebBiographies, by contrast, are free.
Geni is to some extent modeled after social networking site LinkedIn, a popular site for business-related social networking.[4]
After Geni's launch, several (mostly international) companies have appeared trying to copy its product and business model. For example, the German website Verwandt.de makes unauthorized usage of the Geni flash application, and copies the family networking aspect of Geni in its entirety.[8] [9]
The Danish Web 2.0 company jointhefamily.net has similarities with Geni.com, but does not focus upon genealogy but upon building global, vivid networks like myspace or facebook with family relations alone connecting people.
References
- ^ Arrington, Michael (2007-01-12). "PayPal, Pulp Fiction and Geni". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2007-01-20.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ "Geni.com launches venture backed family tree site". SocialTech.com. 2007-01-16. Retrieved 2007-01-20.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ "Geni: 5 million Profiles In 5 Months". TechCrunch. 2007-07-02. Retrieved 2007-07-02.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ a b c d Marshall, Matt (2007-01-16). "Geni aims to build family tree for whole world". Venture Beat. Retrieved 2007-01-20.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ Arrington, Michael (2007-03-05). "$100 Million Valuation For Geni". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2007-03-05.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ Butler, Phil (2007-01-17). "Geni - Links in A Bottle". profy.com. Retrieved 2007-01-20.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ "Social Networking - Family & Genealogy 2.0 Web Sites". about.com. 2008-04-09. Retrieved 2008-04-09.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ "Verwandt.de: German Geni Clone". techcrunch.com. 2007-08-07. Retrieved 2007-09-05.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ "Elance bid for verwandt.de". elance.com. 2007-03-15. Retrieved 2007-11-30.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help)
External links
- Geni Blog (official)
- Geni Forums (official)
- Geni Wiki (official) Powered by Mediawiki
- The Next Generation Of Genealogy Sites - Wall Street Journal article on Geni. February 15 2007.