Gawker: valleywag, u2

Elevation's new partners

Owen Thomas — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 19:00:00 EDT

Even Bono's privacy is an illusion. A picture of the U2 rocker (and venture-capital investor at Silicon Valley's Elevation Partners) with two comely teenagers, Hannah Emerson and Andrea Feick, was leaked to the Daily Mail via Facebook. (The site has notoriously bad security on its online photo albums. Know someone who knows someone who knows someone? You can see their pics, no problem.) We now understand why Wikipedia cofounder Jimmy Wales likes to pal around with Bono; great minds think below the belt. Can you think of a better caption? Leave it in the comments. The best one will become the post's new headline. Friday's winner: kgbeat, who turned Jason Calacanis's two-fingered salute into the answer to the question, "How many rounds of layoffs are planned at Mahalo?"

Bono agrees with U2 manager's attack on Internet service providers

Jackson West — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 19:40:00 EDT

U2 frontman Bono disagreed with manager Paul McGuinness's judgment on the failure of Radiohead's Web busking for In Rainbows, but like McGuinness, he lays the blame for the death of the music industry's business model at the feet of those greedy Internet service providers in his open letter to New Music Express:

It is disturbing to see internet service providers and technology companies profit from the so-called ‘disintermediation’ of the music business when so many music lovers are losing their jobs.

For instance, if AT&T and Google weren't getting so rich of other people's content, you'd be employed and able to afford the five dollar subscription to Bono's own digital distribution effort in a purely coincidental announcement, we're sure. (Photo by AP/Jacques Brinon)

U2 manager accuses all of you of "shoplifting" music

Jackson West — Thu, 05 Jun 2008 12:40:00 EDT

While the focus of his ire was Internet service providers, U2 manager Paul McGuinness (pictured here at a U.K. copyright term extension fête with frontman Bono) also blasted "device manufacturers" for the "spectacular devaluation of music." Like, you know, when Apple hired U2 for a commercial and packaged a bunch of low-bitrate, DRM-laden MP3s of U2's back catalog for $149 at the iTunes store. [Variety]

Google's fight for the right to party like sagging, middle-aged rockers

Melissa Gira Grant — Thu, 01 May 2008 15:20:00 EDT

Google has asked San Francisco for permission to host a "picnic-style dinner" for 1,400 sales employees on June 11. What's really pathetic: Google wants its salespeople to boogie down after hours to the sounds of U2 and Journey. Not the actual U2 and Journey, mind you, but cover bands. Neighbors aren't charmed, and not just by having their backyards used at the set for lightly inebriated lip dubs of "Don't Stop Believing." But the people who bring in Google's billions should ask why, if Larry Page is such pals with Bono, he wasn't able to deliver the real thing for their park-wide party.

How iLike got U2's new song

Megan McCarthy — Thu, 15 Nov 2007 17:53:58 EST

A previously unreleased song from U2's upcoming rerelease of Joshua Tree is already available on the Internet. But we're not just talking about unlicensed BitTorrents here. "Wave of Sorrow" and the video embedded above explaining the song, is available on iLike, and not, as far as we can tell, on the band's MySpace or official site. So why did U2 favor iLike, the music widget best known as a Facebook success story?

As CNET points out, it's all about the business ties. U2 lead singer Bono is the most stylish managing director at Elevation Parters, the Sand Hill private equity firm. Elevation cofounder Marc Bodnick is on the board of directors of iLike. Hence, the arrangement. Bonus for close students of the Valley's real social networks: Marc Bodnick's wife is Michelle Sandberg, the sister of Google executive Sheryl Sandberg, who's married to former Yahoo Music chief Dave Goldberg, who's an iLike advisor. Got that?

Private-equity firm Elevation Partners —...

Jordan Golson — Thu, 11 Oct 2007 17:28:26 EDT

Private-equity firm Elevation Partners — which counts U2 frontman Bono among its partners — sold gaming companies BioWare and Pandemic Studios to Electronic Arts for $860 million. Elevation Partners, which is named after the U2 song, was a natural for EA to do a deal with. One of the founding partners, John Riccitiello, is the CEO of Electronic Arts. Elevation purchased the two game companies in late 2005 for $300 million. Not bad for less than two years' work. [WSJ]