Hacker News Reader

Comment by ccarpenterg | Hacker News Reader

I'm curious. 'a recruitment with a golden hello really' means that they had an offer of acquisition but with a 'you have to work for us' clause?

View on HN

I believe axod's point is that an acquisition on this scale may simply amount to a signing bonus, rather than what investors might consider a substantial exit.

Since he is shutting down the original project, and terms are not disclosed, it's entirely possible that he simply became tired of running it, applied for Google, interviewed and was hired.

I'm not saying that I necessarily agree, but you had asked for clarification.

Do you think Google would fake an acquisition though? It's hard to imagine for a company of that stature and those means.

Six Apart 'acquired' Pownce [1]. Shut it down, then a year later and the 2 founders have left [2].

I'm always slightly skeptical ;) but these things just seem like a way to avoid having your baby in the dead pool to me.

[1] http://www.sixapart.com/blog/2008/12/welcome-pownce-team.htm... [2] http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/02...

The fact they both left shortly after a year would perhaps point to something a bit more substantial than a signing bonus. More like a retention bonus tied to the acquisition. That's what I thought when I read about LC's departure the other day anyway.

Just to let the guy save face? If his stature as a developer warranted it, then it might be to both parties advantage. Signing bonus is not press worthy, acquisition is.

What do you mean "faked"? They're acquiring the company. That doesn't obligate them to continue the existing product, nor mean that that's why they found the company valuable. Even if they discontinue the existing product, the people who have a deep understanding of that space are valuable, and the ideas/concepts behind the product are valuable.

Oftentimes 'talent acquisitions' are paid for with company stock that vests over several years, so yes, there's a 'you have to work for us' clause. It's still a good deal for the acquired company, but not quite as good as it seems.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com