Exclusive! YouRangster's Billion-Dollar Boy Tells All. Is Chuck Chenly the Next Web 2.0 Poster Boy?

copyright Adage.com
by Simon Dumenco
published october 15, 2006


The internet world was shocked last week, of course, when Google's surprise $1.65 billion bid to acquire YouTube was announced and was quickly followed by Microsoft's $1.66 billion surprise bid to acquire YouRangster. A copycat move? Or a strategic triumph that will allow Microsoft to compete with Google/YouTube on its own terms? The jury's still out. In Media Guy's exclusive Q&A with YouRangster founder Chuck Chenly, the youthful tech mogul discusses the changing mobile-media landscape -- and the art of the deal.

Media Guy: First, explain YouRangster to us. Like YouTube, it's still pretty new.

Chuck Chenly: Yeah, I actually didn't register the URL until last Wednesday.

MG: Last Wednesday? Wow, didn't realize it was that new. When did you actually have the idea for it?

CC: Last Tuesday. I thought of it while I was in the drive-through line at In-N-Out Burger.

MG: You can drive?

CC: Yes, I can drive! I am 15-and-a-half, you know...

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