Social Net Investing: Silicon Bubble or Here to Stay?

The enthusiasm for social networking and mobile apps has venture capitalists clamoring to give money to young companies, which to some looks like another dot com dot bomb.

Unlike the last gold rush, however, this is not a stock market bubble. None of the companies are publicly traded.

NYTIMES Dec 3, 2010 | In a memorable scene in the movie “The Social Network,” Sean Parker, the investor played by Justin Timberlake, leans over the table and tells the founders of Facebook in a conspiratorial tone: “A million dollars isn’t cool. You know what’s cool? A billion dollars.”

These days in Silicon Valley, a billion dollars seems downright quaint. The enthusiasm for social networking and mobile apps has venture capitalists clamoring to give money to young companies.

The exuberance has given rise to an…

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