Mission Creek

For a while there has been a great deal of bad press about Friendster, on how it missed the boat, how allegedly the VC responsible for managing Friendster at Kleiner Perkins was asked to leave because of his role in the oversight of the Company. (though these rumors have never been confirmed) Now it appears that the value in Friendster may be greater than it social networking participation, Friendester has acquired a Patent on a form of social networking, specifically “A System, Method and Apparatus for Connecting Users in an Online Computer System Based on Their Relationships within Social Networks.” Maybe there is some sense in the continued funding of this failed social networking pioneer.

SAN FRANCISCO, California, July 7, 2006 – Friendster, an online community that connects people through
networks of friends, announced today that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has awarded a new U.S. Patent titled “A System, Method and Apparatus for Connecting Users in an Online Computer System Based on Their Relationships within Social Networks” (Number 7,069,308). The patent, which was awarded to Friendster and lists Jonathan Abrams as the inventor, outlines a system, method and apparatus for connecting users in an online computer system based on their relationships within social networks.
The patent’s claims cover the unique system for calculating, displaying and acting upon relationships in a social
network. This invention led to the emergence of widely adopted online social networking systems.
“This patent is the first of many expected to be awarded to Friendster over the next several years and underscores the company’s ongoing commitment to innovation in social networking,” said Kent Lindstrom, president of Friendster.

full release here (.pdf)