* Programming talent: Conde would be getting the foundation of an uber-talented programming culture in team reddit, which is the only way to beget more talented programmers (because I think you'll all agree that people like me -- that is, non-programmers -- can evaluate programming talent).
* Valuable destination: A community of the tastemakers for most of the Internet. Like it or not, most hot Internet links that aren't about nudity are first on the front page of reddit. Owning this front page of the web is an attractive proposition. Monetizing it is a bit more work, but we have always been a very scrappy [cheap] shop. Looking at 7M uniques this month with 6.5 employees (4.5 come Nov).
* Geek cred: This might be a bit of a stretch if I hadn't heard from folks like Ars Technica's Ken Fisher that the reddit acquisition (and how well it went) helped the decision to accept Conde's acquisiton offer. Furthermore, if you're thinking about hiring programmers down the line - because you know the Internet represents the future of publishing - it helps your pitch a bit more to say you own reddit than, say, Vogue.
* Programming talent: Conde would be getting the foundation of an uber-talented programming culture in team reddit, which is the only way to beget more talented programmers (because I think you'll all agree that people like me -- that is, non-programmers -- can evaluate programming talent).
* Valuable destination: A community of the tastemakers for most of the Internet. Like it or not, most hot Internet links that aren't about nudity are first on the front page of reddit. Owning this front page of the web is an attractive proposition. Monetizing it is a bit more work, but we have always been a very scrappy [cheap] shop. Looking at 7M uniques this month with 6.5 employees (4.5 come Nov).
* Geek cred: This might be a bit of a stretch if I hadn't heard from folks like Ars Technica's Ken Fisher that the reddit acquisition (and how well it went) helped the decision to accept Conde's acquisiton offer. Furthermore, if you're thinking about hiring programmers down the line - because you know the Internet represents the future of publishing - it helps your pitch a bit more to say you own reddit than, say, Vogue.