Match has settled a lawsuit brought forward by Tinder co-founders who claimed the company cheated them out of billions of dollars' worth of stock options. Tinder's former CEO and dot.LA investor Sean Rad, former CMO Justin Mateen, and others brought the case against Match, seeking $2 billion. Today, they settled for $441 million. Read more >>
Here's what else we're reading in the news:
- An Activision Blizzard employee who helped organize an employee walkout resigned from the company.
- Amazon has hired former ViacomCBS executive Kelly Day to head its international streaming business.
- Alumina Energy, a Santa Monica-based energy storage company, has been chosen among those to participate in the Shell GameChanger Accelerator.
- USAA is now accepting applications for veterans who are entrepreneurs and want to pitch their startup at its upcoming contest in Los Angeles on February 17.
- Soylent is expanding its reach in the Southeast through the retailer Publix.
- Respawn Entertainment, an L.A.-based game developer, said today it has stopped selling its original hit game Titanfall.
- The Chernin Group, the L.A.-based investor of internet companies like Hello Sunshine and Barstool Sports, is taking interest in the metaverse.
- Food delivery consumption is growing, with 43% of consumers ordering food at least once a month, according to Nextbite.
How Match Got Stuck Footing the Bill
The $441 million lawsuit settlement is a significant sum for Match, which had $523 million in cash and short-term investments on hand as of Sept. 30.
Tinder launched in 2012 out of Hatch Labs, IAC's now defunct incubator. And while the holding company — which buys and flips media and tech firms like Vimeo and Expedia — was also wrapped up in the case, Match took on IAC’s liability when the two split into separate, publicly traded companies last year. That means Match and its shareholders were stuck with footing the bill for the settlement.
LA Metro’s $1 Rideshare Experiment Is Expanding to the Westside
L.A. Metro’s answer to Uber, Lyft will be coming to Westwood/UCLA on Dec. 12 with the launch of its rideshare service Metro Micro in its ninth zone in Los Angeles. The rideshare experiment launched in Jan. 2019 to bring rideshare to L.A. residents underserved by companies like Uber and Lyft. The $1 on-demand service will run Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Electric Vehicle Maker Phoenix Motors Is Going Public
SPI Energy filed regulatory papers this week to spin out its electric vehicle unit Anaheim-based Phoenix Motors with hopes of raising $150 million in the public market. Phoenix Motors is the latest in a progression of electric vehicle makers to go out for an IPO in a bid to offset growing losses and gain access to cash to build electric cars.
Google-Backed Groundswell Raises $15 Million Seed Round
Military veteran Jake Wood is behind El Segundo-based startup Groundswell, a Google-backed app that gives employees a way to offer charitable giving as part of their benefits package. The company has raised $15 million to launch the app in the first quarter of 2022.