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Redefining What Is Possible
Media.net
A
dvertising on the internet is
one of the most competitive
industries and continues
to get more and more challenging
every year. One company that
has managed to make it big in
this crowded sector is Media.net.
Founded in 2010, the company
was started by two brothers,
Bhavin and Divyank Turakhia,
self-taught serial entrepreneurs
based out of Mumbai. Both
brothers were born and raised in
a middle-class family and led an
average life that is common for all
school going children. However,
both brothers harbored an innate
enterprising spirit that was
evident even in their teens, when
they founded their first company
at age 16 and 18. It was a time
when Bhavin and Divyank had to
juggle studies and their company
and managed it with finesse.
Both of them discovered their
passion for coding at a very young
age and even managed to teach
it to themselves. This allowed
them to start a number of internet
companies, some of which they
sold to large corporations for
hundreds of millions of dollars.
Media.net was started to exploit
the competitive, yet lucrative
market of online advertising.
The company is a contextual ad
network which can reach over 100
million personal computers.
Internet marketing is one of the
largest and most effective ways of
marketing, with a simultaneous
global outreach to over a billion
users. Ad networks or advertising
networks are companies that
connect internet advertisers to
relevant websites. What it means
that internet users would only
see relevant advertisements
on various websites they surf.
Although it sounds simple in
theory, it is extremely difficult
to connect advertisers to several
million users.
Begun with less than twenty
people, the company grew to
have over 200 employees in just
a matter 6 years, generating
revenues of nearly $250 million.
Yahoo offered to buy the company
for $180 million; the acquisition,
however, could not go through
due to unforeseen circumstances
and differentiating opinions. This
was a blessing in disguise, as the
founders would be approached a
few years later by a consortium
of Chinese companies with
an offer of $900 million. This
deal would become one of the
largest acquisitions in the field of
advertising. Bhavin and Divyank,
already worth several millions,
became billionaires after this deal.
The entrepreneurial journey for
the brothers was fraught with
difficulties, as they had to teach
themselves to code, find clients
raise capital and keep their
business afloat in the face of stiff
competition against established
names in the business. They had
to work for 15 hours a day every
day for almost 20 years to launch
and maintain their companies, the
largest of which was Media.net.
Furthermore, they also manage a
diverse portfolio of investments
and divide their time between the
United States, Dubai, and India.
The story of the rise of Media.
net is that of hard work, steadfast
dedication, laser focus, and a
pioneering entrepreneurial spirit.
SR
JANUARY 2019
13