Friends Reunited may be sold
Private equity firm
Oakley Capital is in talks to buy the web property from broadcaster ITV for a fee in the region of £15 million, according to the Mail on Sunday.
Founded by husband-and-wife team Steve and Julie Pankhurst in 2000, Friends Reunited rapidly became one of the nation’s most recognised online brands.
It was the first mass-penetration social media website in the UK, inviting users to enter personal details and search information posted by old schoolmates, work colleagues and friends.
Recently, several new features were introduced to the site. An instant chat function – similar to that available on rival social site Facebook - was brought in to enable users to communicate directly with each other. Photo tagging technology was also incorporated to allow users to search for tagged photographs of their colleagues and friends.
Ailing social networking site
The website is widely perceived to have lost ground to social media rivals such as MySpace, Facebook and Bebo in recent years and was put up for sale in February 2009.
However, the website boasts 21 million users and many indistry commentators have suggested the site still has potential as a money-making venture.
City analysts, who have valued the company at between £10 million and £50 million, have commented the site could make a good return for an investor.
Oakley Capital was co-founded by entrepreneur Peter Dubens.
