LinkExchange
{{Short description|Internet advertising cooperative}}
LinkExchange was a popular Internet advertising cooperative, similar in function to a webring, originally known as Internet Link Exchange or ILE.
It was founded in March 1996 by 23-year-old Harvard graduates Tony Hsieh (who later went on to invest in and become the CEO of Zappos) and Sanjay Madan.{{cite web|url= http://ibconsultants.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/Running-Your-Own-Show.pdf|title= The American Dream: Running Your Own Show|first= Perla|last= Ni|date= May 27, 1999|publisher= AsianWeek|access-date= July 10, 2015|archive-date= July 11, 2015|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20150711041407/http://ibconsultants.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/Running-Your-Own-Show.pdf|url-status= dead}} Ali Partovi later joined them as a third partner in August 1996.{{cite web|title=Ali Partovi on LinkedIn|url=https://www.linkedin.com/in/apartovi|publisher=LinkedIn|access-date=10 July 2015}} Alfred Lin dropped out of his Stanford PhD program to join as CFO.{{Cite web|title=Alfred Lin Has The Midas Touch: The Man With $2 Billion In Acquisitions Under His Belt|url=https://techcrunch.com/2009/07/28/alfred-lin-has-the-midas-touch-the-man-with-2-billion-in-acquisitions-under-his-belt/|access-date=2021-10-15|website=TechCrunch|date=28 July 2009|language=en-US}} In November 1996, when the company consisted of about 10 people, it moved from Hsieh's and Madan's living room to an office{{cite web|url=http://linkexchange.com/compinfo/comp_index.html |title=Company Info |publisher=LinkExchange.com |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/19980128015233/http://linkexchange.com/compinfo/comp_index.html |archive-date=January 28, 1998 |url-status=dead
}} in San Francisco. In May 1997, the company received US$3 million in funding from Sequoia Capital.{{cite book|title=LinkExchange: King of Niche and Reach|url=http://docs.rinet.ru/WebBazar/ch09/ch09.htm#Heading14|work=Net Results: Web Marketing That Works|year=1998|publisher=Hayden Books|isbn=1-56830-414-5|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080725052228/http://docs.rinet.ru/WebBazar/ch09/ch09.htm#Heading14|archive-date=2008-07-25
}}{{copyvio link}}
In June 1998, LinkExchange acquired MerchantPlanet, an early shopping cart and credit card application.{{cite web|url= http://adage.com/article?article_id=65386|title= LinkExchange buys e-commerce site|publisher= Advertising Age|date= June 22, 1998
}} That same month it also acquired Submit It! Inc., developers of Submit It!, ClickTrade, and ListBot.{{cite web|url= http://www.clickz.com/clickz/news/1704870/linkexchange-acquires-submit-it|title= LinkExchange Acquires Submit It!|publisher= ClickZ|date= June 24, 1998
}}
In November 1998, when LinkExchange had 100 employees, it was acquired by Microsoft{{cite web|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB910216110299783500|title= Microsoft Buys LinkExchange For About $250 Million in Stock|publisher= Wall Street Journal|date= November 5, 1998
}} for US$265 million.{{cite web|url= http://www.zappos.com/bios.zhtml|title= Bios: Tony HsieL|publisher= Zappos.com
}}
LinkExchange stopped taking new applications on November 15, 2006. On June 4, 2007 it stopped serving banners.{{cite web |url=https://www.hashemian.com/blog/2007/05/microsofts-bcentral-linkexchange-banner-network-shuts-down.htm | title=Microsoft's bCentral LinkExchange Banner Network Shuts Down| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111102174037/https://www.hashemian.com/blog/2007/05/microsofts-bcentral-linkexchange-banner-network-shuts-down.htm| archive-date=2011-11-02}}