Episode 22: Zillow + Trulia (with Zillow Group CFO Kathleen Philips)

CFO of Zillow Group Kathleen Philips joins Ben and David to cover the show’s first true “merger” versus “acquisition" (only took 22 episodes!), Zillow’s 2015 combination with Trulia to form Zillow Group. Note: our audio glitches unfortunately continued on this episode, and quality is rough. We recommend listening on speakers vs headphones if you’re able. We apologize and will be back to normal quality next time!

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Topics covered include:

• Zillow and Trulia’s beginnings during the “Web 2.0” era in the mid-2000’s
• Zillow, Trulia and other online players’ place within the massive US real estate market
• The lengthy “dance" between Zillow and Trulia and earlier aborted merger talks between the two
• The difficulty of "true mergers” among private companies and why the path is easier for public companies
• Public company shareholders’ influence and role in M&A transactions
• Details of the blazingly fast negotiations (27 days start to finish!) per disclosures in the SEC filings (scroll down to "Background of the Mergers”)
• Structuring the deal and incentivizing Trulia and Zillow mangers to stay and continue growing as separate brands
• Trulia cofounder Sami Inkinen’s whereabouts during the merger negotiations
• The experience going through a lengthy FTC review of the merger, and defining what the relevant “market” is the FTC should be considering
• Introducing our new acquisition category: a “timeline acquisition” ;) (h/t Kathleen)
• Zillow Group’s overall approach to acquisitions, folding into its broader HR strategy
• Zillow founder Rich Barton’s startup thesis of searching for "What piece of marketplace information do people crave and don’t have?"

Followups:

• Snap Inc. Spectacles!

Hot Takes:

• Twitter-Disney rumors, according to “people familiar with matter”!
• AppLovin’s journey from bootstrapped startup to $1.4B exit

The Carve Out:

• Ben: The Marvel Symphonic Universe
• David: Shoe Dog by Phil Knight
• Kathleen: The Struts