So you thought Ross Levinsohn, the News Corp exec who saw his stature grow after masterminding the acquisition of MySpace, left voluntarily?
AlwaysOn’s Tony Perkins, however, provides the real scoop (click on image).
According to Perkins, Levinsohn (pictured left) was forced out when News Corp discovered that Levinsohn was raising money to start his own venture fund. VentureBeat confirmed this Thursday with someone who had talked with Levinsohn.
Here’s what Perkins tells the D7TV interviewer: “He got raising money for another deal. So the chief operating officer Peter Chernin, who works for Rupert as his right hand man—when his kids aren’t running the place, called Ross into his office and said, ‘Is this true, that you’re raising this half a billion dollar roll-up fund?…And he [Chernin] goes, ‘Are you either in or your out?’ And he [Levinsohn] said, ‘Well, I guess I’m out.”
(Via Dealbreaker.)
4:32 am
Ross Levinsohn raised a half billion for his own venture? « Technically Speaking said:
[...] I guess you can be the judge on this one, but this was being reported in VentureBeat as well as Dealbreaker today or late last evening. Watch the video on d7tv. You can click on the picture; yes that is actual footage from the party. [...]
6:30 pm
VentureBeat » Levinsohn and Miller form Internet roll-up fund said:
[...] Velocity Investment Group, according to the WSJ, and sounds very much like the plan Levinsohn was rumored to be making last November. According to that rumor, he was caught raising an Internet “roll-up” fund while [...]