Andrew Conru, CEO of Friend Finder, answers this question in his High-Order Bit presentation at the Web 2.0 Conference.

CEO Andrew Conru founded the FriendFinder Network in 1996, just as the world was awakening to the Internet revolution. His primary goal was to harness the power of the Net to help people around the world develop and nurture fulfilling relationships.

A cyberspace pioneer, Andrew is one of the first "netrepreneurs," founding more than 25 online advertising and software companies. These early e-commerce ventures include W3, Inc., which was the first company to develop commercial software for membership management, and Adknowledge, which developed centralized web-based advertising. Other companies founded by Andrew include StudyOnline, the Web Personals, and the Dine.com Restaurant Guide Network.

Andrew holds a Ph.D. in mechanical engineering design from Stanford University, with bachelor degrees in economics from the Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology and mechanical engineering from the University of Minnesota.

This is a presentation delivered at the Web 2.0 Conference held in San Francisco, CA, October 5-7, 2004. Our thanks go to MediaLive International and O'Reilly Media, the producers of Web 2.0, for permission to bring you this session, one of many from Web 2.0 here on IT Conversations.