TWO TEENAGE Limerick brothers have shared in a multimillion-dollar payday following the sale of their fledgling software company, Auctomatic, to publicly quoted Canadian firm Live Current Media. JOHN COLLINSreports
Patrick (19) and John (17) Collison are two of the four main shareholders in the US-registered company. The sale price is thought to be in excess of $5 million (€3.2 million).
"I can't say how much the purchase price was, but I have become a millionaire," said Patrick, a former BT Young Scientist of the Year winner.
It is understood two large US internet companies bid against Live Current Media, driving up the price. Patrick and John's partners in the firm are British citizens Harjeet and Kulveer Taggar.
Auctomatic provides web-based software for heavy users of the eBay auction site which enables them to manage inventory more efficiently. The service launched last summer.
It received backing from private US investors, including Chris Sacca and Paul Buchheit, former executives of internet giant Google.
Patrick won the BT Young Scientist of the Year competition in 2005 for his development of a new programming language, Croma, which simplifies the way web applications can be built. He then began study at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the US, but deferred his place to concentrate on the start-up.
The Collison brothers established a company in early 2007 in Limerick but were unable to secure funding from Enterprise Ireland or other early-stage investors.
They successfully sought funding and support from influential Silicon Valley incubator Y Combinator, and relocated to California last summer. Y Combinator had three months previously backed a similar UK-based start-up by the Taggar cousins and, on the investor's suggestion, the two firms merged.
Patrick will become director of engineering with Live Current Media in Vancouver. John will remain in Limerick to finish his Leaving Cert at Castletroy College but plans to spend this summer working for the new owners. "I'm thrilled," said John. "I might buy a car. Then again, I might have enough money for that, but not the insurance at my age."
Live Current Media, formerly Communicate.com, had a turnover of $8.4 million in its 2006 financial year and has a market capitalisation of $57.69 million. It owns internet addresses such as perfume.com, cricket.com, brazil.com and karate.com, which will now be developed using Auctomatic's software.