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The way it was perceived in Indonesia, is that Path had been bought by the Bakrie group.

I think in the bigger scheme of things, the $25M is a 'marketing' money well spent. Reason being, Aburizal Bakrie looks to run for the presidential election and this investment provided him with a very positive image.



A positive image to invest in Bay Area companies with products that are going nowhere, rather than investing in his own people in his own country???


Yes, believe it or not.

Path's brand image is still relatively intact in Indonesia, as compared to USA (where the privacy concerns has tarnished it).

It's all to do with one's status, and Indonesian election is more or less a popularity contest. Of course, you'd get more points in investing in a household name (i.e. Path), especially being a 'Western' company.

The effect is similar to Erick Thohir's [1] stake in Intermilan, D.C. United, and 76ers. He's probably more popular than the President right now ;)

[1] - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erick_Thohir


Wow. Really interesting. And really sad, if you think about it. But okay...




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