The former owner of social networking site Bebo has re-invested in the ailing company which was sold off for a fraction of the price AOL paid for it.
Michael Birch originally sold Bebo to AOL for $850m (£540m) in 2008.Its fading fortunes led AOL to dump Bebo for a reported $10m earlier in 2010.
Over the last couple of years Bebo has struggled to remain a force as Facebook has grown to become the world's biggest social network.
"Things have moved on since the sale and I have a lot of thoughts and ideas about how to make Bebo relevant again," Mr Birch told BBC News.
"It is exciting to be part of a company I founded and see what we can do to make Bebo a meaningful player in the world of social networking again."
As well as making an unnamed but "significant" investment, Mr Birch will also be an advisor to the company working on new products and being "quite hands on".
Bebo's new owners are venture funding firm Criterion Capital Partners.
The company's chief executive officer Adam Levin said after years of neglect by AOL, Mr Birch will be a valuable asset for the company.
The former owner of social networking site Bebo has re-invested in the ailing company which was sold off for a fraction of the price AOL paid for it.
Michael Birch originally sold Bebo to AOL for $850m (£540m) in 2008.Its fading fortunes led AOL to dump Bebo for a reported $10m earlier in 2010.
Over the last couple of years Bebo has struggled to remain a force as Facebook has grown to become the world's biggest social network.
"Things have moved on since the sale and I have a lot of thoughts and ideas about how to make Bebo relevant again," Mr Birch told BBC News.
"It is exciting to be part of a company I founded and see what we can do to make Bebo a meaningful player in the world of social networking again."
As well as making an unnamed but "significant" investment, Mr Birch will also be an advisor to the company working on new products and being "quite hands on".
Bebo's new owners are venture funding firm Criterion Capital Partners.
The company's chief executive officer Adam Levin said after years of neglect by AOL, Mr Birch will be a valuable asset for the company.
Source: BB News