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CouchSurfing

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For other uses, see Couch surfing (disambiguation).
Couchsurfing International Inc.
Type of businessC corporation[1]
Founded2 April 2003 (New Hampshire nonprofit organization)[2]
3 May 2011 (Delaware for-profit corporation)[3]
Area servedGlobal
FounderCasey Fenton
Daniel Hoffer
Sebastian Le Tuan
Leonardo Bassani da Silveira [4]
Key peoplePatrick Dugan, CEO
Francesco Deparis, CFO[5]
ProductsHomestay
ServicesSocial networking service
Employees11–50[6]
URLwww.couchsurfing.com Edit this at Wikidata
Users15,000,000 users[7]
4,000,000 surfers/year[7]
400,000 active hosts[7]
Launched12 June 2004; 21 years ago (2004-06-12)[8]

CouchSurfing is a global homestay and social networking service accessible via a website and mobile app. Members can request lodging publicly or directly from other members,[10] "hangout" with other members,[11] or join/create events.[12][13] The platform is also used for casual dating; harassment is against the terms of service.[14] Members set up user profiles on which other members can post reviews.[15]

As of March 2020 members in most developed countries must either pay a fee of approximately US$2/month or US$15/year to use the platform.[16] Members can also pay a one-time US$60 charge to have their name and identification verified, adding a layer of security.[17]

History

Conception (1999–2004)

Couchsurfing was conceived by computer programmer and New Hampshire native Casey Fenton in 1999, when he was 21 years old.[1][18][19] The idea arose after Fenton found a cheap flight from Boston to Iceland but did not have lodging. Fenton hacked into a database of the University of Iceland and randomly e-mailed 1,500 students asking for a homestay. He received between 50 and 100 offers and chose to stay at the home of an Icelandic rhythm and blues singer.[18] On the return flight to Boston, he came up with the idea to create the website. He registered the couchsurfing.com domain name on 12 June 1999.[18][20]

Couchsurfing International Inc. was formed on 2 April 2003 as a New Hampshire nonprofit corporation,[2] with plans to apply for 501(c)(3) tax exemption.

The website was launched on 12 June 2004[18] with the cooperation of Dan Hoffer, Sebastien Le Tuan, and Leonardo Silveira.[19]

Development of the website by volunteers (2006–2011)

From 2006 until the company raised financing in 2011, development of the website occurred mostly at events called "Couchsurfing Collectives", in which members met to voluntarily improve the website.[18] Collectives took place in Montreal, Vienna, New Zealand, Rotterdam, Costa Rica, Samara, Alaska, Istanbul, and Thailand.[18][21] However, the collectively-coded website was full of software bugs and crashes were common. Many members believed that the website needed to be redesigned from scratch.[22]

In June 2006, problems with the website database resulted in much of it being irrevocably lost.[18][23][22] Founder Casey Fenton posted online asking for help.[24] A Couchsurfing Collective was underway in Montreal at the time and those in attendance raised $8,000 in donations and committed to recreate the website.[18] In 2007, Google search volume for couchsurfing.org overtook the search volume for its major competitor Hospitality Club, after the one of Hospitality Club peaked in 2006.[25]

Change to a for-profit corporation and financing (2011)

The company applied for 501(c)(3) tax status as a nonprofit organization in November 2007 but tax exempt status was rejected by the Internal Revenue Service in early 2011.[1][26] After researching alternatives, advice from lawyers, the need for additional financial resources, and competition from Airbnb, management decided that the non profit company would sell its assets to a newly founded for-profit corporation.[26][1]

The New Hampshire non-profit Couchsurfing International Inc. was dissolved on 4 November 2011.[2] Its assets were sold to a private for-profit Delaware C corporation, also called Couchsurfing International, Inc., which was formed on 3 May 2011.[3][27][28]

In 2011 Casey Fenton directed a blog post to concerns over the for-profit privatization of the website, "[t]he CouchSurfing features that you use today will continue to be free. If you’re worried that we are going to start charging you to be a part of the CouchSurfing community, don’t... Just because we’re not a non-profit doesn’t mean we’re actually “for” profit. CouchSurfing is not for sale, and money is [not our] goal." [29]

The company was briefly certified as a B corporation, but that certification was eventually removed.[30][1][31][32]

In the August 24, 2011, blog post announcement Casey Fenton confused a B Corporation (certification) with a Benefit corporation, "As a B (Benefit) Corporation, CouchSurfing will be part of a group of innovative businesses that deliver products and services with a commitment to social and environmental responsibility, transparency, fair work conditions, and doing good for the world... CouchSurfing will never make you pay to host and surf."[33] Couchsurfing was not a Benefit Corporation, and Delaware did not permit incorporation as a Benefit corporation until 2013, yet the error received widespread publication.[34] [35]

In August 2011, in conjunction with the reorganization to a for-profit corporation, the company raised $7.6 million in a first-round financing led by Benchmark Capital and Omidyar Network.[36][37][38][39]

In 2012 Tony Espinoza said in en interview: "Even as the site looks for additional revenue streams, the co-founders promise that hosting and surfing will always remain free."[1]

In August 2012, Couchsurfing received an additional $15 million in funding from an investor group led by General Catalyst Partners, with participation by Menlo Ventures, as well as existing investors Benchmark Capital and Omidyar Network. The additional funding brought the company's total funding raised to $22.6 million.[27] The founders claim that they did not receive any cash from the financing.[30]

Criticism from members of the conversion to a for-profit corporation

The guiding principles of the original non profit organisation promised that CouchSurfing operates as a nonprofit. This promise was broken by Fenton and Hoffer. [1] The conversion to a for-profit corporation was objected to by many members.[22][40][41] Founder Casey Fenton said he received 1,500 emails in the days after announcing the conversion.[1] The company spent more than $10,000 on a public relations firm to educate its directors on how to respond to the press about the conversion to a for-profit entity. A 3-page letter was sent to over 1,000 volunteers.[1]

Launch and development of mobile apps

In 2012, the company launched mobile apps for iOS and Android.[42] In June 2016, the company added a feature called "hangouts" that enables members to quickly meet with other nearby members.[11][43]

Management turnover (2012–2015)

Jennifer Billock, CEO of CouchSurfing from October 2013 to October 2015

Co-founder Dan Hoffer served as CEO from 2011[36] to 2012, Tony Espinoza served as CEO from 2012 to 2013,[37] and Jennifer Billock served as CEO from 2013 to 2015.[44] Casey Fenton is no longer involved in the day-to-day operations of the company.[45]

Change to membership fee revenue model (2020)

In May 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, the company instituted a permanent membership fee in some countries. Members who previously paid for "Lifetime Verification," were granted access until May 2021, after which, members who paid for Lifetime Verification will not be able to log in or access their account unless they pay the new fee. [16] [46]

According to a post in the Nikkei Asian Review the implementation of the membership fee led to anger and criticism.[47]

Membership statistics

In 2017, Dan Fultz, head of support and safety, stated that "Couchsurfing activity certainly dipped between the 'heyday' and today".[48] Active memberships however are a small percentage of overall registered members.

Date Members Ref
June 2004 0 (Launch)
June 2005 6,000 [26]
June 2006 90,000 [23]
March 2007 173,000 [49]
April 2007 200,000 [50]
July 2007 240,000 [51]
August 2007 285,000 [52]
September 2007 300,000 [53]
August 2008 600,000 [54]
December 2008 790,000 [55]
March 2009 1,000,000 [56]
August 2009 1,300,000 [57]
January 2011 2,500,000 [58]
February 2011 2,400,000 [59]
August 2011 3,000,000 [40]
April 2012 3,965,492 [60]
October 2013 6,000,000 [42]
October 2014 9,000,000 [61][62]
October 2015 10,000,000 [63]
February 2016 11,000,000 [64]
January 2018 15,000,000, including 400,000 active hosts [7]
September 2018 Roughly 12,000,000 [65]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i Lapowesky, Issie (29 May 2012). "Couchsurfing Dilemma: Going for Profit". Inc.
  2. ^ a b c "Business Information: COUCHSURFING INTERNATIONAL INC". New Hampshire Department of State.
  3. ^ a b "State of Delaware corporate entity search – enter "couchsurfing"".
  4. ^ "Couchsurfing: about us".
  5. ^ "Business Search – Results". California Secretary of State.
  6. ^ "Crunchbase: Couchsurfing.com". TechCrunch.
  7. ^ a b c d van Brugen, Isabel (13 January 2018). "Deal watch: budget travel". The Times.
  8. ^ "Where are you celebrating International Couchsurfing Day on June 12?". 2 June 2016.
  9. ^ "Alexa Internet: Couchsurfing.com". Alexa Internet.
  10. ^ "How do I Create or Delete a Public Trip?". Couchsurfing.
  11. ^ a b "Product Update: Make a new friend with Couchsurfing Hangouts!". Couchsurfing. 28 June 2016.
  12. ^ "Global Couchsurfing Event Calendar". Couchsurfing.
  13. ^ "How do I join an event?". Couchsurfing.
  14. ^ Zigos, Julianne (7 December 2013). "Couchsurfing's Sex Secret: It's The Greatest Hook-Up App Ever Devised". Business Insider.
  15. ^ "How can I submit references and feedback for other members?". Couchsurfing.
  16. ^ a b "Couchsurfing needs your help". Couchsurfing.
  17. ^ "Verification Payment Questions". Couchsurfing.
  18. ^ a b c d e f g h Camillo, Angelo A. (17 August 2015). Handbook of Research on Global Hospitality and Tourism Management. IGI Global.
  19. ^ a b Moran, Gwen (9 December 2011). "How CouchSurfing Got its Start, and Landed VC Millions". Entrepreneur.
  20. ^ "Whois Record for CouchSurfing.com".
  21. ^ Barnett, George A. (7 September 2011). Encyclopedia of Social Networks. SAGE Publications.
  22. ^ a b c DeAmicis, Carmel (10 January 2015). "How Couchsurfing became the Friendster of the sharing economy". Gigaom.
  23. ^ a b Arrington, Michael (29 June 2006). "CouchSurfing Deletes Itself, Shuts Down". TechCrunch.
  24. ^ Fenton, Casey (28 June 2006). "Help! - Innodb and MyISAM accidental DROP DATABASE – 112 tables gone forever?". forums.mysql.com.
  25. ^ Rustam Tagiew; Dmitry I. Ignatov; Radhakrishnan Delhibabu (2015). Hospitality Exchange Services as a Source of Spatial and Social Data?. (IEEE) International Conference on Data Mining Workshop (ICDMW). Atlantic City. pp. 1125–1130. doi:10.1109/ICDMW.2015.239.
  26. ^ a b c Longenecker, Justin G.; Petty, J. William; Palich, Leslie E.; Hoy, Frank (15 January 2016). Small Business Management: Launching & Growing Entrepreneurial Ventures. Cengage.
  27. ^ a b Gallagher, Billy (22 August 2012). "CouchSurfing Raises $15 Million Series B From General Catalyst Partners, Menlo Ventures, Others". TechCrunch.
  28. ^ Perlroth, Nicole (24 August 2011). "Non-Profit CouchSurfing Raises Millions In Funding". Forbes.
  29. ^ "A letter from co-founder Casey Fenton". Couchsurfing.
  30. ^ a b "Myths and Facts: Couchsurfing's conversion to a B Corp". Couchsurfing. 14 September 2011.
  31. ^ "CouchSurfing becomes a B Corp". American City Business Journals. 27 January 2012.
  32. ^ Baker, Vicky (26 August 2011). "Not-for-profit Couchsurfing becomes a company (with a conscience)". The Guardian.
  33. ^ "A New Era For Couchsurfing". Couchsurfing.
  34. ^ "Delaware Unveils Public Benefit Corporation Legislation". Delaware.gov.
  35. ^ Tan, Jun-E (2012). "6". “Building Trust In Electronic To Face Social Network Sites: Case Study Of Couchsurfing.Org” (PDF) (Excerpt On CS History). Nanyang Technological University.
  36. ^ a b "CouchSurfing Raises $7.6 Million in Series A From Benchmark Capital and Omidyar Network to Expand Services and Fuel Growth in Cultural Exchange Network" (Press release). PR Newswire. 25 August 2011.
  37. ^ a b Vivion, Nick (11 October 2013). "CouchSurfing CEO steps down amid layoffs, uncertainty". Phocuswire.
  38. ^ Tweney, Dylan (24 August 2011). "Benchmark plops down $7.6M to make Couchsurfing into a for-profit". VentureBeat.
  39. ^ DeLuca, Matt (30 August 2011). "CouchSurfing Just Closed A $7.6 Million Round Of Funding". Business Insider.
  40. ^ a b Johnson, Bobbie (1 September 2011). "After going for-profit, CouchSurfing faces user revolt". Gigaom.
  41. ^ Roudman, Sam (7 November 2013). "How to Lose Funds and Infuriate Users: Couchsurfing, a Cautionary Tale From the Sharing Economy". techPresident.
  42. ^ a b Graham, Jefferson (12 October 2013). "Couchsurfing your way to a free place to stay". USA Today.
  43. ^ Jacobs, Harrison (17 January 2018). "A little-known travel app that is Airbnb-meets-Tinder helped me have the wildest night in Tokyo partying until sunrise". Business Insider.
  44. ^ Lunden, Ingrid (10 October 2013). "Tony Espinoza Steps Down As CEO Of Couchsurfing, Jennifer Billock Steps Up As Interim As Startup Lays Off Staff, "Doubles Down" On Mobile". TechCrunch.
  45. ^ Chan, Nathan (15 May 2018). "112: The Crazy Origin Story of Sharing Economy Pioneer Couchsurfing.com with Casey Fenton". Foundr.
  46. ^ "Verification Payment Questions". Couchsurfing.
  47. ^ Ferrarese, Marco (24 June 2020). "Pandemic hits 'couchsurfing' travel bug". Nikkei Asian Review.
  48. ^ Coca, Nithin (13 October 2017). "Why hasn't there been a new Couchsurfing?". The Daily Dot.
  49. ^ Ward, Terry (11 March 2007). "Divan Intervention". The Washington Post.
  50. ^ Sokolov, Daniel (22 April 2007). "200.000 User: CouchSurfing liegt im Trend". heise online.
  51. ^ "Couch surfing around the world". The Daily Telegraph. 30 July 2007.
  52. ^ Olds, Jacqueline; Schwartz, Richard S. "The Lonely American: Drifting Apart in the Twenty-First Century" (EPUB).
  53. ^ Green, Penelope (20 September 2007). "Surfing the World Wide Couch". The New York Times.
  54. ^ Thomas, Daniel (14 August 2008). "Couch-surfing: going it alone". The Daily Telegraph.
  55. ^ Weiss, Jennifer (19 December 2008). "Catch a Wave: Giving CouchSurfing a Chance". NJ.com.
  56. ^ Gross, Matt (12 April 2009). "FRUGAL TRAVELER; 3 Cushions, a Million Guests". The New York Times.
  57. ^ McKenna, Brittney (1 August 2009). "Couch surfing the USA". Chattanooga Times Free Press.
  58. ^ Baker, Vicky (22 January 2011). "How to stay with a local". The Guardian.
  59. ^ Kittle, Cody (15 February 2011). "Adventures in Couch Surfing: One Sojourner's Truth". Time.
  60. ^ Marx, Patricia (16 April 2012). "You're Welcome". The New Yorker.
  61. ^ Burns, Hilary (22 October 2014). "She's trying to turn Couchsurfing into a profitable business. And she's got her hands full". American City Business Journals.
  62. ^ Line, Harriet (21 August 2014). "Couchsurfing: would you sleep with a stranger?". The Daily Telegraph.
  63. ^ McAlone, Nathan (13 October 2015). "Best traveling-and-working apps". Business Insider.
  64. ^ Saiidi, Uptin (12 February 2016). "Office Envy: Inside CouchSurfing's San Francisco workspace". CNBC.
  65. ^ Shaffer, Randi (5 September 2018). "Meet the Chicagoans who let strangers sleep in their homes — free of charge". Chicago Tribune.
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