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Couchsurfing nearly doubles its community but risks losing loyal users in rebranding
DigitalCouchsurfing began with a start as humble as many of its members’ piggy banks. The website connecting travelers with local couches around the world grew a tight-knit community through word-of-mouth recommendations. The organization is now undergoing a major revamp fueled by a new CEO and its most recent $15 million round of funding led by General Catalyst [...]
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Whose responsibility is it to protect women who travel through CouchSurfing.com?
RoomsAccording to CouchSurfing’s policies, reporting that a user has attempted sexual assault is not enough to ban him or her from the community. “Because we are not there to witness events, we rely on members to talk about their experience with one another through references,” Safety Team Coordinator Rachel diCerbo eventually responded to Ulto. “We certainly empathize [...]
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Investors bet $15 million more on CouchSurfing’s sharing economy
DigitalSome high-profile investors want to share in hoped-for profits from the sharing economy as CouchSurfing closed on $15 million in funding in a round led by General Catalyst Partners. General Catalyst Partners — which has backed Kayak, ITA Software, Airbnb, and Sabre — is the new lead investor, supplanting Benchmark Capital, which participated in the [...]
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Couchsurfing to expand beyond rabid userbase; likely take on Airbnb
Rooms“While millions of nights had been booked via Couchsurfing.org, many, many more parties, meet ups, and other kinds of connections had been made via the site, and that’s where the true community of Couchsurfing lies.”
