The Music Swapper – Shawn Fanning: "This was such a weird time for us. We were living in San Mateo, about a block from the Napster offices. Rolling Stone had come to photograph. At that point, Napster had already experienced massive growth, but it didn't seem real. Then the mainstream press came around, and it was just a whirlwind, total craziness. The amount of exposure made me really nervous. The funny thing about this photo is that the whole thing is contrived. We actually were total slobs, but this was the first time anyone had come to the house, so we'd picked the place up. Then they wanted to contrive this whole mess to make us into stereotypical geeks, I guess. They were actually like, 'Here, hold this guitar.' The reason Sean Parker looks asleep is because he actually was. I remember we really just wanted it to be over so we could go back to work. If you think about computer programming, it's as antisocial as it gets. If you're a musician or actor, you know that if you're successful, some level of fame goes along with that. You're prepared. But how often does that happen to a programmer?"
– Interview by Jeff Howe
Timeline: 2000 $105 billion – Amount of venture capital invested in 2000, up from $8 billion in 1995.
Jan: Seventeen dotcoms spend $2.2 million each for 30-second ads during the Super Bowl. By year's end, three are dead.
Dow Jones Industrial Average tops out at 11,722.98.
AOL announces plans to buy Time Warner. Steve Case gives Gerald Levin a $160 billion manhug.
Mar: The bubble springs a leak. Nasdaq peaks at 5,048.62, then sinks 74 percent in 30 months.
Apr: Lars attacks! Metallica files suit against Napster, alleging that Shawn Fanning & Co. encouraged users to share the band's music illegally.
Jun: Average Silicon Valley tech worker's income tops out at $80,000 – but median home price reaches $530,000. Salaries begin to drop; housing costs don't.
The June issues of Business 2.0, eCompany Now, The Industry Standard, Red Herring, Upside, and Wired together tip the scales at 10 pounds. Within three years, four of the six magazines are gone.
Dec: Pets.com is the first publicly held dotcom to bite the dust. Woof!
Fanning (top) with Napster cofounder Sean Parker in their San Mateo, California, apartment in May 2000. Corbis
10 Years That Changed the World
| Intro
A Decade of Genius and Madness
